Knoxville — There is one week every summer where people sit in front of their TVs filled with fascination and fear, and maybe a little bit of both.
Shark Week.
The iconic Discovery Channel series is celebrating 30 years of taking people down into the ocean's depths to learn about these fascinating creatures.
To celebrate, Discovery Inc. is hosted Shark Week Family Fun Fest in Market Square in downtown Knoxville on Wednesday, July 18. Attendees enjoyed kids' games, photo opportunities with shark props, face-painting and a trivia competition with 'fintastic' prizes.
Lawn chairs, blanket and towels covered Market Square in front of the big screen as shark lovers got an advanced showing of a never-before-seen shark special called "Bloodline: Spawn of Jaws."
Local businesses have joined in on the fun as well. Preservation Pub decked out its exterior with large shark teeth to make customers feel as if they're walking into a big shark mouth.
Nothing Too Fancy designed a custom t-shirt in honor of the event. Build-A-Bear created a plush shark for it as well, and Knoxville Chocolate Company made chocolate and gummy sharks.
More than 20 downtown businesses are embracing the shark frenzy, many donating proceeds to Oceana, a conservation nonprofit partnered with Shark Week.
These food and drink specials extend through Shark Week, some even through the summer.
Shark Week on Discovery begins Sunday, July 22, with 19 hours of original programming for eight days straight.