Wednesday, June 24, 2015

"Jaws" Turns 40-- Part 3: Marvin's Going Fishing

7.  Another Spielberg scene that was cut for the beginning of the movie was the harbor master sitting in a shack and watching the 1957 World War II movie "Don't Go Near the Water.  While he stares at the scene, you see the masts of the boats start to rocking and the shark's wake.  The shark eventually attacks him.

8.  Spielberg also wanted two characters from his 1974 comedy "The Sugarland Express" to be beachgoers.

9.  Jon Voight was originally approached to play Hooper, but he turned it down.  Also Timothy Bottoms and Jeff Bridges and then Richard Dreyfus were asked, but all turned it down as well.  But later Dreyfus approached Spielberg and asked it the part was still open.

10.  Spielberg wanted Lee Marvin to play Quint, but was turned down, supposedly because Marvin wanted to go "fishing for real."  Producers suggested Shaw be given the part who had just recently been in "The Sting."

11.  Actress Susan Backlinic played the doomed swimmer Chrissie Watkins in the opening scene.  She was supposed to recite "The Lord's Prayer" as she was being pulled against the buoy, but neither she nor any of the others on set could remember the words.

Then, There Was That Scary Music.  --Don'tGoNeartheWatererCooter

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