Peter Benchley

Peter Benchley (May 8, 1940 - February 11, 2006) was an American author, whose work focused on marine creatures and human interaction with them, often with a dose of horror on the side. He is best known for being the author of the novel that Jaws was based on, though he also wrote several other books.

Later in life, Benchley became a conservationalist, and attempted to educate people about sea life, and the impact they were having on it. He died in 2006 of pulminary fibrosis.


 * Jaws: His first and best known novel, dealing with a great white shark menacing a Long Island town.
 * The Deep
 * The Island
 * The Girl Of The Sea Of Cortez: His best reviewed novel, dealing with a man's complex relation with the sea.
 * Beast: A giant squid menaces the Bermuda coastline.
 * Peter Benchley's Creature: Formerly entitled White Shark, it deals with a genetically modified Nazi Serial Killer raiding a town. Much Better Than It Sounds.

Other works by Peter Benchley provide examples of:

 * Pirate Booty: The Deep has divers discovering a WW 2 ship containing a cargo of morphine, which has sunk on top of a Spanish treasure ship that went down in the 18th century holding a priceless royal dowry. When a local drug kingpin takes an interest, the protagonists have to buy him off by salvaging the morphine while concealing what their real area of interest is.
 * Ruthless Modern Pirates: The Island

Peter Benchley's life provides examples of:

 * The Atoner and Creator Backlash: Benchley came to regret the panic that books like Jaws created, stating later in life that if he were to write the book for a modern audience, the shark would be a Tragic Villain and not the Ultimate Evil. He spent the rest of his life trying to make up for it by becoming an activist for ocean conservation.