Jaws, Dinner, Drinks and Nostalgia in Boston and Martha's Vineyard

By Naomi Kooker

In conjunction with the Discovery Channel’s 25th Anniversary of Shark Week, the Boston Harbor Hotel is showing Jaws, the 1975 thriller about a great white shark threatening the small island of Amity, on its big screen outside tonight, July 27, weather permitting. (Universal Studios is coming out with a Blu-Ray version on August 14 to coincide with its own 100th Anniversary celebration.)

What fun to sit so close to the water’s edge - the Boston Harbor - and watch as the gnarly shark attacks Captain Sam Quint’s boat. See if you can catch the local details - the film was shot at Menemsha on Martha’s Vineyard. And in the film, Quint, played by Robert Shaw, at one point crushes a can of Narragansett beer in his hand. The Rhode Island-based brewery even designed a retro can to look like the can in the film. You can enjoy a brew and some grub at the BHH’s Rowe’s Wharf Sea Grille before or during the movie, which starts at dusk (617-856-7744).

And if you miss the chance to see Jaws tonight, you can experience the shark-lore full force when Martha’s Vineyard (dubbed Amitity Island in the movie) hosts Jaws Fest: The Tribute on August 9-12. Included in the festivities is a "Shark After Dark" party on August 9 at the Blue Canoe in Vineyard Haven. There’ll be tapas, a cash bar and a lot of buzz surrounding opening night of the festival, which will offer an inside glimpse of making the movie to shark conservation (508-693-3332).