“Anybody who knows anything about fishing knows that it’s based on him,” said Pat Mundus, Frank’s daughter to New York Post, adding that locals long recognised his impact on the story that reshaped shark lore forever.
Photo: NYP
Known for hunting massive sharks and branding himself a “monster fisherman,” Mundus often performed stunts to draw attention—including staging the discovery of a “sea monster” in a waterproof casket.
Though Spielberg’s Jaws is set in the fictional Amity Island, it was Peter Benchley’s encounter with Mundus aboard his boat, Cricket, that many credit as the source of the character’s creation.
However, Mundus was never officially recognised, which his family views as erasure. “He crafted his image over decades, and then someone just used it without credit,” Pat said.
Frank Mundus passed away in 2008, but his legacy endures. His 1986 capture of a 3,427-pound great white shark with Donnie Braddick remains legendary. A replica still draws crowds at Sam’s Star Island Marina.
Photo: NYP