ABC Promo/Sunday Night Movie Open: "Jaws 2" - 1981

[PungiFungi]

Ironically, the scene with Jackie screaming they had during the promo they cut out of the movie. In fact, they cut out a lot of Jackie's screaming scenes. Good move, I think.

[fatdaddync]

45 MPG on that 1981 Datsun. It's too bad gas got cheap again in the late 80s, or we'd probably all be driving cars that get 60+ MPG by now.

[msmithstud]

the highlight of the week for me was THE SUNDAY NIGHT MOVIE, preferably anything on ABC, particularly Bond or Superman movies.

[DodgerFan1988]

@msmithstud What was great about ABC Sunday Night Movie was the deleted scenes they added back into Superman, Jaws 2, Superman 2.

[msmithstud]

@DodgerFan1988 no shit. I still have the ABC cut of SUPERMAN, SUPERMAN II, SUPERMAN III, and SUPERGIRL on vhs. I'd like to see and extended cut of JAWS 2 if it's been released on dvd

[nickma71]

TV sucks now. Those reality shows are awful. They only time good movies are on seems like Christmas day. And I like Jurassic Park, but they need to show other good movies on TV.

[earlymtv]

what i miss the most is that families would all gather round the tv and watch these movies together. now everyones dead or all grown up. I miss 1981

[ming746]

@earlymtv i couldnt agree more with everything you said. the weekend movie was a big thing. before cable. i was 7 when this camne on . i remeber watching this. alligator too. still remember sitting in the foor and eating while watching. good memories but sad at the same time. wish i could go back. much better day and time

[douglascatti]

@earlymtv I had thta same experience at that time sitting around with family watching t.v. movies 1981 4th grade

[retro80stv]

@HUSKY57887 What happened to Datsun?

[Diskoboy1974]

@retro80stv - They changed their name to Nissan. For the first year after the name change, they called themselves Nissan/Datsun or Datsun by Nissan. Then they dropped the Datsun name all together by 1984.

I remember during the switch, they had an ad campaign called "Our name is Nissan".

[retro80stv]

I remember watching this movie on that night!

[TIPTON340]

Jaws II was nothing more but a teen-age slasher film with fins.

[FredericaBimble]

I remember all of these ads when they were on the TV...

[MarkFaust]

LOL! ONLY 4 commercials. Those were the days before serious corporate takeover. FUCK advertisements!

[reidkhnl]

Wow, my first car was my grandma's old red datsun. Compared to the simplicity of old tv ads, today's commercials are like mini movie productions.

By the way I remember this on ABC back in the day, in fact it was one of the first things I recorded on my family's brand new spanking Betamax!

[mannymvp24]

Thanks for posting this.....Brings back great memories!!!

[AngelofAnguish]

It's (very) rare that a film's sequel can be just as entertaining, if not better, as the original. In my opinion, Jaws 2 IS THAT film.

[TheXtro101]

I remember when Jaws 2 was 1st time shown on network TV back in 1981(when 80% of homes in the US didn't have cable or VHS yet).ABC station actually aired the "director's cut version", like a scene I remember not shown in theatres,the helicopter pilot under water.

[tsntana]

That used to blow my mind whenever the nuts turned into a Snickers bar.

[acjuan84]

1:35 Datsun has to be the ugliest car I have EVER seen! WOW!

[StefanoFan27]

wow, they still don't have nothing like this anymore.

[StefanoFan27]

wow, those were the days, they don't have nothing like this anymore.

r.i.p roy scheider.

[StefanoFan27]

wow, i wish we had a datsun cars today, 2010.

[StefanoFan27]

wow, i wish the datsun was around today, 2010.

[StefanoFan27]

wow, this was on before i was born (in 1982).

[strow1969]

"I have a really bad cold, but I took Comtrex, and now I can take my kids out and pass it on to a whole bunch of unsuspecting people!"

Thanks for posting this. Brings back good memories.

[MegaVolcano]

Is that Jeff Fayhe (sp?) on the Snickers commercial?

[Freebleeper]

Today's commercials are WAY lamer!

[ignoranceandwant]

The Datsun commercial is not that bad, really.

[Freebleeper]

I agree, "That was FOUR years ago!" my favorite part of the bit by the way.

[whocarez]

agreed 100%

[willb3452]

man times were so much better back in the day

[wildwill1980]

What has changed in over 28 years? EVERYTHING!!!!!

[wildwill1980]

I just turned one on that day.

[StefanoFan27]

R.I.P Roy Scheider.

[Evolution7X]

Wow that was simply wonderful. Did I see that right, Channel 13 in Sacramento?? That is where I lived at the time as well. What an awesome trip down memory lane. Thanks so much for sharing this!

[dorado90]

wow..........commercials were really wack those days. Datsuns were really good cars, now known as Nissan

[Death2alQaeda]

This was a time when people worked and Sunday was the family night movie.

[CssSnake6]

WE USED LIQUID DRAINO HUNNEY!!!!

[comedylover88]

I only liked the 1st Jaws.

My aunt had a Datsun truck in the early

80s.

[dlr1241]

An oversized Zenith television, The family sitting around it. Cake and kiddie junk food surrounding you, no school in the morning and I was five years old. Great times.

[dcfan215]

lol,,,,, commercials back then are so lame

[fatdaddync]

That was worth watching just for the vintage commercials! Datsun.... we are driven!

[StefanoFan27]

this happened 28 years ago.

[mrdamntn]

I was about to turn 4 months old, so this is really kinda trippy for me. No one at the time could have guessed that I'd be seeing these commercials in 2009 on my computer.

[tomloft2000]

i saw this at the theater,and it was about 3 years later that it made it to T.V.wasn't nearly as good as the original.yea,this was before Datsun gave birth to a Nissan.

[mominator822]

Dang, I remember this open -- this was back when seeing a movie on your own TV in your own home was a major event. You usually had to wait a good two to three years before it would be shown on one of the only 3 networks , but the whole family stayed up to watch. And these commercials.... I remember every one of them! BTW, I am 37 and loved the 70's and 80's. I only wish my kids had it like I did.....

[mrdamntn]

Yeah, I was only a year old in 1981 but I remember this opening style from later in the 80's. Funny how happy I am to see this old promo and opening again. I must have watched far too much TV back in the day. :D

[sandukann]

Jwas is GEWELDIG!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[StefanoFan27]

Wow. 28 years ago.

[tripjet999]

Those Datsuns were UG-LEE.

[grenadianmed]

Holy shit, it's a Datsun.

[jayvola]

Thanks for posting all of these. I specifically remember many of these movies airing on ABC, although I don't remember this particular premiere air of JAWS 2.

[ord1711]

Awesome. I love the commercials. I miss these days.

[Luvinthe70s]

I couldn't agree with you more. With all the channels now now on cable there's still nothing to watch. And ohhh those fond remembrances of times past. I guess we'll always cherish our childhood more with each passing year. ~Gods Blessings~.

[padawan23]

To clarify any confusion, the DVD versions of the original Jaws are the original theatrical presentations as shown on the big screen. There are no uncut versions because the movie was never seen that way originally. When it came to television, the network needed filler so they added in deleted material to fill out the time. This material was never seen theatrically. All DVD versions of Jaws are the original theatrical cuts.

[reidkhnl]

Good lord, I used to own a Datsun and I remember most of these commercials. Jaws 2 was also the first movie I ever recorded on the family betamax.

[popey129]

love the dotson MPG rating in 1981

[kc86er]

Nice find!

[cooksta4prez08]

Hey there KLXT I saw that musicman left a comment wondering if you have the whole movie on a DVD I totally agree with him I would love to get a copy of it myself if you have it

[pbanta62]

Ah, the good-ol' days of two-minute breaks and no transluscent logos.

[murdlok]

JAWS 1 is already restored, uncut and in DTS audio since 3 years ago on DVD. and the other ones are the same as the theatrical cuts bc if universal had additional scenes it will be difficult for them to restore the scenes and put them back to the film, and also they maybe have to look for the negative to get abetter presentation from the film and restore it but that is going to be a little harder since there was a fire at the universal studios film vault early this year

[leilanileon15]

do u guys no where i can c the movie

[LindsaysHope]

Jaws 2 premiered on ABC back on Sunday February 15, 1981 from Universal Pictures on the Sunday Night Movie World Television Premiere Event.

[TheKillerWithinNJ]

I don't know if you have the Jaws 2 DVD, but it is pretty chocked filled with information, deleted scenes, documentary, storyboards and a interview with John Williams - what more are you expecting?

This ABC showing was a 'special presentation" which mean they premiered the movie on television for the first time, with some of the violence trimmed out.

[cdkreturns]

I used to love that Liquid Drano commercial!

[initialsjb]

I read somewhere it is slated, but not sure when streets.

[graniteminer]

A Datsun 210! I remember this movie and this car as if it were yesterday.

[ruarc2077]

Back then I worked for ABC. It was rare to super-in the word "Special" onto the opening sequence. In fact, if anyone can dig up the original airing of "Saturday Night Fever, " I think you'll find that we supered-in the word "Special," but made it look like neon tube letters, which fit the marquee motif much better than this one did (and I think we did it in hot pink). But it's damn awesome to see this! Extremely good print too! Thanks!

[scorpdan]

--Compare this group of commercials with today's.

--Economy Car, Joe worker with Snickers, Cold pills, Drano

--All aimed at mid-to-lower income adults.

--No graphics, sex, youth, or displays of wealth.

--All very straight forward, actually primitive, as far as visual manipulation.

--Next time you watch a Cialis commercial, ask yourself, "Why are they showing me a man an woman laying in separate bath tubs outdoors?"

It's all about extremely precise stimulation and manipulation.

[ruarc2077]

You are so right.

[integgy95]

Unfortunatley the world has gone to hell... Im only 23 but I wish I couldve been around back in these days.. the world seemed like an all around better place. Not like todays corrupt evil bullshit.

[grenadianmed]

It was magical...a heaven you will never know.

[MegaVolcano]

I was Heaven in a "ignorance is bliss" kind of way. There was still corrupt Gov't crap, There was trouble in Iran and the Middle East. There were terrorists, serial killers, child abductions, and everything we have today, except for one thing...Constant media bombardment! No internet. Only Three main channels and whatever UHF channels you could pick up. The News came on at 6 and 11 and that was it. You went about your day and did stuff outside the house.

[Lanzig138]

AWESOME!!!

[Daenes]

The commercials were great! Brings back tons of memories. Thanks!

[brody1jaws]

totally awesome. I love the nostalgic element of the Sunday night movie. Pure good times here, gents. Plus it's friggin' JAWS 2!!! Whoooooo!

[simbaerod]

good times.

[jchristsu]

Awesome.

[muzikman74]

Man, I gotta get a copy of this from you!!!!!! Is there anyway I can get a dvd copy from you? I'd gladly pay you for your trouble.

[Hollywoodsteve]

Great stuff. Thanks! I recorded it after my family got our first VCR (a Sears Betamax) in 1982 or 83. They changed the opening for the rebroadcast. I just remember the announcer saying something about summer, time for fun, etc. before the shark footage is shown. The ABC airings had extra scenes too. I also remember that I was in Vegas that night in 1981 and watched Jaws 2 in our hotel room.

[TheKillerWithinNJ]

Wow, I remember recording this with a GE tape recorder as a kid ( that's audio cassettes, folks - not video ) What can I say, we didn't have a VCR until years later. Thanks for putting a date to it - I was 11!

[Rockstarkong]

Thanks for posting!

[wmbrown6]

The promo was announced by Ernie Anderson, while Joel Crager handled the opening and bumpers.

[KLXT77]

Don't forget the great Mike Laurence doing the promo tag *live* from ABC in Los Angeles.

[wmbrown6]

I presume Mr. Laurence was one of the KABC announcers - did he intro "Eyewitness News" on weekends? In any event, thanks for the tip.

[KLXT77]

That's correct. Mike Laurence was a staff announcer at KABC. His smooth tones were heard on news opens, commercial tags, local IDs, etc., in addition to his duties at ABC on the West Coast.

In 1981, Mike gave me and my brother a backstage tour of ABC, excusing himself at one point to do the live voiceover during the end credits of "Happy Days"! A super nice guy, Mike can also be seen as a broadcaster in such films as "Kentucky Fried Movie" and "Airplane!"

[wmbrown6]

Hmm, I must've missed out. Where I live in New York, we got Wally Parker on weekend evenings . . . ;)