Just found this when I logged-in.

http://news.yahoo.com/fc/entertainment/literature_and_authors

:angelpus:

J

RIP... And here is Richard Ellis' review of Benchley's gigantic squid novel, Beast (http://www.tonmo.com/reviews/beast.php).

Death -- it's a bummer!

It was Peter Benchley's "Beast" that actually got me interested in Architeuthis, and squid in general. Apart from his "monster" books, Peter Benchley wrote some very good books, including "The Girl of the Sea of Cortez" (which was given to me at a young age by my Grandmother and got me interested in the ocean and all her creatures) and Rummies - quite a funny, political type fiction. The world has lost a good man. May he Rest in Peace. Cheers.

Not to sidetrack the discussion, but I've been recently watching the Looney Tunes Golden Collections, which are great, and it's great to see the old animators and voice actors talking about their work on the commentaries and features. They're quite old, of course, and along with the fact that Chuck Jones and Mel Blanc and others have passed on, it really gets you thinking about mortality. A sad fact but thankfully we still have their cartoons to make us laugh.

Although his prose was somewhat...derivative, it is too bad that he died that way. I would much rather he was chewed up and swallowed by a few sharks, after the massive amount of shark killing that came about due to his book, "jaws".
He got off easy, in my opinion.

I've never read any of his work. 'Course I've seen the movie Jaws (and been on the ride:grin:), and I think I know some of the differences between them. Is his work any good? I know this is a bit of a "whisky question" (meaning one person can't say what the best is since everyone's taste is obviously different:wink:) but what are his books like? Are they any good?

Roadkill Demon

...I would much rather he was chewed up and swallowed by a few sharks, after the massive amount of shark killing that came about due to his book, "jaws".
He got off easy, in my opinion.
While that is true, he did try to make things better and did a lot later in his life to help sharks. I read a book by him last summer where he was defending sharks and I saw a movie where he talked about "jaws" and the controversy it caused and the importance of shark conservation. I think the public has to be blamed for the killing of sharks becuase they overreacted to a fiction novel.

Anyway RIP


Ben

I've never read any of his work. 'Course I've seen the movie Jaws (and been on the ride:grin:), and I think I know some of the differences between them. Is his work any good? I know this is a bit of a "whisky question" (meaning one person can't say what the best is since everyone's taste is obviously different:wink:) but what are his books like? Are they any good?

Roadkill Demon

I personally like his work. In my opinion, he was a good writer. I don't think Jaws or Beast were his best works at all, but, just the fact that so many people were terrified to go in the water after reading either of them, lets you know that he could certainly spin a yarn. Check out the two books I've mentioned previously and let me know what you think.

Cool! Will do! >makes mental note: Jaws and Beast<
Oh, and bmatson, I agree with your statement, mainly because considering the music I listen to, I've seen many cases of that; where where it's so easy for someone to lamp all the blame on the music or the bands, than to accept the responsibility themselves!

Graeme

Reuter's reports shark attacks down ( on news of Benchley's demise?)

http://today.reuters.com/news/newsarticle.aspx?type=topNews&storyid=2006-02-13T195804Z_01_N13264787_RTRUKOC_0_US-ENVIRONMENT-SHARKS.xml

I don't know that it's fair to blame Benchley much for public hysteria -- although I don't like misinformation (and was bugged even more by that in the movie of "The Beast" ) I've also noticed that what the public does with information is often far lower quality than the original. A favorite example was that I read about "Generation X" in Time magazine and various places like that, and was invariably disgusted about how people saw it as reasonable to categorize people around my age similarly to (but generally more negatively than) "baby boomers" and how they seemed to love inventing labels and stereotypes. However, when I overcame my disgust and actually looked into Douglas Copeland's original "Generation X" book, I found that he was quite an interesting sort of "contemporary anthropologist" type, and his observations about cultural subgroups are usually interesting and spot-on. Unfortunately, journalists and the public generally miss most of that when they jargonify his stuff...

I suspect blaming Benchley for shark attitudes of the press and public is probably similar.

Hmmm. Really?
Actually, because he wrote one hell of a good book about a single shark, thousands of people decided that it would be a good idea to wipe out the larger sharks from the ocean.
Cash is king, I suppose. The book should never have been published, nor the the movie ever made. But what the heck, I guess more $$$ in your pocket, and your conscience means nothing, right? It's always someone else's fault...seems to be the prevailing opinion of the times.

Crap.

greg

Yeah but the fact is it is fiction. How was Benchley supposed to know it would cause widespread panic. Do you think other fiction books shouldn't be published becuase they may cause controversy? It is too bad what happened to sharks from the writing of the book, but you can't blame Benchley or the publishers for making the it.

Ben

Hmmm. Really?
Actually, because he wrote one hell of a good book about a single shark, thousands of people decided that it would be a good idea to wipe out the larger sharks from the ocean.
Cash is king, I suppose. The book should never have been published, nor the the movie ever made. But what the heck, I guess more $$$ in your pocket, and your conscience means nothing, right? It's always someone else's fault...seems to be the prevailing opinion of the times.

Crap.

greg

Just because it's clear in retrospect that the book inspired the killing of the sharks doesn't mean it was at all obvious at the time he decided to write it that it would lead to that. And once the door was opened, I don't know that he could change it any...

I think you should be grumpy at sharkfin soup eaters as much as Benchley, myself....

Hmmm. Really?
Actually, because he wrote one hell of a good book about a single shark, thousands of people decided that it would be a good idea to wipe out the larger sharks from the ocean.
Cash is king, I suppose. The book should never have been published, nor the the movie ever made. But what the heck, I guess more $$$ in your pocket, and your conscience means nothing, right? It's always someone else's fault...seems to be the prevailing opinion of the times.

I take great offense at this. I do not think it is at all reasonable to hold Peter Benchley accountable, especially given that he has spent so much time and money since trying to change perceptions and stereotypes.

I think it is akin to holding Melville responsible for every whale killed since 1850. Why should we stop at Benchley? Is Steven Spielberg responsible for shark killings? Is Roy Scheider going to hell? How about Robert Shaw, is he already there for playing a shark-killer in a movie? Is he personally responsible for all the sharks that died?

I think what's most disturbing is you seem to be advocating censorship.

Dan

Very well put Dan I agree completly. From what I could see Peter Benchley felt very badly about what happened to the sharks. He truely meant it as a good horror story. From the other book of his I read you could tell he had a great respect for sharks.

Ben

P.s Anyone who's interested "Shark Life" by Benchley is a great book

In a sense, I am advocating censorship. Censorship by the creator of the prose, not by the public or the publisher.
Learning what can cause harm is a responsibility. He missed the boat on that one ,no matter how much you all seem to want to cast bread out into the water and say "it's not my fault".
Perhaps I don't care much for Spielberg or Melville too...like stated before, cash seems to be king.

g

In a sense, I am advocating censorship. Censorship by the creator of the prose, not by the public or the publisher.
Learning what can cause harm is a responsibility. He missed the boat on that one ,no matter how much you all seem to want to cast bread out into the water and say "it's not my fault".
Perhaps I don't care much for Spielberg or Melville too...like stated before, cash seems to be king.

If Benchley thought cash was king, he wouldn't have spent his own money on shark conservation. Your thesis throughout this argument is that he's shirking responsibility, he's saying "it's not my fault," which is demonstrably false.

The rest of us are the ones arguing that he's not responsible. Is Salinger responsible for the murder of John Lennon? Jaws was not a call to arms any more than the Catcher in the Rye, and I don't think its fair to hold the author accountable for the acts of the mentally deranged.

Dan

Still Benchley has the right to make the book whether for the money or not. Many factors went into the worldwide shark endangerment. Shark finning for instance has been going on for years in Asia. "Jaws" most certainly didnt have anything to do with that. "Jaws" may have caused people to kill sharks but that does not mean Benchley should be "chewed up and swallowed" by sharks. And just like Dan said he put money into helping sharks and he had a great deal of respect for them. In my opinion Greg, you are being completly unfair.

Ben

I don't recall stating that I was in any way, shape, or form..."fair".

I do not care for his writings, I do not care for the person he was. You may, which is certainly your right.
If Eichmann donated money to the jewish relief fund, would that be a good excuse too? It seems to never be anyone's fault.
"Jaws" is a wonderful rip-off of Moby Dick, and very well done, to be sure. I have a copy that was given to me in 1977.
What happened afterwards was horrible, and although he may not have gone out and killed the sharks himself, he created a state of panic, somewhat like a person screaming "fire!" in a crowded theatre.

The last thing I'm going to say is that the analogy with Eichmann is very different as Benchley wasn't trying to hurt the sharks. As far as the "fire!" crowded theatre, well isn't that the basis of all good horror films/books? As far as I can tell thats all he can be blamed for. Everything else with the Sharks was not his fault.

Well, shame on society for not seeing the movie for what it was: entertainment, not documentary. Of course it's not Benchley's fault.

Should we blame Alfred Hitchcock for the fact that America banned the creation of showers in the 1960's, relegating everyone to baths only? (Oh, that didn't happen did it...)

Well anyway, I'm glad Greg readily acknowledges his lack of fairness on this issue! :smile:

Laugh...yes, I know, I can be a real stick-in-the-mud sometimes...I just can't stand his writings, and can not find it in my heart to feel bad about his demise.

I don't recall stating that I was in any way, shape, or form..."fair".

I do not care for his writings, I do not care for the person he was. You may, which is certainly your right.
If Eichmann donated money to the jewish relief fund, would that be a good excuse too? It seems to never be anyone's fault.
"Jaws" is a wonderful rip-off of Moby Dick, and very well done, to be sure. I have a copy that was given to me in 1977.
What happened afterwards was horrible, and although he may not have gone out and killed the sharks himself, he created a state of panic, somewhat like a person screaming "fire!" in a crowded theatre.

To be honest, I'm not particularly fond of his books, either, although I do like the film very much (probably because it really bears little resemblance!). I've just stepped up to the plate because I believe you're giving the fellow a raw deal.

I don't think your analogy of the crowded theatre is applicable. In that instance people are generally assumed to give up rational thought because any momentary hesitation to do so may lessen the chance of survival. It is also a deliberate act of malevolence, or mischief at the very least. Neither of these apply to Benchley. Rednecks-in-boats made concerted, deliberate decisions to act irresponsibly, after seeing a Hollywood movie. I think this is absurd--akin to blaming Paul Thomas Anderson for a kid's cocaine habit because he happened to see Boogie Nights.

Finally, 30 years following the release of the movie, I think there has been a net benefit. The layperson is interested in learning about the biology and the behavior of sharks. The Discovery Channel gets its best ratings during its "Shark Week." Shark conservation efforts depend on public support and awareness, and I think Benchley's work is responsible for that, albeit in an unexpected and roundabout way.

By the way, I believe your analogy to Eichmann is unfair and inappropriate. Apples to orangutans. You're comparing him to a man who's actions were undeniably premeditated and malevolent, and I believe you do your argument a disservice by invoking him for shock value.

Dan

It would appear while I wrote the above post, tensions have fizzled.

Please disregard ;)

Dan

Oh, there was no tension on my part at all...I just don't think much of him as a writer, and he sure as hell was no conservationist. People take cash for any reason these days, without thinking about why they are getting paid so much.
That said, the book is actually a very good read, although full of misinformation. The only part he got totally correct was the infidelity of Brody's wife !

The connection to Eichmann was intentional, that sonofagun stated the same thing :
"that's not what I meant to do"

I happen to feel more for sharks than I do for most humans, so while it is inappropriate for most of you, it is totally correct for me.

Hemiscyllium ocellatum is sooo cute when it's walking around!

RaNdOmNeSs!

Oh, there was no tension on my part at all...I just don't think much of him as a writer, and he sure as hell was no conservationist. People take cash for any reason these days, without thinking about why they are getting paid so much.
That said, the book is actually a very good read, although full of misinformation. The only part he got totally correct was the infidelity of Brody's wife !

The connection to Eichmann was intentional, that sonofagun stated the same thing :
"that's not what I meant to do"

I happen to feel more for sharks than I do for most humans, so while it is inappropriate for most of you, it is totally correct for me.

Time and again you state that you don't think Peter Benchley was much of a writer, yet you then go on to say (a couple of times) that Jaws was a very good read. Just out of curiosity, what other Peter Benchley books have you read (apart from Jaws and The Beast)?

From cover to cover? Only those two. Beast was tossed into the circular recycling bin. I did almost make it through Shark Trouble, or whatever it was named...
Lots of hack writers make quite good reading...William Murphy, Stephen King, etc. make up a large percentage of my library, and I enjoy opening the books over and over again. Jaws certainly falls into that category, as it is entertaining, if not a thinly veiled attempt at ripping off Moby Dick. Beast was utter garbage. The only book worse than that was a monstrosity called Meg that came out a few years back...uggh. Horriffic ! (don't know who wrote that one, but it was truly awful )

From cover to cover? Only those two. Beast was tossed into the circular recycling bin. I did almost make it through Shark Trouble, or whatever it was named...
Lots of hack writers make quite good reading...William Murphy, Stephen King, etc. make up a large percentage of my library, and I enjoy opening the books over and over again. Jaws certainly falls into that category, as it is entertaining, if not a thinly veiled attempt at ripping off Moby Dick. Beast was utter garbage. The only book worse than that was a monstrosity called Meg that came out a few years back...uggh. Horriffic ! (don't know who wrote that one, but it was truly awful )

Steve Alten

Ah! I doubt they will ask me to speak at his eulogy, either... I remember being so wound up when it came out...finally, a book about one of the most fascinating animals to swim in the ocean. The look of pure horror on my face by page twenty must have been enough to cast stones (not that it is that good at any rate, LOL ) !

Have a read of Peter Benchley's "The Girl of the Sea of Cortez" and "Rummies", I think you'll be pleasantly surprised. Cheers.