Jaws

"Two notes and you got a villain". Let's get into some fun facts about the film that originated the Shark horror genre.

1. Steven Spielberg originally thought John Williams' theme was a joke

Spielberg thought he was joking because the two note obstinate was so simple. Furthermore, music scholar Joseph Cancellaro proposed the two note expression mimics the Shark's heartbeat. The audience is trained to link the shark to the theme.

2. The film won a Grammy, Golden Globe and Oscar for the score

It also won for sound!

3. Spielberg played clarinet on some tracks

Spielberg was enlisted to play with the off-key Amity parade band.

"His voice [also] crackles over the radio of Quint's boat, the Orca, as the Amity Island dispatcher that patches Brody through to his wife when the chief is out with Quint and Hooper." AND his cocker spaniels made cameos as well as police chief Brody's dogs. (Source: https://www.aarp.org/entertainment/movies-for-grownups/info-2020/jaws-trivia-facts.html)

4. Peter Benchley, author of "Jaws" the book makes a cameo in the film

(Source: https://www.mentalfloss.com/article/64548/25-incisive-facts-about-jaws by Sean Hutchinson)

5. Richard Dreyfuss' role in "American Graffiti" helped him land his role in "Jaws" (sort of)

"Spielberg initially approached Jon Voight, Timothy Bottoms, and Jeff Bridges to play oceanographer Matt Hooper. When none of them could commit to the role, Spielberg’s friend George Lucas suggested Richard Dreyfuss, whom Lucas had directed in American Graffiti. Dreyfuss would later accept the part because he thought he was terrible in the title role of the film The Apprenticeship of Duddy Kravitz a year earlier." (Source: https://www.mentalfloss.com/article/64548/25-incisive-facts-about-jaws by Sean Hutchinson)

See my piece on "American Graffiti" here https://www.thehotchildinthecity.com/post/american-graffiti

6. Spielberg included a nod to "Duel" in Jaws via sound effects

"The faint roaring sound that is heard after the shark is blown up was also used by Spielberg in 'Duel', when that film’s villainous truck falls off a cliff." (Source: https://www.mentalfloss.com/article/64548/25-incisive-facts-about-jaws by Sean Hutchinson)

7. Finally, the famous "You're going to need a bigger boat" line was improvised

In fact, a lot of improvisation went into the film, mostly from Quint's ramblings.