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Martin Brody (a.k.a. Chief Brody) is a fictional character and the main protagonist of the film Jaws and its sequel, Jaws 2. He was the Chief of Police on Amity Island, New England, and the husband of Ellen Brody, as well as the father of Michael and Sean Brody.
While in New York, they began raising a family. They had two sons, Michael and Sean.
Biography (Film)[]
While his past history has not been fully revealed, it is noted that Martin had experienced a near drowning incident at some point of his childhood, leading to his fear of the water. Before moving to Amity, he lived in New York City and joined the NYPD. Brody experienced a high degree of dissatisfaction working for the police in the city, as with the high crime rate the city was known for in the 1970's he never really felt he was accomplishing anything. He felt he couldn't even let his children walk to school on their own due to the danger.
Martin married Ellen Brody and went on to have two sons, Michael and Sean. In the autumn of 1973[1], the Brody's left New York City and moved to Amity Island, where Martin got a job as the Chief of Police.
The Amity Incident[]
During the summer months of mid 1970's, a rogue great white shark staked a claim near the community of Amity Island, Massachusetts and began to terrorize swimmers, directly affecting the local economy. Local police chief Martin Brody attempted to get permission to destroy this shark, but the town's then-mayor, Lawrence Vaughn, adamantly refused to comply. After another death during the Fourth of July celebrations, Vaughn finally was reluctantly pressured into allowing Brody to follow through with the contract to hire Quint. Brody requested help from the Woods Hole Institute, who then sent oceanographer Matt Hooper. With Quint as captain, they set out to capture and kill the killer shark.
Brody first encountered the shark while he was chumming the water for Quint. Witnessing its enormous size, he advised Quint to get a bigger boat. The following day, Brody shot a few rounds of bullets to the shark with his revolver, although it failed to minimize the fish's strength. After witnessing the gruesome death of Quint, Brody struggled inside the flooded cabin of the sinking Orca. He later warded off the ambushing shark inside the cabin by throwing Hooper's scuba tank into its mouth. After getting out of the cabin and arming himself with Quint's M1 Garand and a fishing spear, he climbed up the boat's gin pole as a last ditch effort to survive against the shark. When the shark emerged, he stabbed it several times with the spear, although the shark eventually dragged it underwater. With only Quint's M1 left in his hands, Brody began shooting at the scuba tank inside the shark's mouth as a last resort to kill the shark. After five failed rounds on shooting the tank, he finally killed the shark with his last, sixth shot, laughing with joy and relief as he saw the fountain of the fish's blood and flesh. He later reunited with Hooper, with the duo paddling to the shore of Amity with two remaining barrels from the Orca.
The Second Amity Incident[]
Three years after the First Amity Incident, Martin has remained active as the Police Chief of Amity, and now a town's hero. Before the arrival of the second shark, Martin arrived at the opening ceremony of Amity's new hotel, presented by Mayor Vaughn. Martin's eldest son, Michael, developed a keen interest in sailing hoping to inspire his father to return to the water. In the summer of 1976, Martin began to feel another shark was responsible for a number of boating "accidents" in Amity, but once again his theory was dismissed by the re-elected mayor Larry Vaughn and the town council. Brody's refusal to ignore the problem finally led them to dismiss him from the police force as acting chief.
Brody learned that both his sons had quietly joined another group of teenagers on an unauthorized sailing trip and were trapped out at sea apparently being attacked by the very shark Brody had warned the mayor about once again.
Brody found the marooned group near a power station built on a rocky outcropping in the center of the ocean which locals had nicknamed "Cable Junction". After a short battle with the shark, Brody was able to subdue the animal by electrocuting the shark with a loose cable from the nearby station.
Between 1978 through 1987[]
In the JAWS 1-3 Timeline (aka the Original Timeline) Chief Brody is most likely alive. But in the Jaws the Revenge Timeline, at some point after the Second Amity Incident and before the arrival of Vengeance in Amity, Martin passed away due to a fatal heart attack. His portrait is shown inside Amity Police Department.
Brody's portrait in the Amity Island police station
- ↑ Ellen Brody mentions how they bought the house the previous fall, and the date on Chrissie Watkin's death certificate reads 1974.