Farewell and adieu to the JAWS alumni we lost in 2023
Hello, Islanders!
As 2023 comes to an end, it’s time to pay our respects to the members of our JAWS family that we lost his year. This piece is more personal than some I’ve written this year because three of these people I considered good friends. They will all be missed.
Dorothy Tristan (1934-2023)
If you look at the novelization of JAWS 2, you will see it is based on the screenplay by Dorothy Tristan and Howard Sackler. The novel serves as the best look into the film that director John D. Hancock wanted to make, with a much darker tone then the final film.
An actress and writer, Dorothy is the only actor to have appeared on-screen with all three JAWS stars – Roy Scheider in Klute, Robert Shaw in Swashbuckler and Richard Dreyfuss in Down and Out in Beverly Hills.
After her husband John D. Hancock had been hired to direct JAWS 2, Dorothy took a look at Howard Sackler’s script and offered a few suggestions to the director. Hancock took these suggestions to producers Richard D. Zanuck and David Brown, who were so impressed they hired her to work on the script. It was Dorothy who made the shark female – as noted in the novelization – based on an incident from her past involving a rattlesnake.
It was while doing research for the book “JAWS 2: The Making of the Hollywood Sequel,” that I first met John and Dorothy. I was invited to visit with them at their farm in Indiana where I was greeted as family from the both of them. We spoke for several hours, the trip highlighted by Dorothy offering me homemade cookies with milk as we sat in the kitchen. I have always marveled over the fact that these two people took the time to not only speak with me about what was surely a difficult time in their careers but that they had welcomed me into their home. In the decade since we first met, our lives continued to intertwine, whether setting up a screening for one of their new films or reading a new script.
Dorothy passed away on January 8, 2023, just a week after she and John celebrated their 47th Wedding Anniversary. She was 88.
Tom Joyner (1943-2023)
The second assistant director on JAWSand the production manager on JAWS 2, Tom Joyner had a very long career while working on many projects from Universal Pictures. He was a fun interview for the book, with his wife often having to call him in from whatever he was doing outside at the time to get on the phone. He loved talking movies, which was great for me because I loved listening. Mr. Joyner passed away on February 22, 2023, at the age of 79.
Edith Blake (1926 - 2023)
What can I say about Edith Blake? It was her book, “On Location – On Martha’s Vineyard: The Making of the Movie JAWS” that has sat on my shelf for almost 50 years. It was Edith Blake who answered a phone call from a 15-year-old kid in Florida who called to tell her how much she enjoyed the book. It was Edith Blake who, without any prompting, not only took down that young boy’s address but sent him (3) photos she had taken on the set of JAWS that were not used in her book. And it was Edith Blake who, some 45 years later, allowed that boy to not only republish that book but contribute some new pages to it. If you haven’t figured it out yet, the boy was me.
Whenever I would visit Martha’s Vineyard I always made sure to meet up with Edie. My last trip, in September 2021, was surreal as I was able to participate in a book signing with her. That even was followed by an amazing dinner in which our group shared stores and laughed until it was time to go home.
Edith was a reporter and photographer by trade, but she had some many other interests, including playing tennis, which she did up to the age of 90. Edith passed away on February 25, 2023, at the age of 97.
Bill Butler (1921-2023)
The cinematographer who gave JAWS it’s distinctive “water-level” look, Bill Butler began his career in 1962, working as a much-desired DP up until the age of 94! Shockingly he was not nominated for an Academy Award for his work on JAWS, though he was nominated that year for his work on another Best Picture nominee, One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest. He would go on to photograph several films in the ROCKYseries as well as such hits as Grease and Stripes, while also winning two Emmy Awards for his work on television. Mr. Butler passed away on April 5, 2023, at the amazing age of 101.
Marc Gilpin (1966 - 2023)
Everyone’s favorite little brother, Marc Gilpin is best known for his portrayal of Sean Brody in JAWS 2. Marc was very supportive of the JAWS 2book, even convincing his sister April, who played the little girl who questions the shark tower, to participate. Marc and I continued to chat on the phone and exchange emails up until his untimely passing this past summer. Marc passed away on July 29, 2023, at the all too young age of 56.
Roger Kastel (1931-2023)
When you ask the first thing that pops into their head when they hear the word JAWS, most of them will tell you the iconic movie poster, which was designed by Roger Kastel. While Kastel would go on to design another classic film poster for The Empire Strikes Back, it is his work on JAWS that made him and his work famous. I last spoke to Roger over the summer, hoping to line him up for an upcoming event, but he was busy on that particular weekend. Roger Kastel passed away on November 8, 2023, at the age of 92.
Thank you all for your amazing work and the even more amazing memories you created.
Words by Michael A Smith. Michael is co-author of Jaws 2: The Making Of The Hollywood Sequel. You can order the book by contacting Michael at OsFanMike@aol.com.
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