The Discovery Channel Presents Shark Week

In 1975, "Jaws" brought the horror of going in the water to a new wave of shark-fearing masses. Inspired by the 1916 shark attacks off the shore of New Jersey, Peter Benchley's novel turned Steven Spielberg film made people everywhere terrified to even go in their bathtubs much less the ocean or any other natural body of water. The ensuing tsunami of fear helped spur the hunting of sharks to the point where many species are endangered or nearly extinct.

Every year, in the hot summer months, The Discovery Channel hosts a seven-day event known as Shark Week. This tradition has been to combat the myths surrounding sharks and our fear of them and "replace fear with fact." Past themes have included "Shark Week: Uncaged" and "Shark Week: 3-D" as well as specials including "Air Jaws" which featured breathtaking footage of sharks leaping out of the water like the seals they hunt.

This time, Mike Rowe of The Discovery Channel's "Dirty Jobs" joins the list of Discovery crew to have the honor of hosting Shark Week (Nigel Marvin was the host for a few years and last year Discovery's own Mythbusters hosted). The week-long premiere primetime programming will begin with Rowe on the 2-hour special "Dirty Jobs: Jobs That Bite" on Sunday, July 30th at 9PM, and then Rowe will close out the week on Friday, August 4th with the 1-hour special "Dirty Jobs: Jobs That Bite Harder" at 9PM.

Each episode is a world premiere that goes where only the brave dare venture, all in the name of education and conservation, not to mention that it's just downright cool. The schedule runs as follows:

• Sunday, July 30, 9PM - 11PM EST: "Dirty Jobs: Jobs That Bite"
• Monday, July 31, 9PM - 10PM EST: "Shark Attack Survivors"
• Tuesday, August 1, 9PM - 10PM EST: "Perfect Shark"
• Wednesday, August 2, 9PM - 10PM EST: "Sharks: Are They Hunting Us?"
• Thursday, August 3, 9PM - 10PM EST: "Shark Rebellion"
• Friday, August 4, 9PM - 10PM EST: "Dirty Jobs: Jobs That Bite Harder"
• Friday, August 4, 10PM - 11PM EST: "Science of Shark Sex"

Check your local listings for The Discovery Channel and times in your area. To find out more about this year's programming, check out the details at Discovery.com. Shark Week schedule at Discovery.com