The Movie Industry's First Summer Blockbuster Turns 50
The summer of 1975 was a terrifying one if you were trying to enjoy a beach vacation — and it's all Stephen Spielberg's fault.
The movie Jaws is turning 50 this year, and there are huge celebrations ahead, according to Variety. The film will air on NBC on June 20 with a three-hour special, including "a new, special introduction." At the ballpark, baseball fans will also see "custom scoreboard content, exclusive fan giveaways, and more" at home games for the San Francisco Giants, New York Yankees, and Philadelphia Phillies between June 20 and 22.
If that's not enough, Peacock subscribers will have the opportunity to view shark-themed content from June 15 to July 14. Movies like Piranha, 47 Meters Down, Night Swim, and Captain Phillips were curated for the special collection.
Of course, there will be plenty of merchandise available to consumers including a 50th anniversary edition of Jaws on 4K, Blu-ray, and digital beginning June 17 with a Jaws @ 50: The Definitive Story documentary included. Fans can also expect toys, T-shirts, and collectibles out at retail.
Jaws is considered the movie industry's first summer blockbuster and stayed at the top of the box office for most of the summer of 1975, per NBC. It held the record for the "highest-grossing movie of all time" for two years until Star Wars took the top position.
It was a troubled shoot due to the difficulties of filming in the open waters and the budget quickly skyrocketed. Producer David Brown explained in the 2004 book, Movie Moguls Speak: Interviews with Top Film Producers, that the initial budget "was $4 million and the picture wound up costing $9 million."
The mechanical shark also kept breaking down, but Spielberg and stars Roy Scheider, Richard Dreyfuss, and Robert Shaw meticulously planned out the characters to give it a realistic feel, per Mental Floss. In the end, the technical problems led to a career-defining film for Spielberg.
'I had no choice but to figure out how to tell the story without the shark,' Spielberg told CBS News in 2015. 'So, I just went back to Alfred Hitchcock: 'What would Hitchcock do in a situation like this?' ... It's what we don't see which is truly frightening.'The Movie Industry's First Summer Blockbuster Turns 50 first appeared on Men's Journal on Jun 12, 2025
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
5 hours ago
- Yahoo
Melissa Fumero Opens Up About Grosse Pointe Garden Society's Cancellation: ‘I'll Forever Be Proud of What We Made'
Melissa Fumero is mourning the cancellation of Grosse Pointe Garden Society after the dramedy was axed by NBC after just one season. The actress took time on Saturday to say goodbye to her character via Instagram. 'Oh, Birdie. You were one for the books,' she wrote. 'You felt like an amalgamation of every role I've ever played. I'll miss so many things about this job, but most of all I will miss the incredible group of humans it brought together. I won't miss the shoes. It's really hard to make a show. Even harder to keep it on air. I'll forever be proud of what we made. Thanks for watching.' More from TVLine Grosse Pointe Garden Society Cancelled at NBC After One Season Farmhouse Fixer Cancelled at HGTV, Host Jonathan Knight Says: 'Still Processing the Reasons' HGTV's Married to Real Estate Cancelled After Four Seasons - Read Co-Hosts' Statement On Friday, Ben Rappaport (who plays Brett) also commented on the show's cancellation. 'I've said it before and I'll say it again. Showbiz ain't for the faint of heart,' he wrote. 'Our beloved Grosse Pointe Garden Society was canceled today. I'll sure miss working with these (and all of our) amazing folks every day. This was a special one.' Grosse Pointe Garden Society's cancellation came after NBC opted to relocate the series following its first three episodes; it switched from Sundays at 10/9c to Fridays at 8 pm. The dramedy, which hailed from Jenna Bans (Desperate Housewives, Scandal, Good Girls) and Bill Krebs (No Tomorrow, Good Girls), followed four suburban gardeners: Birdie (played by Brooklyn Nine-Nine's Melissa Fumero), Catherine (Lessons in Chemistry's Aja Naomi King), Brett (For the People's Ben Rappaport) and Alice (The Carrie Diaries' AnnaSophia Robb). But the ragtag group of gardeners wasn't just planting your garden-variety gardenias — they were also covering up a death. Thoughts on the cancellation? Eulogize in the comments below. Best of TVLine 'Missing' Shows, Found! Get the Latest on Ahsoka, Monarch, P-Valley, Sugar, Anansi Boys and 25+ Others Yellowjackets Mysteries: An Up-to-Date List of the Series' Biggest Questions (and Answers?) The Emmys' Most Memorable Moments: Laughter, Tears, Historical Wins, 'The Big One' and More
Yahoo
5 hours ago
- Yahoo
Fans Saddened After NBC Cancels Popular Show
Fans Saddened After NBC Cancels Popular Show originally appeared on Parade. Put down your shovels and pruning shears, because NBC has made the surprising decision to cancel the suburban, gardening-centric mystery series Grosse Pointe Garden Society after only one season. While there was a glimmer of hope that the series might be picked up by NBC streamer, Peacock, it seems that Peacock officially passed. The season one finale is now the series finale, and fans are nothing short of devastated. Grosse Pointe Garden Society was created by Jenna Bans and Bill Krebs, a duo best known for the hit series Good Girls, which was also cancelled despite its loyal following. Good Girls, however, made it four seasons before NBC dropped the hammer. Grosse Pointe Garden Society centers around four friends who have two things in common: they are all members of the local garden club and they are all entangled in a complex murder mystery. The series amassed a small, but mighty following during its short-lived stint on NBC, as did its ensemble cast starring Melissa Fumero Aja Naomi King, Ben Rappaport, and AnnaSophia Robb. Fans are sad to say goodbye, but sadder still to never know how the series' massive end-of-season cliffhanger was meant to resolve. "Damn. Hard to get invested in shows anymore," one disappointed fan wrote on X. "I thought for sure this show was getting renewed," commented another. It's never easy when a series jumps from one network to another, or to a streamer, for that matter. Peacock reportedly struggled with how difficult it would be for Grosse Pointe Garden Society to widen its audience on the streaming platform, ultimately sealing the show's fate. Fans Saddened After NBC Cancels Popular Show first appeared on Parade on Jun 27, 2025 This story was originally reported by Parade on Jun 27, 2025, where it first appeared.
Yahoo
6 hours ago
- Yahoo
Can a reality TV 'villain' change the narrative? Tom Sandoval is trying.
Tom Sandoval looked both nervous and determined as he walked down a backstage hallway. His sequined, emerald-green jacket shimmered as he sipped water, slapped his palms together and shook out his shoulders like a boxer loosening up before a match. Except in this case, the Bravo reality TV veteran was walking out with his musical group to face four celebrity judges on Tuesday's episode of NBC's competition series 'America's Got Talent' and the millions of viewers at home. First, the show had to explain the significance of Sandoval's appearance (beyond the usual NBCUniversal cross-channel synergy). 'Do you know who Tom Sandoval is?' a producer asked judge and series creator Simon Cowell. 'Well, he's left 'Vanderpump Rules,' and he's here to audition with his band.' Or, as Sandoval, 42, elaborated in his own intimate moment with the camera crew: 'A couple of years ago, I made some really bad choices and was involved in a very bad cheating scandal. And I let down a lot of people. It pretty much destroyed my life. … Ever since then, it's like everything that I do is completely criticized.' Two years ago, Sandoval, a star of the popular 'Vanderpump Rules' — which chronicled the staff shenanigans at a restaurant owned by a former Real Housewife — cheated on Ariana Madix, his girlfriend of nine years, with her close friend and fellow cast member Raquel Leviss. The affair controversy exploded into the mainstream news cycle, dubbed 'Scandoval.' Madix leveraged the public sympathy into lucrative brand deals, Broadway and TV hosting gigs. Leviss, after absorbing an onslaught of social-media hate, rebranded herself as a mental health advocate. Sandoval, facing an enormous backlash … went on another reality TV show, 'Special Forces: World's Toughest Test.' And then another ('The Masked Singer') and another ('The Traitors'). Now he is set to appear, perhaps not surprisingly, on the ultimate VIP lounge for reality TV heels, E!'s 'House of Villains.' In the past, notorious reality TV stars who try to stretch out their fame in the genre might have been tagged with the 'villain' label forever. But Sandoval is trying out a modern strategy: The sheer number of reality shows, each with multiple storylines, offers the opportunity for years-long character development. Perhaps, if you stay in the spotlight long enough to show different sides of yourself, people might just stop caring about what you did in the first place. Sandoval appeared to take another step toward that goal on 'America's Got Talent.' 'I feel a lot of pressure,' he admitted on camera. 'I just hope the audience and the judges see who I am, as a musician, versus just somebody on a reality show.' So Sandoval took the stage with his eight backup musicians after a woman attempting to break a record for butt-Hula-Hooping and before an acrobatic roller-skating duo. Cowell grilled him about why he wanted to make the jump from TV to music. 'With being on a reality show, it's very much about your personal life, and a couple of years ago, I was involved in a scandal, and I was labeled the most hated man in America by the New York Times,' Sandoval explained. 'It was really, really rough, and I was in a very dark place. I felt as though I had nothing in my life, and this band was the only thing that kept me going.' He said his goal was to tour the world with his new group as 'the ultimate cover band.' As Sandoval and his musicians set up, the other judges quickly conferred. 'What was the scandal?' asked a confused Sofia Vergara. 'He slept with his girlfriend's best friend,' Howie Mandel replied. 'No wonder nobody liked him, then,' Spice Girl Mel B added. Cowell sniffed: 'Do you know how not interested I am in any of that stuff?' Cue the music to A-ha's 1980s synth anthem 'Take On Me': Sandoval danced and jumped and hoisted the microphone stand to the heavens. When he hit the high note ('I'll be gone … in a day or twoooooo') Cowell couldn't help but grin as the audience went wild and the judges stood to cheer. 'You made me smile, you gave me happy vibes,' Mel B gushed. Cowell demurred. 'For me, the vocals weren't great, Tom, I'm going to be honest with you,' he said, as boos rained down. 'However, not everyone comes on this show to get a record deal. Sometimes it's about being true to who you are.' Cue the cheers! With four votes for 'yes,' Sandoval and the Most Extras were on to the next round. As the band excitedly retreated backstage, Mel B decided that Sandoval's past shouldn't matter: 'That's real life, that's what happens to some people. … Who cares?' It had to have been music to Sandoval's ears. Gibson Johns, a writer and podcaster ('Gabbing with Gib') on the Bravo beat, has covered the Scandoval aftermath closely. 'Regardless of how you feel about Tom Sandoval, when he does something, he does it 150 percent,' Johns told The Washington Post. On Fox's 'Special Forces: World's Toughest Test,' Sandoval let JoJo Siwa literally carry him on her back. On Peacock's 'The Traitors,' Sandoval provided comic relief by singing like a creepy doll. 'There is, unfortunately or fortunately, something kind of …,' Gibson paused. 'It's endearing, that's the word I'm looking for. It's the full effort he puts into everything.' Sandoval also gave it his all in 2023 on Fox's fever dream of a vocal competition 'The Masked Singer,' where he disguised himself as a psychedelic deep-sea diver tangled with a cartoonish octopus and belted Journey's 'Any Way You Want It.' He described the freedom of hiding behind a disguise. 'It hurts when I get judged by people who have never even met me,' he said in a sorrowful introductory clip. 'But I'm hoping all that will melt away when I hit the stage.' So why is he going on the third season of 'House of Villains,' set to air next year, on which reality TV veterans compete to be named 'America's Ultimate Supervillain'? Sandoval did not respond to our request for comment, so we called Season 1 cast member Jon Dalton, a.k.a. 'Jonny Fairplay,' who previously earned his 'villain' card from a 2003 stint on 'Survivor,' when he lied about his grandmother dying to win sympathy and a reward challenge. Unlike Sandoval, Dalton has basked in the hatred. He had a delightful time with his co-stars on 'House of Villains,' where he figured that viewers know enough now to take the tongue-in-cheek title as intended. 'The world of reality TV has changed so much,' he said. '… I can't imagine anyone doing that show and leaving with a worse reputation.' Ultimately, he understands why a perhaps conflicted Sandoval would nonetheless choose to join the cast and compete for the villain title. If you want to continue to be on TV … well, you have to continue to be on TV. 'You always strike while the iron is hot,' Dalton said.
