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Land Shark (Saturday Night Live)

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For the fictional Transformers character see Landshark (Transformers).

The Land Shark (also land shark, landshark, LandShark) was a recurring character from the sketch comedy television series Saturday Night Live. The character first appeared in the fall of 1977, in part as a response to the release of the shark movie Jaws and the hysteria over purported shark sightings.

Original skit

The Season 1, Episode 4 skit, titled "Jaws II," featured the "Land Shark," a cunning urban predator (voiced by Chevy Chase). As narrated by John Belushi (playing the Matt Hooper character from Jaws)

... the Landshark is considered the cleverest of all sharks. Unlike the great white shark, which tends to inhabit the waters and harbors and recreational beach areas, the Land Shark may strike at any place, anytime. It is capable of disguising its voice, and generally preys on young, single women.

The skit showed the Land Shark attacking several people by knocking on their doors and pretending to be repairmen, door-to-door salesmen, and the like. Once the victim opened their door, the Land Shark would swoop in for the kill. The skit is typified by the following exchange:

[Scene: A New York apartment. Someone knocks on the door.]

Woman:  [not opening the door] Yes?
Voice:  (mumbling) Mrs. Arlsburgerhhh?
Woman:  What?
Voice:  (mumbling) Mrs. Johannesburrrr?
Woman:  Who is it?
Voice:  [pause] Flowers.
Woman:  Flowers for whom?
Voice:  [long pause] Plumber, ma'am.
Woman:  I don't need a plumber. You're that clever shark, aren't you?
Voice:  [pause] Candygram.
Woman:  Candygram, my foot. You get out of here before I call the police. You're the shark, and you know it.
Voice:  Wait.  I-I'm only a dolphin, ma'am.
Woman:  A dolphin? Well...okay. [opens door]

[Huge latex and foam-rubber shark head lunges through open door, chomps down on woman's head, and drags her out of the apartment, all while the Jaws attack music is playing.]

The "Land Shark attack" scenes are intermixed with other scenes directly spoofing Jaws, featuring Dan Aykroyd as Chief Brody and John Belushi playing Matt Hooper.

Other appearances in SNL

The character returned in later episodes using the original cast, but then was not used for many years.

Season 1, Episode 6

Titled "Jaws II". The attacked women were played by Laraine Newman, Gilda Radner, and guest host Lily Tomlin.

Season 1, Episode 23

In the opening monologue with guest host Louise Lasser, the land shark tries to lure Lasser out of her dressing room.

Season 2, Episode 6

Titled "Trick-or-Treating Land Shark". The shark attacks Gilda Radner, then announces "Live from New York, it's Saturday Night!" (the cold opening).

Season 2, Episode 11

Titled "Sketch With No Ending". The final sketch of the show; various sketch endings are attempted.

Season 2, Episode 23

Titled "Lucky Lindy," the shark meets aviator Charles Lindbergh, played by Buck Henry, on a transatlantic flight. Since Chase left the show after this season, the character did not return as a regular.

Season 27, Episode 2

During "Weekend Update", as Jimmy Fallon introduces a segment about that year's spate of shark attacks, the Land Shark knocks at the door to the newsroom, then attacks Tina Fey. As Fallon closes the show with "I'm Jimmy Fallon", Chase turns to the camera, and replies, "And I'm not. Good night, and have a pleasant tomorrow," echoing his own Weekend Update catch phrases.

Though the Land Shark character appeared only irregularly on Saturday Night Live, it has entered the American cultural zeitgeist. References to a "land shark" (often preceded by the word "candygram") can be found in movies, print, video games, and other places. Often it is spelled as a solid compound, that is, as one word. In many forms of fiction, it is used as a name or nickname to a land-dwelling monster similar in appearance, temperament, or appetite to a shark.

  • Land Shark Lager is Jimmy Buffett's premier beer
  • Slang for police K-9 dogs.
  • In the movie K-9, Jim Belushi's character refers to a police dog as a "land shark".
  • BMW featured the land shark (taken whole cloth from the original skit) in a commercial for the Z4 in 2003.
  • The Columbus Landsharks were a professional lacrosse team playing in Columbus, Ohio for the 2000–2003 seasons.
  • "Landshark" is a derogatory nickname for lawyers in the U.S.[citation needed]
  • Beginning with the first edition of Advanced Dungeons & Dragons, every edition of the Dungeons & Dragons Monster Manual has included a monster known as the bulette. The bulette is essentially a land-based, four-legged, burrowing shark. The description mentions that the bulette's nickname is "landshark".
  • In the comic 8-bit theater the land shark was mentioned briefly by Red Mage, but quickly dismissed by Black Mage in comic #227.
  • The first and second edition of the Swedish role-playing game Mutant featured a monster named Landhaj, a direct translation of "landshark", and appears in the game as a burrowing shark. It was replaced in the UA version by a more Scandinavian analog, a giant eel.
  • In the video game Armed and Dangerous, one of the weapons available is the Landshark Gun, which fires a shark into the ground that "swims" through the ground, then comes up under the target and attacks.
  • In the computer game Warcraft III, the unit quotes for the Goblin Sappers include "Candygram", "Package for (mumble)", and "Flowers for (mumble)".
  • In the game Escape from Monkey Island, if the player observes a set of jaws on the beach the main character will remark "Land shark".
  • The Pokémon Gible is classified as a "Land Shark" Pokémon, and both it and its evolutions, Gabite and Garchomp, resemble theropod-shark hybrids.
  • In the movie Striking Distance, Bruce Willis's character ambushes an opponent and announces, "Land shark."
  • In the Moonlighting episode "Plastic Fantastic Lovers" (Season 5, episode 4), Bruce Willis's character David Addison refers to a chainsaw (being held as a weapon) as a "landshark".
  • In the original Masters of the Universe toy line from the 1980s, the villain Skeletor had a vehicle resembling a tank with a shark's head, called, appropriately, the Land Shark.
  • Land Shark is the trade name used by Southern Oregon-based custom bicycle frame manufacturer John Slawta.
  • The shark-like motorized bombs used in an episode of Lupin the 3rd are referred to as "land sharks" by one of the protagonists.
  • The members of professional wrestling team D-Generation X announced themselves as a "candygram" and "land shark" as they attempted to get Jonathan Coachman to open a locked door on the October 02, 2006 episode of RAW.
  • In the video game Sins of the Fathers, protagonist Gabriel Knight attempts to gain access to a character's home by using various door-to-door sales tactics. When none of these are successful, he shouts "Landshark!" to which the resident replies "You are no Bill Murray."
  • The women's rugby team name in Belmont Shore, Long Beach, California, are known as LandSharks.
  • At least one integrated circuit, the ADSP-1939, has a microscopic image of a land shark inscribed on its surface.
  • In the Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius episode "Return of the Nanobots", the Nanobots attempted to get into Jimmy's lab. Carl asked who was at the door and the Nanobots replied he had a telegram. Carl said he wasn't falling for it and they switched it to llamagram and Carl opened the door, only to get deleted by the Nanobots. This scene is an obvious homage to the skit.
  • In the movie Hoodwinked, the Wolf knocks on the door while saying "Hello, paper boy!... Publisher's, uh... Candygram!"
  • In the Xbox 360 game Blue Dragon, one of the main villain's mechanical henchman is known as a land shark.
  • In the 2008 movie August featuring Josh Hartnett, Hartnett's character owns a failing tech company called LandShark, which employs a series of sleights and ruses to try to gain clients and financing.
  • The MMORPG zOMG! features numerous references to Landsharks. The most powerful monster in the game, Landshark, appears randomly at Gold Beach, attacking players. It drops rare loot items if defeated. In addition, a Landshark Plushie (named "Toothy") is available as an costume item, and the ring "Shark Attack" allows you to summon weaker Landsharks to attack enemies.
  • The defensive unit of the 2008 Ole Miss Rebels football team is commonly referred to as Landsharks.[citation needed]
  • In the comic book Iron Man #138, Jim Rhodes and Tony Stark are sneaking into the compound of a company controlled by the Maggia when they duck into a room to avoid security guards. Unfortunately, the room is filled with thugs who demand to know who they are. Rhodey replies, "Uh, candygram for Mr. Mongo?' and Tony adds, "Land Shark?"
  • The Northern Arizona Rugby Football Club (NARFC) is nicknamed the Landsharks.
  • 1 May 2009, it was announced Dolphin Stadium, home of the famed football team the Miami Dolphins, is set to become Land Shark Stadium. It will be named after the joint beer project of Anheuser Busch and Key West icon Jimmy Buffett. http://www.miamiherald.com/sports/football/story/1027505.html
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