It’s the summer of 1975 and I’m crammed in the back of a standing room only theatre somewhere in the mid west with my family watching a movie. Little do I know, at the time, this experience would eventually alter the course of my life. I was 9 then, Gerald Ford was president, and the movie was none other than Jaws. 30 years ago. Wow…

As I write this and look back, it’s spring of 2005. I can vividly remember being more scared by that movie than any other before or since. The Exorcist came close, but nowhere near. I’ve always loved the water and still do. But after coming out of that dark theatre 3 decades ago into the bright sunlight, even a hotel swimming pool took on a sinister new meaning. You hear people talk about primal fear and I’m convinced that’s exactly what it was for me. Freddie Kruger, Jason, and all the other boogiemen combined have nothing on the shark in Jaws. Even finding out later the pet name given by the movie's film crew for this sea monster was 'Bruce' didn’t dull his edge. Let’s face it. Sharks are real and some of them can eat you alive. Sure, there are worse ways to go, but being consumed by a massive wild animal while you’re aware of what’s going on has got to rank way up there.

Fortunately, for me, this fear eventually turned to fascination, and within a short time, I was obsessed with sharks and Jaws was my favorite movie. Thanks to the film, there was no shortage of information available about these animals. Unfortunately, however, most of it was vilifying and sensationalized. For the most part, I saw through all that and read as much as I could. Sketching and identifying different species became a hobby and I even returned to my normal swimming habits. Another favorite memory of that time is summer fishing with my Grandfather and brothers on the Chesapeake Bay and in the Atlantic. It wasn’t unusual to catch several sharks on a trip and getting up close and personal with these fish was another experience that would leave a lasting impression.

As I grew older and fishing became a consuming passion, my heroes were adventure-seeking anglers like Zane Grey, Ernest Hemingway and Capt. Frank Mundus. They were all giants, but in my mind, Frank Mundus always seemd to stand just a little bit taller. After all, he was 'The Monster Man' and he specialized in catching sharks; big sharks -- including great whites, not unlike the monster in JAWS. He was real, and not some dreamed up Hollywood concoction and, for me, that made all the difference. I'll take my fact over fiction any day.

However, from the world of make believe, 'Quint', the rogue, shark-hunting character in Jaws, was also an influence. And now, t's finally being acknowledged this character, brilliantly portrayed by the late Robert Shaw, was modeled after the real life fishing adventures, world-record accomplishments and epic personality of the one and only Capt. Frank Mundus. It’s not a stretch to say the book and subsequent movie simply would not have been without Frank's inspiration.

So while choosing content for this website, we decided to establish a Hall Of Fame for people who have inspired us to do what we do. The first inductees would include some close family members and one other person. It didn’t take long to decide on Frank Mundus for that spot. In the process of verifying info to include with his induction bio, I visited his website and was planning to email him to secure permission for his inclusion. By this time, he had retired to Hawaii, but was still active in promoting the sport of big game shark fishing and conservation. We were hopeful he would respond to our request and invitation. After dialing in his website, I was amazed to see he was planning some sort of encore performance to coincide with the 30th anniversary of the release of Jaws.

I read on to discover this 'encore' actually meant he was coming back and making it possible to fish with the one and only! And it was going to happen out of his old stomping grounds in the waters off Montauk Point, New York! Then, if that wasn’t enough, the fishing would take place aboard the original 'Cricket II'. I almost couldn’t process the words and had to read it several times when it finally sunk in. Within minutes I called my brothers to share the news and emailed Capt. Frank that we wanted in on this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. I also made a note about the Hall Of Fame while I was at it, and just to be safe, called the number he provided on his site to leave a message. I expected to hear a generic answering machine, but it was his unmistakable voice. I pulled myself together and left a message figuring all we could do was wait to hear that somehow, someway, there would still be an available charter spot left. We toasted to good luck and went back about our business.

Later that night, the phone rang while I was working on the site. I checked the caller ID and did a triple double take when the readout flashed, “MUNDUS, FRANK”! Fortunately, my brother, Brooks was there to share my surprise. I took a deep breath and answered the phone thinking it would probably be a secretary or reservation taker or someone else, but that one and only voice came across loud and clear, “This is Frank Mundus calling for Sean Paxton”. After brief introductions, we locked down one of the few remaining charters then proceeded to talk about shark fishing. It was one of the highlights of my life and a great opportunity to learn. Trust me, he's the real deal. By the end of the conversation, my brothers and club member Dave Kops had gathered around. We all said hello on speakerphone and told the Captain we’d be counting the days to our expedition with him. He said he’d look forward to aggravating all of us for an entire day on the water. We quickly assured him it would be our pleasure, and said our goodbyes.

If you know big game fishing, especially shark fishing, then I’m sure you’ll understand how we were like bunch of kids on Christmas morning after ending that call. This is sure to be one of the best angling experiences we’re going to get, and we plan to be as ready as possible to get the most from the opportunity. While we’re at it, we figured we may as well share it with you here.

To Captains Mundus, we'd like to thank you for the rare chance to prowl the decks of the Cricket II and fish the summer waters of the North Atlantic in celebration of the 30th anniversary of JAWS. We can’t wait and couldn’t think of a better way to spend the summer.