The Discovery Channel held their first Shark Week promotionin 1987 . In the 27 twelvemonth since then , the seemingly educational series of programming has “ jumped the shark , ” so to speak , and slue into entertainment , and even more lately , into cryptozoology . This year’sShark Weekwill begin Sunday , August 10 . To get you quick for this twelvemonth ’s Shark Week , here are some of the ridiculous sharks in pop finish history .
1. Land Shark
During the fourth episode ofSaturday Night Live , the Not quick for Prime Time Players did a takeoff of the movieJawscalled “ Jaws II,”featuring the character Land Shark , voiced by Chevy Chase , who would talk through doors , trying to get citizenry to open up so he could assail . The shark was so pop , it became a recur skit . Land Shark appeared in eight episode ofSaturday Night Live , mostly during the show ’s first three seasons .
2. Jabberjaw
Jabberjawwas an anthropomorphous big blanched shark with his own band ( he played drumfish ) in the Hanna - Barbera cartoon series of the same name . It aired from 1976 to 1978 , although the 2nd time of year wasall repeats . With the helper of his four teenage bandmates , Jabberjaw solve mysteries . That basic secret plan may seem a bit conversant to you .
3. Bruce
In the Disney - Pixar movieFinding Nemo , Bruceis the leader of a chemical group of sharks who have pledge to hold back eating fish , and have form a funding chemical group . Although he is earnest in his goal of kicking the center - eat habit , Bruce is sorely tempt by the slightest whiff of blood in the water . Strange as a vegetarian shark may seem , there is an analog in the real world , a shark list Florencewho stopped eating meat after a surgical subroutine and prefers vegetarian fare .
4. Lenny
Lenny , from the 2004 Dreamworks movieShark Tale , is also a vegetarian . Although many thoughtShark Talewas a ripoff ofFinding Nemo , which was released a year earlier , both movies were in evolution at the same time . Still , if you were move to have two animate vegetarian shark , would you name them Lenny and Bruce ? The only way it would have been odder would be if Lenny Bruce had been a vegetarian .
5. The Shark that was Jumped
In the episode of the TV showHappy Daysthat gave us the now - intimate pop civilization term , Fonzie jumped over a shark . On water skis . The stunt was so giddy that the phrase“jump the shark”has come to mean the point at which a show is past its prime and begins to bank on stupid gimmicks to retain viewers . Oddly , that finical episode was a big collision and the series continued for seven more year . In retrospect , we can see howHappy Dayschanged considerably at about that breaker point , but what it changed into was still invoke to the select time audience of the sidereal day .
6. Sharknado
When it comes to giddiness , no one does sharks better than SyFy . Last Nox was the premiere of the movieSharknado 2 : The Second One , the sequel to last year’sSharknado , about a tempest that carries huge man - eat on shark over land . The A.V. Club hasa review of the subsequence , which they pronounce as pretty good , considering that it ’s a SyFy demon movie . You will be able to arrest a repeat showing several times this weekend .
7. Sharktopus
The 2010 SyFy movieSharktopuswas about a genetically - direct compounding of shark and devilfish . How this make the creature any more terrific than a regular shark only becomes clearwhen you see it grab people off land and walk on its tentacles . But it ’s still silly .
8. Mega Shark
Asylum cranks out freak movies that go direct to home TV . In 2009 , they releasedMega Shark Versus Giant Octopus , which grab our collective consciousnesswith its trailershowing a giant shark leaping from the urine and attacking an airplane . The proportional success ofMega Shark Versus Giant Octopusled tothe sequelsMega Shark Versus CrocosaurusandMega Shark Versus Mecha Shark . Asylum later producedSharknadofor SyFy . Other , non - Asylum shark films that postdate includeSnow Shark , Sand Sharks , andSwamp Shark .
9. Megalodon
Now , there ’s nothing silly about the ancient sharkmegalodon . According to fossil evidence , it could grow up to 60 feet tenacious and thrived until about 1.5 million years ago , when it became out . I ’m sing about the 2013 showMegalodon : The Monster Shark Livesthat drop anchor Shark Week last twelvemonth . The show was labeled as fabricated in a short disavowal at the commencement and the ending , but award material in the mannequin of a documentary , hint that there is evidence of hold out megalodons existing in the wilderness . Many in the audience miss the disclaimer , andthe scientific residential area respondedwith unfavorable judgment for the Discovery Channel in that they were not only misdirect their audience , but the whole idea of airing a fancied docudrama was irresponsible and cheapened the educational tradition of Shark Week . However , it was the most - watched Shark Week show ever . you could seeMegalodon : The Monster Shark Livesin segmentson the Discovery Channel ’s site . This year ’s Shark Week lineuphas quite a few educational shows , dressed up in rather provocative names , and then down at the bottom you see a show calledMegalodon : The New Evidence .
We ’ve had a lot ofarticles about real sharksyou should jibe out here at mental_floss .
