Endnotes 20 June: Jaws Anniversary, Best Pizza, Semicolons, Reading Bingo, Lagos Beaches & More
My favorite reading- and travel-related links of the week
Hello, friends!
Jaws, aka the ultimate summer movie blockbuster, was released 50 years ago today! Happy Birthday, Bruce-the-shark!
I vividly remember seeing the movie at the Orpheum Theater in my hometown of Orwigsburg, Pennsylvania. It looks very old-timey in this photo — when my friends and I went there in the 1970s and ‘80s, it had a big neon marquee out front, a bouncer to make sure only 12-and-up kids went into the balcony, and a popcorn machine that kept pre-popped corn hot with a big yellow lightbulb. A dime got you a little red-and-white-striped bag of popcorn that was perfectly salty and bit stale.
I saw Jaws with my cousin Sam. I was eight years old. Who knows if this is accurate, but in my memory, I had a slight sunburn on my nose, and I was wearing my favorite shirt: a powder blue faux football jersey. I remember my Uncle John picking me up in his truck and driving the two of us downtown for the movie where we joined a boatload of other kids safely stowed at the movie theater so parents could enjoy an adults’ night out. My only recollection of the movie is jumping out of my chair when the head pops out of the sunken boat.
The movie has since become one of my favorite — a comfort film, even. The soundtrack! The cartoon villain mayor! The frenetic energy of Richard Dreyfus as Hooper! The loving banter between Brody (Roy Scheider) and his wife! Every single moment of Quint!
The moment at the :18 mark? Perfection.
And I’m not the only one who loves the famous dolly shot of Brody on the beach:
(I should also mention that one summer, shortly after we’d moved to Austin, the Alamo Drafthouse had a special event where planned to show Jaws on an inflatable floating screen in a lake. A ticket to the show included an inner tube so audience members could float in the lake — in the dark — while watching the movie. I was so excited about this event; Dave and I bought tickets immediately. But when the day arrived, I chickened out. WHO WANTS TO FLOAT IN DARK WATER WHILE WATCHING A SHARK MOVIE?!)
To honor the movie, celebrations are happening all summer in Martha’s Vineyard, and National Geographic will premiere a documentary in July called Jaws @ 50: The Definitive Inside Story with interviews with Steven Spielberg and other creators associated with the movie:
This article at The Guardian plumbs Jaws impact on the movie biz (and our perception of sharks) — and here are 50 facts about the movie to share at your next cookout.
But! Why am I talking about it here?
Because it started as a book by Peter Benchley, an American author and journalist.
Benchley was bitten by shark mania in 1964 after reading about a shark fisherman in Montauk, New York. Benchley’s publisher Doubleday went all-in on marketing Jaws in 1974, and it paid off: The hardback ate up the competition on the bestseller list for 44 weeks — and the subsequent paperback has sold more than 20 million copies. Now it’s considered enough of a classic that The Folio Society is offering a hardcover in a slipcase with an appropriately menacing shark on the cover and color illustrations inside.
The book didn’t seem like a winner when Benchley was at work on it.
According to his Wikipedia, Benchley was paid a $7500 advance, then procrastinated on writing the book so long his agent got nervous, warning the author that if he didn't finish the manuscript, he'd have to return the money. That lit a bonfire under Benchley. He hunkered down, working in a makeshift office above a furnace company in New Jersey during the winter, then in a converted turkey coop by the Connecticut seaside in the summer.
Dave and I have plans to watch it tonight with a big bowl of popcorn because nothing says summer like being afraid to get in the water ;-)
Endnotes: 20 June
Could the Semicolon Die Out? NOT IN OUR HOUSE!
Northanger Abbey is a bit divisive among Jane Austen fans, but I love it — for all of the reasons enumerated in this essay from The Paris Review. ‘One reading of Northanger Abbey is that it is a satire about a silly girl who reads so many Gothic novels she begins to think she’s in one… Such a reading is not wrong, but it’s not complete either. Catherine’s Gothic-novel habit has nothing to do with the book’s final crisis, in which she is abruptly evicted from Northanger Abbey for reasons she doesn’t understand.’
Related: The Morgan Library & Museum in NYC is now showing A Lively Mind: Jane Austen at 250. Personal items from Jane Austen’s House in Hampshire are displayed alongside manuscripts, books, and artwork from the Morgan’s collection, including the only surviving manuscript written in Jane Austen’s hand:
More library fun! The first-ever Moomin and Tove Jansson exhibition in the U.S. is at the Brooklyn Public Library. ‘Tove Jansson and the Moomins: The Door Is Always Open… will offer a rare opportunity in the U.S. to step into Tove Jansson’s creative universe through immersive installations, archival materials, multilingual editions of her books, and public programming for all ages. The exhibition presents Tove Jansson as an artist, author, and illustrator, and dives into the history of her best-known works: the Moomin stories.’ It runs from 28 June through September 30, 2025.
Every season is reading season, but there’s something special about summer reading. It’s always a fun day when Elizabeth Held from What To Read If releases her Summer Reading Bingo card. It’s a playful way to shape your summer reading with categories like ‘a book that features an animal’ and ‘a book you’ve been meaning to read forever.’ Here’s another neat take: Define themes, then choose books, movies, art, and activities to fit your theme.
Or you can simply decide to enjoy a Hitchcock Summer.
Tangentially related: Five literary theme parks. (If you’re feeling the amusement park vibe, you can revisit our podcast episode Amusement Parks: Wheeeeeeeeeeeee!
Temporary tattoos from the University of Vilnius library collection!
The English painter Briton Riviere (1840–1920) was an art teacher at the University of Oxford and often exhibited his works at the Royal Academy. He painted historical and biblical scenes, including a painting of the Spanish Armada and another of Romeo and Juliet. But what he really loved was painting dogs. See below; learn more at Random Daily Art.
The Most Beautiful Libraries in Movies and TV Shows.
Ever since doing our podcast episode Nigeria: Jollof Rice, Nigerian Pidgin, and So Much Hustle, I’ve wanted to visit there. I don’t know if/when we’ll get to Lagos, but this article about hitting the beach makes me want to bump it up my must-visit list. ‘With access to the local currency, you can enjoy grilled fish (served with sauce that can be too peppery for non-West Africans), suya (grilled meat), jollof rice and other local delicacies, depending on the beach you have chosen. My guest and I had some sweet potato fries and grilled fish…’
News you can use: 50 Top Pizza Europa 2025. Please note that the 50 Top Pizza USA list will be released on 01 July right here.
Kind of related: Street Food Summer Is Here. Take a bit of Eater’s nationwide guide to ‘best things to eat from trucks, stands, and carts all summer long.’
Come visit us! The 33 Most Beautiful Spots In Czech Republic. We have been to Krkonoše National Park, Český Krumlov, Karlštejn Castle, Kutná Hora, Hruboskalsko, Konopište Castle, Bohemian Switzerland, Prague Botanical Gardens, Ríp Mountain, Divoká Šárka, Villa Tugendhat, and we spend almost every morning at Vyšehrad — can attest they are all very beautiful and worth a visit.
My dark secret is that my favorite Agatha Christie titles are the ones without Hercule Poirot and Miss Marple — forever fan of #crookedhouse and #andthentherewerenone. This is a solid ranking and could be great fuel for road trip discussions or family dinners: Ranking Agatha Christie’s 20 Greatest Novels.
I don’t have a specific memory of seeing Jaws for the first time, but I do remember being scared to go in the ocean!
My dad lived on Martha’s Vineyard while the movie was being filmed. I was visiting him that summer. His neighbor made a great white shark weathervane for the movie. (I think it went on Quint’s house but I’ve never seen it in the movie.) Anyway, the neighbor got to be friends with the film crew, and we went to a party they were having. So my big claim to fame (ha!) is partying with the Jaws film crew.
My husband’s and my favorite scene is Quint’s soliloquy about the bomb. Perhaps the scariest part of the whole movie! Sooo chilling!!
“…anyway, we delivered the bomb…”
A very good read as always. I didn't know how much I wanted to see Jaws again!