About the Book
"Go for the Jaws, stay for the Shaws." --Nat Segaloff, author of The Exorcist Legacy Robert Shaw unforgettably commanded attention as the weathered seaman Captain Quint in the blockbuster sensation, Jaws. But what came before and after that landmark film is as dramatic as the hunt for the great white shark itself.
Capturing the many facets of the vibrant, generous, and sometimes polarizing man is his nephew, Christopher, who explores the forces that shaped a dynamic personality--including Robert's indomitable mother, his deeply troubled father, and his activist sister, Joanna, with whom Robert shared an unbreakable bond. Out of the traumatic events of their childhood in the Orkney Islands and Cornwall, Mrs. Shaw pushed her children to pursue their dreams. For Robert, that dream was acting and writing.
Despite a storied career on the British and American stage--as both performer and playwright--and a string of hit films including From Russia with Love, A Man for All Seasons, The Sting, and The Taking of Pelham One Two Three, international celebrity eluded Robert ... until he was summoned to star in "a little horror film" called Jaws.
About the Author :
Christopher Shaw Myers grew up listening to the stories told by his colorful uncle, Robert Shaw, and other family members. Born and raised in Pennsylvania, he attended Trinity College, where he double majored in English literature and mathematics; and Columbia University, where he received a master's in business administration. After a thirty-year career in the hi-tech field, he delved deeper into his family's history to explore the magic that Robert and his siblings cultivated in their lives. He lives in the New York area and can be found online at christophershawmyers.com. Christopher Shaw Myers grew up listening to the stories told by his colorful uncle, Robert Shaw, and other family members. Born and raised in Pennsylvania, he attended Trinity College, where he double majored in English literature and mathematics; and Columbia University, where he received a master's in business administration. After a thirty-year career in the hi-tech field, he delved deeper into his family's history to explore the magic that Robert and his siblings cultivated in their lives. He lives in the New York area and can be found online at christophershawmyers.com. Christopher Shaw Myers grew up listening to the stories told by his colorful uncle, Robert Shaw, and other family members. Born and raised in Pennsylvania, he attended Trinity College, where he double majored in English literature and mathematics; and Columbia University, where he received a master's in business administration. After a thirty-year career in the hi-tech field, he delved deeper into his family's history to explore the magic that Robert and his siblings cultivated in their lives. He lives in the New York area and can be found online at christophershawmyers.com. The son of acclaimed author Walter Dean Myers, award-winning illustrator Christopher Myers credits his appreciation of the importance of images to observing the objects and photographs his parents would bring home from auctions and flea markets: "little histories;" "other people's memories that get left behind." His own family images have had quite an impact, as well - as in a black-and-white photograph of his grandfather with a telling smile on his face. "He was a storyteller. His thick, dark, calloused hands told stories. My father tells stories. I tell stories. I'm fascinated with work, what work is, who does work, how much our identities are wrapped up in what we do with our hands. Shoeshine boy, ditchdigger, painter. My grandfather laughed at my father's hands because they were too soft. Still I think he was proud of the fact that my father didn't have to work with his back. This is progress."
Myers has made his career working with his hands in yet another way, creating his own images in collage, photos, woodcuts, and other artistic media. A graduate of Brown University, he has participated in the exclusive Whitney Museum of American Art Independent Studio Program. Myers began his children's book career doing research to help his father, and went on to illustrate the elder Myers' Shadow of the Red Moon. In 1998, the two collaborated on Harlem, which was named a Caldecott Honor Book as well as a Coretta Scott King Honor Book. Myers' solo effort, Black Cat, was also a Coretta Scott King Honor Book.
In addition to his fine art and illustrative work, Christopher Myers is a clothing designer. He makes his home in Brooklyn, New York.
The son of acclaimed author Walter Dean Myers, award-winning illustrator Christopher Myers credits his appreciation of the importance of images to observing the objects and photographs his parents would bring home from auctions and flea markets: "little histories;" "other people's memories that get left behind." His own family images have had quite an impact, as well - as in a black-and-white photograph of his grandfather with a telling smile on his face. "He was a storyteller. His thick, dark, calloused hands told stories. My father tells stories. I tell stories. I'm fascinated with work, what work is, who does work, how much our identities are wrapped up in what we do with our hands. Shoeshine boy, ditchdigger, painter. My grandfather laughed at my father's hands because they were too soft. Still I think he was proud of the fact that my father didn't have to work with his back. This is progress."
Myers has made his career working with his hands in yet another way, creating his own images in collage, photos, woodcuts, and other artistic media. A graduate of Brown University, he has participated in the exclusive Whitney Museum of American Art Independent Studio Program. Myers began his children's book career doing research to help his father, and went on to illustrate the elder Myers' Shadow of the Red Moon. In 1998, the two collaborated on Harlem, which was named a Caldecott Honor Book as well as a Coretta Scott King Honor Book. Myers' solo effort, Black Cat, was also a Coretta Scott King Honor Book.
In addition to his fine art and illustrative work, Christopher Myers is a clothing designer. He makes his home in Brooklyn, New York.
Twenty-plus years of experience acting on stage and screen has given Daniel Thomas May a keen ear for all the ticklish details of storytelling and distinctive characterizations. With more than 100 highly rated titles on Audible, Daniel's "energetic," "confident," "deft," "commanding" narration makes him particularly adept in portraying adventurers of all sorts, whether in fantasy (Elidor Trilogy), sci-fi (nineteen-part Foreigner series, Audie Award Finalist), horror (Alaskan Undead Apocalypse series), romance (True Heroes series), or nonfiction dramatizations (Hatching Twitter, Run!). Twenty-plus years of experience acting on stage and screen has given Daniel Thomas May a keen ear for all the ticklish details of storytelling and distinctive characterizations. With more than 100 highly rated titles on Audible, Daniel's "energetic," "confident," "deft," "commanding" narration makes him particularly adept in portraying adventurers of all sorts, whether in fantasy (Elidor Trilogy), sci-fi (nineteen-part Foreigner series, Audie Award Finalist), horror (Alaskan Undead Apocalypse series), romance (True Heroes series), or nonfiction dramatizations (Hatching Twitter, Run!).
