Hollywood's TITANIC Fascination

Author: Jenny Lynn Higgins
Published on: Aug 11, 2001

A young boy dressed in brown knickers, a white shirt, and suspenders rounded the corner and kicked a rock with his well-worn black leather shoe. He arrived at the newspaper building, grabbed a stack of papers, and headed for his usual corner to work. As he stood on the concrete sidewalk, he yelled to pedestrians, "Extra! Extra! Read all about it! TITANIC sinks in the Atlantic!", his small hand holding high the headline with a photograph of the mighty ocean liner printed below.

In the spring of 1912, the world was shocked when the supposedly unsinkable ship - the RMS TITANIC - hit an iceberg and was consumed by the waters of the Atlantic Ocean. It was the stuff of Greek Tragedies - and Hollywood films.

The first film about the TITANIC was a short reel made 29 days after its sinking. A silent film, it is known as either Saved from the TITANIC or Survivor of the TITANIC. The film takes place after the actual event, while a young girl is telling her parents about her experience of the sinking. The girl's parents - now realizing the many dangers of the sea - are alarmed, since their daughter's fiance is a sailor. The film starred actress Dorothy Gibson, who was an actual survivor of the TITANIC disaster. Ironically, the year after she survived the TITANIC, Dorothy was involved in a fatal car accident. Alec B. Francis, who played Dorothy's father, went on to play the role of Major Caron in 1931's "Mata Hari" starring Greta Garbo. John G. Adolphi played Dorothy's fiance - he later switched careers to become a director and directed several of actor George Arliss' most successful films. Guy Oliver, who played one of the fiance's friends, became Posey Mead in the 1931 film "Gunsmoke".

Although not made in Hollywood,the 1943 film "TITANIC" has an interesting story behind it. The film was planned by a German named Josef Goebbels as a vehicle for Nazi Propaganda. The storyline centers on the pressure that Mr. Ismay (who is British) puts on Captain Smith to speed the TITANIC's arrival in New York. Ismay, after sinking a huge amount of money into the building of the ship, wants its maiden voyage to make headlines. The film denotes a mostly negative portrayal of the British, throwing in an honorable German naval officer. However, when the film was completed, Goebbels thought it best not to show scenes of panic to a German audience who were being subjected to bombings, so he decided to not release it in German movie theaters. "TITANIC" premiered in Paris in 1943 - the film wasn't shown in Germany until 1949. In 1950, it was banned by the Allies because of its anti-British sentiments.

A little over a decade later, another TITANIC film premiered. It was titled "A Night to Remember" and starred Barbara Stanwyck - one of the top movie stars of her day - Clifton Webb, and a young Robert Wagner. The plot centers on first-class passengers Julia and Richard Sturges , who are unhappily married and fighting for custody of their two children. Meanwhile, their daughter meets and falls for a young man traveling in steerage. But the family's troubles seem to shrink in size when the ship hits a looming Artic iceberg. Interestingly, the shots of the sinking ocean liner that were used were taken from the 1943 German film.

The legend of the TITANIC remained dormant in films until almost twenty years later. In the 1980's technology was advancing and suddenly what in earlier years would have been considered impossible was becoming more and more probable. This time, the focus was not on the TITANIC of the past, but the TITANIC of the future. The 1980 film "Raise the Titanic" starred such actors as Anne Archer and Alec Guinness (who played the retired Jedi Obi- Wan Kenobi in the phenomenally successful STAR WARS films). Based on a novel by Clive Cussler, it tells the story of a group of Americans who are convinced they can raise the remains of the TITANIC. The American military has developed an experimental defense system, and they believe that a rare mineral found on the ship could be used to power a new laser device. But soon, the Americans discover that the Russians have their own plans to resurrect the TITANIC.

In 1997, the legend of the TITANIC made movie history with James Cameron's epic masterpiece "TITANIC". The film starred rising Hollywood star Leonardo DiCaprio and British actress Kate Winslet as the star-crossed lovers whose end is akin to that of Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet. One of the most expensive films ever made, "TITANIC" entwined dazzling special effects into a moving love story that blew audiences away, and rocketed its cast to stardom. Interestingly, Leonardo DiCaprio was not James Cameron's first choice for the role of Jack Dawson. He at first thought to cast actor Chris O'Donnell, but later said that after Leonardo auditioned, he couldn't imagine anyone else as Jack. Kate Winslet wanted so badly to win the role of Rose DeWitt Bukater that she sent James Cameron a letter signed, "Your Rose."

"TITANIC" was a phenomenal success at the box office. "My Heart Will Go On" - the theme song from the movie - acquired an almost permanent residence at the top of the music charts. The film went on to sweep the 1998 Academy Awards, where James Cameron fittingly intiated a moment of silence for those who lost their lives aboard the great ship almost ninety years before.