Per MorganD's review, here is the disclaimer:

Steven Speilberg is The Man, and I am as guilty of Jaws-scene revision/adaptation as Kevin Smith in Chasing Amy. :D

Seriously, though, I was inspired by that scene in Jaws where Brody and his son have a bonding moment while Brody is feeling rather upset over the situation in Amity. That scene has always touched me, and even more so when I saw the EXACT SAME THING happen in a restaurant with a little kid and his dad (totally unrelated to Jaws, I'm sure). So after seeing it happen in person and getting a little misty while thinking of the scene from Jaws, I got to thinking that there were no bonding moments between Luke and Owen. Then I pictured the two of them having a similar moment, and voila, the story was written.

On a side note, lo and behold, the advertising company for Holiday Inn (or was it Howard Jonhson's) got the same idea, and they show a father and son moment that is very similar to Jaws as well. Hmmm, wonder if this is a common occurrence between sons and father figures. . . .