Jay Stein, mastermind of the Universal Studios tram tour, dies at 88

“Can you just give me one of your leftover sharks?”

This was at the very beginning of Jay Stine's insistence on turning the throwaway business into a sweet spot for then-owned Universal Studios. Lew Wasserman entertainment powerhouse MCA.

In 1975 “Jaws” by Steven Spielberg became a cultural sensation, and Stein wanted to capitalize on the film's success. He asked his filmmaking colleagues to provide props so his teams could recreate the fictional coastline of Amity Island on the hilly studio grounds a few miles from downtown Los Angeles.

“He convinced them, 'Can you just give me one of the remaining sharks and I'll take it on a studio tour and we'll get some publicity out of it,'” author Sam Jennawi told The Times. remembering the genius of Stein and his innovative use of intellectual property.

Stine died Nov. 5 at his home in Bend, Oregon, according to his wife, Connie Stine. He was 88 years old and suffered from complications associated with Parkinson's disease and prostate cancer.

“He left a big hole, but he also left a wonderful legacy,” she said in an interview Sunday. “Not many people have the opportunity to leave a legacy that spans generations. But he still makes people smile every day.”

The Shark Attack on the Tram Tour, which terrified tourists when it debuted in 1976, has long been a staple. It was one of many theme park improvements Stine made during his more than 30 years as an MCA executive, including Universal's push into Florida to compete with the Walt Disney Co.

The Jaws attraction helped cement Universal's decades-long relationship with Spielberg, which included films such as E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial, Jurassic Park, Schindler's List and The Fabelmans. It also spawned other movie-themed attractions, including the live Waterworld show and King Kong ride.

Stein insisted that the monkey would spew “banana breath,” his wife said.

At Universal, such outbursts and flourishes became known as “JayBangs,” which Gennawi used as the title for his 2016 book about Stein's contributions to the industry, “JayBangs: How Jay Stein, MCA and Universal Invented the Modern Theme Park and Beat Disney at Its Own Game.”

“Jay wanted to put you in the film,” Jennawi said. “He wanted to grab you by the collar and shake you up a little“

Stein was born in New York City on June 17, 1937, the son of Samuel and Sylvia “Sunny” (Goldstein) Stein.

His father was a watch salesman and moved the family to Los Angeles when Stine was young. As a teenager, he would sometimes skip school to go to the Hollywood Park Racetrack to bet on horses. He got hold of some blank report cards and used them to bring home high grades.

But the fraud was discovered when the family briefly returned to New York while Stein was finishing high school. His parents were called to a conference, where they learned that Stein did not have enough credits to graduate. Summer school fixed that.

The family returned to Los Angeles. Stein attended the University of California, Berkeley, majoring in political science, but left about a semester before graduating.

He served in the National Guard and toward the end of his service, in 1959, began working in the MCA Post Office. He initially wanted to get into filmmaking, but by the mid-1960s he was assigned to a fledgling touring group.

The company launched the tram routes in 1964 to make some money from its vast real estate. However, some executives found the initiative to be in poor taste. His prospects looked dim.

“It started with two streetcars and a Quonset hut on Lankershim Boulevard,” Stein told The Times in a 2023 interview. “Frankly, the tram was seen as something that got in the way of TV production.”

“I worked in a production office and was tasked with trying to coordinate how close we could get to the set without getting in the way. Everyone I worked for said it was annoying and intrusive and would never be welcome.”

Stein was able to “convince others of the benefits of a studio tour,” Gennawi said. – That's what saved him.

Gennawi credits Stine as a key pioneer of theme parks in the United States.

“He was extremely competitive. He understood that Disney had their thing, but Universal could create something different and complementary, especially in the early days,” Gennavi said.

Disneyland, of course, came first.

“But if you are a resident of Los Angeles and you have relatives coming to town, you knew that they [also] I wanted to see Hollywood,” Jennawi said. “But Hollywood was a little scary, so you took them to Universal Studios.”

According to Jennawi, Stein's contributions have only recently been appreciated. This is largely because Stein subscribed to Wasserman Decree that “stars are stars” and leaders should blend into the background. Stein also retired early, leaving Universal in the mid-1990s. after Japanese electronics giant Matsushita bought MCA.

Stein worried that Universal's new owner (and a number of subsequent buyers) would fail to recognize the value of theme parks, Gennawi said, an observation that turned out to be correct.

That changed in 2011 when Comcast acquired NBCUniversal and started investing actively.

Company opened Universal's $7 billion Epic Universe theme park.near Orlando, Florida, caused excitement earlier this year.

The theme park division, which includes destinations in Los Angeles, Florida, Japan and China, has become one of NBCUniversal's most reliable profit drivers. Last year, Universal's theme parks generated $8.6 billion in revenue.

“Jay was the visionary behind Universal’s expansion from the Studio Tour in Hollywood to the creation of our world-class theme park at Universal Orlando and beyond,” Mark Woodbury, chairman and CEO of Universal Destinations & Experiences, said in a statement.

“He had incredible creative instincts and defined our style of compelling storytelling, making us a brand that brings great films to life for generations to come,” Woodbury said.

Stine is survived by his wife, son Gary Stine, daughter Darolyn Bellemere, their spouses, children and grandchildren, his brother Ira Stine, nephew, cousins, and the children and grandchildren of Connie Stine.