Jaws: the shark tale that changed Hollywood

As the movie Jaws approaches the Thirtieth anniversary of its 1975 release, the BBC's website has a useful overview of the movie, directed by a young Steven Spielberg, that gave birth to the modern Hollywood summer blockbuster. As the BBC's Neil Smith reminds us:

Before Jaws, summer was considered a graveyard for Hollywood studios - a time when distributors released titles they considered sub-standard and unlikely to turn a profit. All that changed on 20 June 1975, when Spielberg's shark tale opened on 409 cinemas - a record at the time - across the US. Backed by $700,000 worth of TV advertising, the movie swiftly became a phenomenon - spawning a craze for Jaws T-shirts, beach towels and action figurines. The film went on to win three Oscars at the 1976 Academy Awards and be followed by three inferior sequels.

The article goes on to recount the numerous troubles that beset the film during its making - all well known now, so I won't bother repeating them here.