JAWS Reactions: When was the audience loudest?

Hi, fellow fans of The Daily Jaws.   

If you can remember the very first time you saw Jaws at the movie theater, you probably recall that the audience was sheer bedlam at times.   I have lived in Indiana all of my life, and in the Hoosier state we love basketball.   I have been to many an arena and gym, and I am here to tell you that the crowds could get deafening.   I must say, however, that -- per capita, dare we say? -- the audience watching Jaws was at least as loud.

This leads me to an interesting question.  Can you possibly distinguish any ONE scene in which the audience was at its very loudest?   

Before I attempt such a recollection, let me set the stage by telling you a couple of interesting things about MY first trip to the cinema to see Jaws.    Well . . . the first time I went was on a Friday afternoon.   Didn't see the movie until Saturday.   Oh, yeh.   As many of you might have experienced, the ticket line was so long, a lot of us had to wait a day to see the movie.   On Saturday afternoon, I made it inside the theater and beheld this epic movie experience.   But, check this out.  A very rare thing happened when I was watching.   The film froze.  It was at the very beginning of the famous scene in which Quint recounts the USS Indianapolis tragedy.   For at least 10 minutes, we in the audience sat staring at Robert Shaw facing back toward us with his mouth open at mid-word.   

A voice comes over the P.A. system and tells us, "Please bear with us, ladies and gentlemen.   We are experiencing a brief technical difficulty and should have the problem resolved very soon."   Indeed, the cinema staff did a good job of getting the film rolling again before too disastrous of a delay.   Quint now resumes talking, and one thing I remember to this day is that the general experience for the audience never missed a beat.   The tension never left -- even during the film freeze.   The movie was simply that riveting.   No exaggeration.   That's real.

As for what's the loudest audience scene?   Well, two scenes come to mind, if memory serves correctly.   The legendary scene in which the two Amity locals loft a holiday roast out into the nighttime tide in hopes of snaring the great shark.   "Come and GET it," the one man says with great bravado and almost arrogant confidence.   Hmm.   I think you probably remember that scene.   Those two dudes didn't stay arrogant for real long, did they?   After the dock goes "BANG" like a giant gun, we see the one poor fella being dragged out to sea.   He pulls free, now trying to swim back to what's left of the dock, his comrade imploring, "Don't look back, Charlie.   Don't look back."   Oh, my goodness.   The audience went  out of its mind.  Women screamed at the tops of their lungs.   Well, what am I saying?  So did the guys.   

The scene that of course matches this one was the climactic scene.   The Orca is sinking.   So are the hopes of the three men aboard.   All the chips are in the pot now.   WE might as well have been on board with Quint, Hooper, and Brody.    Again, remember, right now you're hearing from a guy who has been in quite a few Hoosier state basketball arenas filled to capacity.   You get down inside the last minute of one of those games . . . oh, man . . . I defy an airplane hangar to be any louder with the engines cranking.    At least on the day I was at the cinema, seeing Jaws for the first time, that climactic scene was just about as deafening.   

With all of this said regarding MY experience (some 48 years ago,) perhaps YOU can remember your version.   And, indeed, do you remember any one scene during which the audience was at its very most frenzied?

Words by  By Jefferson Ford Paul

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