Category Archives: Titanic II

Titanic, Titanic II

Titanic News:Telegraph Reports On Loraine Allison Controversy, Titanic II is a “Floating Mausoleum” and Outrage Over The Chinese Sinking Titanic Simulator

Mystery1.Jasper Copping writing for The Telegraph reports on the Loraine Allison/Helen Kramer controversy. As reported in another blog posting  Helen Kramer claimed back in 1940 that she was Loraine Allison and did not die in 1912 when Titanic sank. She claimed her father had given her to a Mr. Hyde on a lifeboat. Hyde took her to England and put her in boarding schools. The claim was never substantiated and was later picked up by her granddaughter. However a recent DNA test has proved that Helen Kramer was not Loraine Allison. Nancy Bergman, who is a Allison descendant stated:

These DNA results have uncovered a colossal fraud that has haunted my family for years. It was all about the money …. Debrina wants to write a book and no doubt there are others out there who want to profit from our story. It is our story. Leave us in peace.

Source: Lost Child Of The Titanic And The Fraud That Haunted Her Family(19 Jan 2014,The Telegraph)

2. Cahir O’Doherty writing for IrishCentral.com is not for Clive Palmer’s Titanic II. O’Doherty is particularly unhappy about how Third Class (or steerage as it was called back then) will be recreated. If Palmer goes through with it, those who book in this class will bunk up much like those that did back in 1912 (which means many bunking together in rooms and sharing bathrooms). Palmer intends to go through what used to be a required delousing of Third Class passengers before disembarking but using confetti cannons to have the same effect. To this Cahir writes:

Do we think we can re-write history by having a doppelganger complete the original voyage? It’s hubris as objectionable as calling the original ship unsinkable. We should have learned the hard lesson. It’s a floating mausoleum, not a ship.

Source: Sink The Titanic II, Insensitive Obsession Goes Too Far(18 Jan 2014,IrishCentral.com)

3. The Daily Mirror reports on negative reaction to the Chinese theme park Titanic simulator. Rudi Newman of the British Titanic Society states: “This is in incredibly poor taste and frankly deplorable. Whatever next, the Pompeii experience?”

Source: Relatives Of Titanic Victims Criticise Theme Park Ride With ‘Shake And Tumble’ Simulator That Recreates Disaster (17 Jan 2014,Daily Mirror)

Titanic II

Titanic II: A High Priced Nightmare?

RMS Titanic departing Southampton on April 10, 1912.
RMS Titanic departing Southampton on April 10, 1912.
Photo: Public domain

Michael Madigan writing for Australia’s Courier Mail wonders whether Titanic II will be a luxury cruise or a high priced nightmare. As currently planned, Titanic II will (except for modern safety features and other things)be faithful to the design of the original ship. That means first, second, and third class will be fitted out as they were on the original Titanic. Madigan notes that means being accurate for the wealthy and poor. It also means an opulence no longer seen on modern day cruise ships.

Can mahogany lined ships make money? Likewise will people want to pay money to sleep in cramped third class quarters as they did back in 1912 with sharing bathrooms with fellow third class travelers? Apparently Palmer is so intent on creating the Titanic experience that they are using training manuals from the period to train silver service waiters. It likely means that men and women will have to dress up for dinners as they did back in 1912 and retire afterwards to separate areas. Third class passengers probably do not have to dress up but will get more simple fare. Even breakfast on Titanic was grand by today’s standards.

Madigan really has no idea, and really no one does, whether or not Titanic II will make money. It will certainly draw a lot of wealth for its initial voyage but since money has shifted away from London and New York since 1912, I speculate Titanic II will be marketed to Chinese, wealthy Arabs, Hollywood and political celebrities. Ordinary folks will likely have to stick with cruise ship trips to Mexico, Hawaii, or Alaska.

Source: Will Clive Palmer’s Titanic Ii Be A Luxury Cruise Or Titanic-Sized Nightmare?(13 Jan 2014, The Courier Mail)

Titanic, Titanic II

Titanic News: Exhibits Coming To Toledo & Israel;Titanic II Update;Faulty Rivets and a Kosher Butcher

1. The Blade reports that Titanic:The Artifact Exhibition will be coming to Imagination Station on 15 Feb and runs till 15 June 2014. A number of special events are planned including a visit by Molly Brown’s great-grandaughter Helen Benziger. For information and tickets, go to imaginationstationtoledo.org.
Source: Titanic Display To Dock In Downtown Toledo(7 Jan 2014,The Blade)

2. Shalom Life reports a deal has been struck to bring Titanic artifacts to Israel Trade Fairs Center in Tel Aviv for about three months. Further details as to the date of the exhibition has not yet been disclosed.
Source:The Titanic Sets Sail for Tel Aviv(27 Dec 2013,Shalom Life)

3. Cruise Ship News reports that if all goes on schedule, the keel will be laid for Titanic II in March. So far it has all been model testing and using various companies that will contribute to its construction and outfitting.
Source: Titanic 2 Ship Progress Leap In March(6 Jan 2014,Cruise Ship News)

4. Willamette Week has an interview with Jennifer Hooper McCarty, a metallurgist who helped study 48 rivets pulled from Titanic. In her book What Really Sank the Titanic, her findings were that some rivets contained poor quality iron. These rivets in the bow and stern had excessive slag contributing to weak regions. However this was not detectable during normal safety checks but later resulted in rivet failure.
Source:Voices 2014: Faulty Rivets Sunk the Titanic:Jennifer Hooper McCarty, metallurgist
(31 Dec 2013,Willamette Week)

5. The Coventry Telegraph reports that the last living contact with J. Bruce Ismay passed away at age 100. Agnes Thwaite worked as a cook and kitchen maid at the household of Bruce Ismay in London. Despite the public perception of Ismay, she recalled he was kind and generous to his staff.
Coventry Woman Who Worked For Builder Of The Titanic Dies (31 Dec 2013,Coventry Telegraph)

6.Haaretz reports that the Kosher butcher shop that supplied Titanic will be preserved thanks to funding from late Jewish philanthropist Sir Isaac Wolfson. The iconic green-tiled Galkoff’s had been designated for demolition and building a new research wing for Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine.
Source: Iconic Kosher Butcher Shop That Supplied Titanic To Be Preserved(30 Dec 2013,Haaretz)

An interview with Rob Galkoff about the history of the butcher shop can be viewed at YouTube.

Titanic II

Titanic II Updates

Photo courtesy George Behe
Photo courtesy George Behe

1.Clive Palmer’s Titanic Cash Splash Just A Drop In The Ocean (27 Dec 2013,news.com.au)
It’s one of his most publicised pet projects, but Clive Palmer has so far committed little more than $800,000 to his dream of building Titanic II.  But financial returns lodged this week for the 2012-13 financial year reveal that as at June 30, just $828,700 had been committed by his Blue Star Line to the project “to be paid in the future.”

2. First Class Steward Descendant On Titanic II Advisory Board(20 Dec 2013,News Mail)
A descendant of a first class steward and survivor of the RMS Titanic, Alexander James Littlejohn, has joined the advisory board of Blue Star Line’s Titanic II project. Clive Palmer said Philip Littlejohn is the grandson of Alexander Littlejohn, who survived the 1912 sinking of the Titanic after being ordered to row Lifeboat 13. “Lifeboat 13 is well known as the lifeboat that contained the youngest survivor, Millvina Dean,” he said.

Titanic, Titanic II

Titanic II Update:Clive Palmer Wants To Make A Titanic Movie

Movie Camera
Photo: Public Domain

Now that Clive Palmer is building a Titanic replica, scheduled to sail in 2016, why not turn to movie making as well? According to Agence France-Presse(AFP), he has registered Palmer Pictures to be his movie production company. It turns out his father once had the same company in the 1920’s and produced two silent films in Australia. There is already a documentary to be filmed aboard its maiden voyage, but Palmer wants to one up James Cameron.

“It will be a love story,” he said. “We have a lot of actors from Hollywood, China and Europe who want to star in roles.” Palmer said his version of the Titanic would be “a lot better” than James Cameron’s 1997 global hit starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet. “I could be in a deckchair having a drink,” he added of his dream to make a cameo appearance. Global interest in Titanic II has prompted Palmer’s latest film move, he said. “The script is still being worked on and of course we would be seeking major Hollywood stars and production people to be involved in the movie project,” he said.

Well this ought to be interesting. I bet it will be a Asian themed telling of the story considering how close his ties are with China. I am sure the old guard in Beijing would love to tell the tale of how greed, capitalism, and western values sank Titanic. Oh wait, the Nazi’s did that first! If the Chinese have a hand in it, expect it to be tightly controlled and scripts approved by them. Even if not, they will refuse it to be shown in China unless certain edits are made first to conform with their rules. They are already doing it already with many films, just like the Nazis did back in the 1930’s with Hollywood.

Source: Titanic 2? Australian Billionaire Plans A Film On The Iconic Ship(21 Oct 2013, Agence France-Presse)

Titanic, Titanic II

Friday Titanic Newswrap

Titanic II Update: Proof of concept testing for Titanic II has begun at Hamburg Ship Model Basin (HSVA) in Hamburg, Germany. The 9.3 meter model is being tested in a 300 meter tank in tests that include resistance and open water tests. “The Titanic II model was tested by HSVA at speeds of up to 23 knots and this testing is crucial for assessing the speed and power performance of this prototype vessel design,” said Clive Palmer.
Source: Titanic II Model Tested(20 Sep 2013,Daily Telegraph)

Photo:Wikipedia

SS Nomadic Update: Ticket prices for Titanic’s tender SS Nomadic may have reduced admission prices for winter reports BBC News. Since SS Nomadic is a separate exhibit from Titanic Belfast, there has been some criticism that they are not connected in simple admission price. While no reduced price has been finalized, the long term goal is for joint ticketing with Titanic Belfast.
Source: SS Nomadic Ticket Changes Likely(20 Sep 2013,BBC )

Once again a Titanic connected antique turns up…

Photo:Wikipedia

A movie camera that possibly belonged to Titanic second officer Charles Lightoller was among 300 cameras that Roger Lott bought at a clearance for £300. When he brought the cameras back to his shop, he discovered an old movie camera with the name CH Lightoller on it. A friend told him it might be the Titanic second officer. Lott says he has an offer to buy the camera and the British Titanic Society is interested in looking at it. There is also still film in the camera which will require a specialist to handle and develop.

“People think I am mad but if I can trace any living relative who would like to own the camera again then I would like to donate it to Mr Lightoller’s family. It would be nice to return it to where it started life. But the family members I have been able to trace through genealogy websites said: ‘Thank you very much for the offer, however the Titanic has blighted our lives.’ I am not sure what is going to happen to this very special camera at the moment.”
Source: Antiques Collector Finds Camera Once Owned By Officer On Doomed Titanic (20 Sep 2013,WalesOnline)

Titanic, Titanic II, Titanic Miscellaneous

Sunday Titanic Newswrap

1. Titanic II Update: Clive Palmer says he is considering a Tasmanian company, Liferaft Systems Australia, to construct Titanic II’s lifeboats. Clive Palmer said “The exciting thing about his liferaft system is you don’t sell any in Australia, which means it must be good if people overseas are buying it Australians never buy things that are good they only buy things that are bad.”
Source: Tasmania Considered For Titanic II Liferafts(30 Aug 2013,ABC-Australia)

2. Mystery Of Edith Russell’s Musical Pig Solved-After asking the public to identify the unknown tune, it has finally been identified as “La Sorella” by Charles Borel-Clerk and Louis Gallini. However there was some confusion over a South American dance song called “Maxixe,” which some thought was the tune. The song La Sorella is also known as La Matchiche which is pronounced the same as Maxixe.
Source: Titanic Mystery Solved: Song Toy Played As Ship Sank Is Identified(29 Aug 2013,Newsmax)

RNLI Tribute, Punch Cartoon(1892)
Wikipedia

3. Captain John Lowe, grandson of Titanic third officer Harold Lowe, recently attended a special dedication service for the Barmouth Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI). Lowe brought his grandfather’s photograph album containing pictures from the 1914 Barmouth Regatta.
Source: Grandson Of Titanic Survivor Attends Service(29 Aug 2013,Cambrian News)$

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Titanic, Titanic II

Saturday Titanic Newswrap

Photo courtesy George Behe
Photo courtesy George Behe

1.Titanic II Update: Model testing for Titanic II will begin next month at Hamburg Ship Model Basin in Germany. According to Marinelink: “A 9.3m wooden model of Titanic II will be put through resistance and powering tests in a 300m long tank at HSVA’s Hamburg facilities in mid-September.”
Source:Titanic II Model Tank Testing To Be In Germany(23 Aug 2013,Marinelink.com)

2. Famed underwater explorer Robert Ballard is exploring the Cayman Trough, the deepest part of the Caribbean reports AP.  The trough is at least  25,000 feet deep and the scientists aboard Nautilus hope organisms collected will help understand how life evolves on other worlds According to the news report, they have “captured a dumbo octopus, named for its two ear-like fins; a sea cucumber with an unidentified appendage; and various invertebrates living around hydrothermal vents that can reach temperatures of more than 400 Celsius (752 Fahrenheit).” They are also studying underwater earthslides to determine frequency and magnitude that causes tsunamis.The Nautilus is scheduled to return to port in September to avoid hurricanes and then heads to Puerto Rico in October.
Source:Explorer Who Discovered Titanic Wreck Now Investigating Deepest Trough In Caribbean Sea(22 Aug 2013,AP)

3. Here is a sneak peek of Titanic’s Final Mystery to be shown on Smithsonian Channel.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kdbnAyeUjt8

Titanic II

Monday Titanic Newswrap

(Photo Courtesy George Behe)
(Photo Courtesy George Behe)

Well not much to recap in the last full month of summer. There are the usual news about current exhibitions (nothing new to report there) the occasional cliché being used, that somebody once again arguing the Titanic/Olympic switch theory. The only thing really going on is whatever news about Titanic II is revealed. So far the ship has yet to begin construction but it appears Palmer is assembling all the needed pieces to make it come about.

Which leads us to the one and perhaps only relevant Titanic II news for today. Tillberg Design, the Swedish firm hired to design the interior, has announced some of the major differences from the original ship. “The beds will be bigger because people today are bigger than they were 100 years ago,” says Fredrik Johansson of Tillberg Design. Not exactly clear on what that really means. Are they longer or wider? I am leaning more towards long rather than wide. Another design change is more availability of bathrooms.

On the Titanic, 20 people shared a bathroom and the plan is to make the new ship as similar as possible to the original. But we’re preparing the cabins for toilets and showers by drawing in extra large wardrobes for all the piping,” he said.

A wise move on their part. Having people queue up as they did on Titanic for bathroom use would probably result in a mutiny. 🙂

Source:Swedish Firm Updating Interior Of Titanic II(5 Aug 2013,UPI)

Titanic Exhibitions, Titanic II

Friday Titanic Newswrap

1. Cruise Ship News writes about how some are willing to pay $1 million for a ticket on Titanic II. They also report at least 40,000 people have inquired about a ticket thus far. With reported talks going on between Blue Star at United Arab Emirates (UAE) companies, the speculation is Titanic II will likely be directed to wealthy Emirates.

Source: Titanic 2 Ship Tickets At A Ridiculous Price(Cruise Ship News,2 Aug 2013)

2. Titanic: The Experience has opened in Buena Park, CA at the old Movieland Wax Museum. It runs from 1 Aug-21 Nov and is open daily. Ticket prices, hours of operation and other information can be found here.

Source: 8 Enthralling Elements To Experience At “Titanic” & “Bodies” In Buena Park(1 Aug 2013,Examiner.com)

Wallace Hartley's Violin3. The Hartley Violin is now on display at Titanic Branson  Aug 1-15. Visitors are advised to purchase tickets in advance. Reservations are required for daily VIP Hartley Violin tour.

Source: Press Release:Titanic Branson Set For Exclusive World Display of Long Lost Titanic Violin August 1 – 15(30 Jul 2013, PR Newswire)

4. Titanic Belfast Update:The Belfast Telegraph reports that Ulster Bank has renewed financing with the group backing Titanic Belfast. The £92m financing deal will help further development of the site.

Source: Full Speed Ahead For Titanic Belfast And Its Bankers(1 Aug 2013,Belfast Telegraph)