June 20 - 50 years ago, a movie changed the way we go swimming

Good morning !

I’m not going to lie. I was scared out of my Speedo back in the mid-70s. Even though my family owned a backyard pool, I irrationally couldn’t help but think—for a few times, anyway, after that one night at an Ottawa drive-in—that I wasn’t swimming alone. Our first story is about big fish. Our second is about big weekend sound.

— Mark

Today’s approx. read time: 5 minutes

🌡️ Weather Forecast

Today: 🌧️ 14 / 11  

Tomorrow: 🌧️ 16 / 11

Sunday: 🌦️ 16 / 11

7-day forecast

NEWS

It’s been 50 years: Are you ready to go back into the water?

The term Jaws Effect was coined by Dr. Christopher Neff—a public policy professor at the University of Sydney—to describe the enormous and negative impact the 1975 film Jaws had on the public's perception of sharks.

The groundbreaking, water-splashing movie was released 50 years ago today.

It became the first summer blockbuster, swimming menacingly into our collective consciousness. It takes hearing only a couple of notes from John Williams’ classic score for most people to recognize the theme from Jaws—and to immediately start mentally kicking their feet to swim away.

Victoria author and journalist Mark Leiren-Young remembers as a kid seeing Jaws in a movie theatre in Vancouver and being “frigging terrified.”

He wasn’t alone. 

“No one wanted to go into the water on the beach,” he says. “I had so many friends who were like, ‘I'm not going in the swimming pool—there might be a shark there.’ Like, as a kid, the utter fear like this was amazing.”

The movie that spawned the classic “You’re gonna need a bigger boat” demonized sharks as “a mindless eating machine that lives to kill.”

Only here in BC, it wasn’t so much a result of fear as it was annoyance and money. And it wasn’t the great white; it was the much larger basking shark.

Read Mark Brennae’s full story here. 

⚠️ Capital Bulletin

National Indigenous Peoples’ Day is tomorrow.

Sooke 2026 budget: Sooke residents can now share their thoughts on next year’s financial planning. [Survey]

Missing person, Oscar, 65, who parked his car at Goldstream Provincial Park. [VicPD]

Driving today? Check the current traffic situation via Google.

NEWS

Two major music festivals are happening this weekend

The summer solstice arrives today, meaning summer is officially here. What’s a better way of celebrating the season of sunshine than an outdoor music festival? How about two outdoor music festivals?

The Victoria Ska and Reggae Fest—the longest-running ska festival in North America—is back at Ship Point and the Victoria Curling Club for its 26th year, with an array of Caribbean-inspired sounds, including ska, reggae, and dancehall acts. There will be hip-hop, punk rock, and electronic music as well. Headliners include Propagandhi, Dub FX, Jakobs Castle, and The Pharcyde.

The festival kicked off on Wed., with a free show. If you missed it, you can catch more free performances on Sun. Full fest passes are now sold out, but you can still buy tickets for individual shows happening today and through the weekend. These can be purchased online or in person at Victoria’s Tourism Information Centre, located up the hill from the festival (just follow the funky sound of horns).

There will be plenty of local food, drinks, and artwork available as well, making this a true community affair.

The Victoria International Jazz Fest returns for its 41st year today, bringing a range of performers and sounds. While it isn’t fully outdoors—many of the big headliners will perform at some of the city’s most notable venues, Royal Theatre, McPherson Playhouse, and Hermann’s Jazz Club—there will be multiple shows in Bullen Park and at the Cameron Bandshell in Beacon Hill Park.

If jazz isn’t your jam, don’t discount the festival—there will be music spanning multiple genres, including rock, pop, soul, and of course, jazz.

Expect plenty of BC representation on stage this year, including Smithers’ GRAMMY-winning Latin-pop artist Alex Cuba, Vancouver’s multi-instrumentalist Ayla Tesler-Mabé, and Victoria’s own funk-hip hoppers, The New Groovement.

Tonight, Madeleine Peyroux will headline at the Royal Theatre, showcasing her classic jazz-blues style and iconic vocals. Shows run until June 29.

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⭐️ Capital Picks

🎺 Ska Fest playlists: Check out music from this year’s lineup. [Listen]

☘️ Victoria Shamrocks host Coquitlam Adanacs at Q Centre tonight. [Tickets]

🎵✊🏼 From protest anthems to iconic artifacts, Beyond the Beat explores how music shaped movements. An exhibition from the Canadian Museum for Human Rights, May 30–Jan. 5.*

🦉 Wildlife wonders in Sooke. [Al Bright / Facebook]

*Sponsored Listing

🗞️ In Other News

Lack of whale sightings possibly linked to heat dome of ‘21
Usually, this time of the year, we hear about more encounters and glimpses of orcas in our ‘hood, but the Southern Resident killer whales haven’t shown up yet, according to the Washington state-based Orca Conservancy. It says the three families—J, K and L pods—may not be here because there’s not enough salmon to chase, and the reason for that, the org says, is the super-hot weather we got in June and July 2021 heated the water and killed spawning adults, and those that did manage to spawn produced eggs that didn’t survive. The salmon follow a four- or five-year lifecycle. [Black Press]

City is finding it a hard climb to replace the Summit addiction centre
About three years ago, a segregated “special population unit” was created at the Summit long-term facility on Hillside, but residents began to complain when some mostly younger residents with acute mental-health issues were placed with frail, elderly patients. There were complaints—including from the BC Nurses’ Union—about cigarette and drug use. Island Health is looking for options for longer-term care, but said none of the proposals it received met size, location, or building condition requirements. [Times Colonist]

Victoria’s safety and well-being plan proposal gets the city council’s first go-ahead
The plan pitched to deal with downtown safety and community issues received near-unanimous support in the council, with one councillor—Marg Gardiner, who asked for short-term policy actions—opposing. The plan has 95 recommendations for all three levels of government and comprises eight key areas: housing, healthcare, service delivery, downtown, residents, commerce, policing, and the city’s community safety and well-being services. [CHEK]

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🗓️ Things to do

🪶 National Indigenous Peoples Day: Celebrate local Indigenous culture with live performances, canoe challenges, and a frybread station at Royal Roads. Today. 10am-3pm. [Info] 

🍻 Fridays at the Station: Shop the market, listen to live music, and enjoy some tasty craft beer at Langford Station. Today. 4-8pm. [Info]

🚲 Esquimalt Pride Ride: Celebrate Esquimalt's LGBTQ2S+ community with this fun bike ride that is mostly on bike paths and will make a 7-8km loop around Esquimalt. Today. 5:30-9pm. After the ride, head to Memorial Park for food trucks, lawn games, and a community picnic. [Free. Registration encouraged.] [Info] 

🎵 Kneebody: “It’s a band thoroughly acquainted with 1960s free-bop, 1970s jazz rock, 1990s hip-hop, and postmillennial indie rock, along with classical postminimalism,” says the NY Times. The CODA. Tonight. 9:30pm. [Info] 

😆 Improv Against Humanity: Based on the game Cards Against Humanity, performers will create scenes based on the raunchy and hilarious card combinations. Theatre SKAM. Tomorrow. 8:30pm. [Info]

🎷 Victoria Jazzfest: Celebrate the 41st edition of this annual music festival, with 10 days of great tunes. Various venues. Today-June 29. [Info] 

🍗 Victoria Wingfest: The festival, hosted by Victoria firefighters, will feature wings, pints, and other treats from local restaurants. The Roundhouse. Tomorrow. 1-4pm. [Info]

🔬 Under the Microscope: Join this free workshop to understand the complex life existing in dirt at the Compost Education Centre. Tomorrow. 10am. [Info]

👀 In Case You Missed It

Thursday’s headlines: No food trucks at Colwood’s Esquimalt Lagoon; Victoria property taxes due; Mayfair owner offers $6M for three Hudson’s Bay retail spaces. [June 19]

Terminally ill Langford girl loses treatment funding from province. [Capital Daily]

Saanich shelter denied funding despite BC Housing’s promise to earmark it. [Capital Daily]

Saanich teen a hit on America’s Got Talent: Chase Varnes, 13, impressed the judges this week, scoring three yeses to move to the next round. [Watch]

UVic recognized for climate work. 

end2end Vic-Port Hardy cycling relay for cancer relief. 

Male oystercatcher feeds its chick on the shoreline of Oak Bay. [Facebook photo]

That’s it!

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