Latest news with #LewisPugh
USA Today
12 hours ago
- Entertainment
- USA Today
Will we need a bigger boat? Martha's Vineyard awash in 'Jaws' at 50 mania
Will we need a bigger boat? Martha's Vineyard awash in 'Jaws' at 50 mania Amid a feeding frenzy of interest in the 50-year movie milestone, the island is celebrating and educating on all things sharks. Show Caption Hide Caption Athlete marks 'Jaws' 50th anniversary with 60-mile swim Swimmer Lewis Pugh circumnavigated Martha's Vineyard to mark the 50th anniversary of the movie "Jaws" and draw attention to the plight of sharks. In the summer of 1974, A. Bowdoin Van Riper had just gotten out of school when Hollywood came to town. Van Riper, then 11 years old, went down to the beach on Martha's Vineyard with a friend to watch the filming of what would become Steven Spielberg's 'Jaws." When a crew member called out for volunteers, the two raced into the water and pretended to panic for a scene in which two kids frighten swimmers using a cardboard fin. 'It was a very, very short brush with Hollywood, but it is still − after 50 years − cool to know that I played a very, very, very small part in helping the film get made,' Van Riper said. Like many locals who helped create the first summer blockbuster, Van Riper is now gearing up for an elaborate, summer-long celebration of the 50th anniversary of "Jaws." Upon its release on June 20, 1975, 'Jaws' struck fear in the hearts of beachgoers nationwide, leading to an increase in shark phobias and trophy hunting that helped decimate shark populations. Though viewers say the movie scared them away from beaches, pools and even bath tubs for a time, that fear has become an American fascination. 'Jaws' fandom has become a huge tourism draw for the island and some proprietors are expecting their biggest summer ever. As the population − and reputation − of sharks off the coast of Massachusetts has begun to rebound, many are using the 50th anniversary of "Jaws" to remind the public how important sharks are and how to stay safe as beachgoers increasingly find themselves in close proximity to the predators. 'At the time 'Jaws' came out, we virtually knew nothing about sharks and nobody knew how important of a role they play in their ecosystem,' said Megan Winton, a scientist at the Atlantic White Shark Conservancy on nearby Cape Cod. 'We're still honestly learning new things about that every day, but learning how to live with great white sharks is tough.' 'Jaws' scared swimmers out of the ocean: See the real locations of Amity's terror 'Jaws' fans flooding Martha's Vineyard On Martha's Vineyard − the real-life version of Spielberg's fictional Amity Island − planning for the 50th anniversary of "Jaws" has been in the works for years. There will be screenings of the film and a documentary about its production, a live performance of the movie's famous score, and parties where fans can meet some of the cast and crew, said Erica Ashton and Alessandra Hagerty, executive and deputy directors of the Martha's Vineyard Chamber of Commerce. Most shops and restaurants are decked out with "Jaws"-themed merchandise from custom-poured shark candles to a bloody-looking cranberry sweet treat at Murdick's Fudge. Even the local baseball team − the Sharks − will be playing this weekend. 'There's like 'Jaws' mania, pretty much,' Hagerty said. In the peak summer months, the island can see as many as 200,000 visitors, according to the Chamber of Commerce. But with hotels fully booked and anniversary weekend events nearly all sold out, officials are expecting a surge of visitors that could be tens of thousands higher than normal, far exceeding previous events related to the film. Michael Currid said he has already had 'exponentially more' advance bookings for his 'Jaws' walking tour than he has in the past 15 years. 'I'm confident that, at least from the 'Jaws' side, this will be my biggest season ever,' said Currid, owner of Edgartown Tour Company. Currid leads groups on walking tours of Edgartown that mirror the path taken by one of the film's protagonists, police chief Martin Brody, played by Roy Scheider. On his full island tour, he takes visitors to filming locations farther afield such as the fishing village of Menemsha, where Brody and grizzled shark hunter Quint, portrayed by Robert Shaw, set sail. Often, Currid pulls up clips from the movie on his iPad to show tourists just how little has changed on the island since the film was shot. 'One home may have added bay windows,' he said. 'On one street that I show, the biggest change is the color of the fire hydrant.' Cape Cod's white sharks: The new stars of eco-tourism 'Jaws' events urge tourists to 'respect the locals' "Jaws" fans have already begun flocking to the Martha's Vineyard Museum to check out memorabilia and movie props such as the one-eyed head of a fisherman attacked by the shark in the film. The exhibition, which dominates the museum's entire second floor, has been five years in the making, according to Cathy Mayone, the museum's managing director. 'We've been very busy ever since Memorial Day, when we opened up the exhibit, and we are seeing a lot of people,' she said. 'Every day I walk through the museum and I talk to people that are visiting the island for the first time.' Though much of the programming focuses on the islanders who helped make the movie, the museum will also hold a lesson on sharks for kids and a talk by ocean conservation advocate Wendy Benchley, widow of "Jaws" author Peter Benchley, Mayone said. Both the late Benchley and Spielberg have expressed regret for the impact the book and the film had on real sharks. 'Part of our exhibit about 'Jaws' is a room devoted to teaching people more about sharks as a species, and efforts to understand them, protect them,' said Van Riper, the museum's research librarian who is gearing up to deliver a three-hour deep dive on the film to a sold-out crowd. 'So we hope we can do our bit to promote that whole 'respect the locals' attitude toward them.' Locals aren't the only ones using the anniversary to draw attention to the threats facing sharks. Lewis Pugh, a long distance swimmer from England, braved the island's chilly waters in just a pair of speedos, a swim cap and goggles in a bid to raise awareness. Pugh embarked on a brutal 12-day swim around Martha's Vineyard not long after the first shark sighting of the season in the area. Though he didn't spot any sharks on this journey, he did feel wary in the water after breaking the unspoken rule among swimmers by talking so frequently about the animals. 'I saw ("Jaws") when I was about 12 years old. I haven't seen it again. I'm frightened of sharks. I'm normal, OK?' he said with a laugh. 'But I'm terrified of a world without sharks.' Though more than a third of Americans say they're afraid of sharks and some attribute that fear to "Jaws" directly, Pugh said sharks are the ones in real danger. Sharks bite just a few dozen people each year, but humans kill millions of sharks worldwide. Pugh − who celebrated finishing the swim with an ice cream on the beach before heading to a U.N. conference on oceans in France − called the killings 'an ecocide.' 'We need to, No. 1, educate ourselves about them. No. 2, we need to respect them. And then lastly, we really need to protect them.' Shark research and conservation still has 'a long way to go' Great white shark populations in the Atlantic may have declined by as much as 70% before they were designated as a prohibited species in most American waters in 1997, said Winton, of the Atlantic White Shark Conservancy. Populations around Massachusetts began to rebound as protections increased for sharks and seals, their preferred prey, Winton said. 'What we're seeing on Cape Cod, really is, it's a huge conservation success story,' she said. With that success comes new challenges. The animals spend about half their time hunting for seals in shallow waters offshore, and when swimmers and surfers get in their way, deadly encounters can occur, Winton said. In the summer of 2018, one man narrowly survived after being bitten by a shark on the Cape Cod National Seashore, and another died after a shark bit him while he was boogie-boarding. 'People were scared. They wanted to do something about it, and so there were calls for lethal control measures,' Winton said. Winton said conflicts with humans remain the biggest threat to white sharks in the waters of Massachusetts, adding that researchers have increasingly come across sharks with boat strike injuries. White sharks are still considered 'vulnerable,' one step below endangered, by the World Wildlife Fund and the International Union for Conservation of Nature Red List of Threatened Species. And though "Jaws," particularly actor Richard Dreyfuss' portrayal of oceanographer Matt Hooper, has inspired many marine biologists to study white sharks, Winton said researchers still don't have answers to basic questions about their biology, such as where they mate and give birth. 'We've come a long way since 'Jaws' in terms of shark conservation and our understanding of sharks and our appreciation for them and how important they are to the health of our oceans,' Winton said. 'But we've still got a long way to go.'
USA Today
4 days ago
- Entertainment
- USA Today
50 fun facts about 'Jaws' as the movie celebrates the big 5-0
50 fun facts about 'Jaws' as the movie celebrates the big 5-0 Show Caption Hide Caption Athlete marks 'Jaws' 50th anniversary with 60-mile swim Swimmer Lewis Pugh circumnavigated Martha's Vineyard to mark the 50th anniversary of the movie "Jaws" and draw attention to the plight of sharks. Oh, the shark has pretty teeth, dear. And he showed them, pearly white, exactly 50 years ago this June − when the movie "Jaws" made its sensational splash. Remember the screams in the theater as Chrissie (Susan Backlinie) was dragged under the water in that harrowing first sequence? Remember the banter of those three men in a boat (Roy Scheider, Robert Shaw and Richard Dreyfuss) as they track down the monster responsible for destroying tourist season on the fictional Amity Island? "Jaws," released June 20, 1975, is often cited as the film that launched modern Hollywood: the summer blockbuster that established Steven Spielberg as one of the twin peaks of the new Hollywood (George Lucas' "Star Wars" would come out two years later). Join our Watch Party! Sign up to receive USA TODAY's movie and TV recommendations right in your inbox But "Jaws" could just as easily be called the last hurrah of the old Hollywood. It was one of the last big films of the pre-CGI era: The special effects had to be welded, hammered and bolted together. And that led directly to the happiest accident of the film. The mechanical shark, nicknamed "Bruce," turned out to be such an unwieldy, unconvincing Edsel of a contraption that Spielberg was obliged to keep it offscreen for most of "Jaws." That, as it turned out, was the making of the movie. The audience's imagination provided a far more fearsome shark than Spielberg could have. "Jaws" has also gotten the blame for making America shark-crazy − as phenomena like Discovery Channel's "Shark Week" and the "Sharknado" TV movies attest. The late "Jaws" author Peter Benchley came to regret his share in the vilification of the great white shark, an animal now on the endangered species list. "Twenty-five years ago, nobody knew anything about great white sharks," Benchley told The (Bergen, N.J.) Record in 1999. "The concept of a rogue shark that has a taste for human flesh −people believed it." 50 interesting facts about 'Jaws' for the shark movie's 50th anniversary Here's a mouthful of "Jaws" facts − 50 in all − for the film's 50th anniversary:
USA Today
12-06-2025
- Entertainment
- USA Today
'HBD, 'Jaws': You're 50! How to watch special TV presentation with Steven Spielberg
'HBD, 'Jaws': You're 50! How to watch special TV presentation with Steven Spielberg Show Caption Hide Caption Athlete marks 'Jaws' 50th anniversary with 60-mile swim Swimmer Lewis Pugh circumnavigated Martha's Vineyard to mark the 50th anniversary of the movie "Jaws" and draw attention to the plight of sharks. June marks five decades since a giant human-hunting shark swam into the seaside village of fictitious Amit, Massachusetts, terrorizing local beach-goers. To celebrate the 50th anniversary of the horror movie 'Jaws', a three-hour film will air on NBC next week with a special introduction from the Hollywood blockbuster's director, Steven Spielberg, the network told USA TODAY on June 12. The horror film, famous for its terrifying two-note John Williams musical intro (dun-dunn... dun-dunn) hit theaters on June 20, 1975, bringing new meaning to the fear of what's in the sea. The movie features actors including Roy Scheider (police chief Martin Brody); Lorraine Gary (his wife Ellen Brody); Richard Dreyfuss (marine biologist Matt Hooper); and Robert Shaw (big fish hunter Quint). 'Universal is home to the biggest movies in the world, and it doesn't get any bigger than Jaws,' NBCUniversal Television & Streaming Chief Marketing Officer Jenny Storms said. 'We want to celebrate 50 years of this enduring film that has captured the public imagination for generations by bringing it to audiences at home in all the ways they love to watch.' Here's what to know about the special three-hour airing of the iconic film, including where to watch it, what day it airs, and what time it starts. Happy Birthday, 'Jaws'! 🦈 Nautica is making waves with a 'Jaws' 50th anniversary collection When does special 'JAWS' presentation air? NBC's three-hour presentation of the original film airs on June 20 at 8 p.m. ET/10 p.m. PT. Florida shark attack: 9-year-old girl bit by shark while snorkeling, family says How to watch 'Jaws' special NBC presentation at home Fans can watch the special presentation on NBC. JAWS turns 50 In addition to the three-hour presentation, beginning on June 15, 'Jaws' and its three sequels' Jaws 2'; 'Jaws 3' and 'Jaws: The Revenge' also air on Peacock. A big screen re-release is also set for Aug. 29. Natalie Neysa Alund is a senior reporter for USA TODAY. Reach her at nalund@ and follow her on X @nataliealund.
USA Today
09-06-2025
- Entertainment
- USA Today
🦈 Nautica is making waves with a 'Jaws' 50th anniversary collection
🦈 Nautica is making waves with a 'Jaws' 50th anniversary collection Shop the exclusive Nautica x 'Jaws' collab for vintage-inspired summer apparel. Just when you thought it was safe to go back in the water, Nautica is diving headfirst into summer 2025 with a bold new collaboration that's equal parts nostalgic and stylish. In celebration of the 50th anniversary of Steven Spielberg's legendary 1975 thriller 'Jaws,' the iconic American brand has launched a limited-edition capsule collection that brings the suspense of the sea to classic nautical fashion. Whether you're a longtime fan of the film or just looking to upgrade your summer wardrobe, this cinephile-approved collection delivers a fresh take on coastal cool. Shop the Nautica x Jaws collection Shop the Nautica x Jaws capsule collection This exclusive 'Jaws' x Nautica collection is a must-have for fans of retro cinema, beach-ready fashion and all things shark-chic. The capsule features: Sleeveless and short-sleeve graphic tees with vintage-inspired Jaws artwork and with vintage-inspired Jaws artwork Fashion-forward button-downs with oceanic hues and bold prints with oceanic hues and bold prints Swimwear styles perfect for pool parties, beach days or summer movie marathons Each piece is designed to channel the thrill of the open water, with shark-inspired details, deep-sea blues, and graphic nods to the 1975 blockbuster that changed summer movies forever. Funboy's Father's Day sale is here: Save 20% on floating coolers, paddle boards for dad 💦 More: Gear up for 4th of July adventures with Amazon deals on camping + hiking essentials The 'Jaws' x Nautica capsule is available now in select stores and online at With limited quantities and high fan demand, this drop is expected to sell fast, so don't wait to sink your teeth into it. Shop the Nautica x 'Jaws' collection Athlete marks 'Jaws' 50th anniversary with 60-mile swim Swimmer Lewis Pugh circumnavigated Martha's Vineyard to mark the 50th anniversary of the movie "Jaws" and draw attention to the plight of sharks. When was 'Jaws' released? 'Jaws' was released in theaters on June 20, 1975. Where was 'Jaws' filmed? 'Jaws' was mostly filmed on Martha's Vineyard, the island off the coast of Massachusetts. Key filming spots on Martha's Vineyard included:
Yahoo
03-06-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Martha Vineyard swimmer Pugh hopes to flip shark narrative
(NewsNation) — British swimmer Lewis Pugh recently completed a 12-day, 62-mile trek of the waters surrounding Martha's Vineyard that took place ahead of the 50th anniversary of the release of 'Jaws.' The timing of the feat was intentional on Pugh's part, who hopes to change the perception of sharks by swimming in the waters where the Oscar-winning motion picture was filmed in 1975. Pugh became the first person to swim the entirety of the area around Martha's Vineyard and did so to raise awareness about the need for increased protection for sharks. Trump pardons 2 divers who freed 19 sharks off the coast of Florida Doing so is essential, Pugh said, adding that predators like sharks are essential to creating a healthy oceanic environment. 'They keep the ocean in balance, and now is the time to try and change the narrative for a new generation,' Pugh told NewsNation. 'Sharks aren't monsters. They are magnificent, they're essential, and they're seriously endangered.' Pugh said that 274,000 sharks are killed each day around the world, which equates to more than 100 million sharks being killed each year, which he calls 'complete madness.' The number of sharks killed each year compares to only 10 humans being killed by sharks each year. In 2024, 88 reported shark-human interactions were reported worldwide, while 47 unprovoked shark bites were reported last year. Pugh, 55, has been swimming for nearly 40 years, but told NewsNation that he had never accomplished the kind of physical task required over the 24 hours he spent swimming around Martha's Vineyard over 12 days. Ukraine strikes bridge linking Crimea, Russia in underwater attack He said that the release of 'Jaws' in 1975 has shaped the narrative of how sharks are perceived, making the timing of his accomplishment even more significant, he said. Pugh's mission was simple: to flip the script on how sharks are perceived and to share his conviction that swimmers should not fear the ocean. 'I can honestly say it was one of the toughest swims of my life,' Pugh said. 'It was the cold, it was the distance and then just the constant thought of what may be beneath me.' Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
