Frank Mundus (October 21, 1925 – September 10, 2008) was a fisherman and charter captain based in Montauk, New York who is said to be the inspiration for the character Quint in the book and movie Jaws.

Mundus' early techniques, which included killing whales merely for chum and harpooning sharks (practices which are outlawed today), earned him criticism even at the time.

[4] According to his obituary he spent the last night in Montauk aboard the Cricket II which made him famous and had his heart attack in the Hawaii airport immediately after returning.

In his first year at Montauk, he played an important role in the rescue and retrieval of the Pelican, an overloaded party boat in which 45 of 64 on board perished after capsizing in a squall, including its captain Eddie Carroll.

He was among the second wave of searchers, and helped tow the hull of the Pelican to port with ten dead bodies still trapped inside.

In the years before his death he returned to Montauk for its shark tournaments and rode along on higher priced Cricket II excursions.

Mundus also joined Chris Fallows and other shark conservationists in viewing great whites in their natural habitat.

John Ebel, a mate on the Cricket II said that Benchley had privately acknowledged that Mundus was the inspiration but had publicly denied the association for legal reasons.