This weekend marks the 40th anniversary of 'Jaws,' and the shark's iconic first victim looks back on her role in the movie.
It's one of the most iconic scenes in movie history. A beautiful young swimmer is viciously attacked and killed by an unseen predator.
Now, on the 40th anniversary of the blockbuster film Jaws, INSIDE EDITION tracked down the actress who made that opening scene so famous.
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Susan Backlinie is now 68 years old and still has the same, long, strawberry-blonde hair she had in her 20's. To this day, she says she's still known for making an entire generation terrified to go into the ocean.
She said, “When people find out I was the first girl to be eaten they're amazed. I realize the scene I did terrified everybody and the one comment I get from everybody is, ‘You know you kept me out of the water’ and some even say, ‘You kept me out of the tub!’
You would think that a role so iconic, seen by millions, would have launched a big-time career in Hollywood, but it didn't lead to fame and fortune. After a small part in Steven Spielberg’s 1941 where she spoofed herself, she retired from acting and became an accountant outside Los Angeles in Ventura County. She lives on a modest 42-foot houseboat that her husband built.
Hanging on the wall is a poster from the blockbuster hit. She said, “It reminds me of doing the shoot. I had a very good time.”
Susan said it was also tough work filming for Jaws, saying, “It was very cold and I was in for two to three hours at a time."
To capture that dramatic jerking around, she wore Levis with hooks attached; divers would pull her in different directions.
‘As I felt my hips going one direction, I would throw my arms up as violently as I could so it looked like I was really being snatched,” she said.
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Even though she's fine with the water, she did leave us with one final warning – “Don’t go in the water. Remember, they're out there!”
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