Titanic

See The Titanic Iceberg In 3D!

According to the Hollywood Reporter, movie executives are interested in re-releasing two of James Cameron’s movies, “Titanic” and “Terminator 2: Judgment Day,” in 3D format. But the newspaper reports that converting many movies into 3D will be limited to well known classics.

Still, though several Hollywood majors also might tread that path eventually, only select projects are likely until 3D home entertainment takes hold, and that’s maybe five years down the road. Only the most well-known film classics would merit the considerable costs of converting 2D pics, not to mention the marketing expenses of 3D rereleases.

I am somewhat baffled by this trend to 3D. When I was a kid it had been long discarded by movie studios. And for good reason as after a while it lost its appeal (it mainly was for horror and sci-fi movies). I just wonder how big the market really is for 3D. With all the advanced digital tech we now use and advanced computer rendering that is done, one wonders if 3D is just one of those niche trends that comes and goes with the wind. After all, do you really need to see the iceberg in 3D?

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Titanic Whistle

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Since we have been on the subject of Titanic items of late, this image titanic whistle floated to the top during a recent search. At first I was not quite sure what it really was. It is called “Acme Thunderer Titanic” but that name seems not really to say much about what this whistle will do. It seems to imply this is a very loud whistle that thunders above all others making it a titanic whistle of the first order. The whistle is in a British catalog called Judge’s Choice Petfood Ltd (By Appointment To Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth Petfood Supplier). It looks pretty cool and  if anyone out there has actually blown this whistle, drop us a line here at Titanic News Channel.

Titanic

Ultimate Titanic Pen

Over the years there have been are many “tacky” Titanic items offered upfor sale. There is a stuffed Titanic, a Titanic-Bot Transformer, a Rose doll (from Cameron’s Titanic), Christmas ornaments, salt and pepper shakers, and even a Titanic sinking game. But there is one that perhaps tops them all and it is by no means tacky to say the least. Consider the Jean Pierre Lepin Titanic Palladium Fountain Pen.

According to the description, this fine writing instrument has the cap shaped like the vent from the ocean liner. The sapphire glass in the top allows you to see the pink gold nib which is “engraved with the silhouette of the Titanic.” Small portholes are on the body of the pen allowing you to see the ink and piston. Here is some more detailed information:

The body with several portholes is fitted with a transparent ink fountain in which it is possible to see ink and piston. Lower down, you can see a propeller similar to the Titanic‘s and underneath the steerage of the ship protected by a sapphire glass cover. On turning the inking-roller, the piston pumps the ink, the propeller turns and needle of steerage starts to move . It is an extremely complex pen .Between the body and cap, there is the famous rusty ring made out of precious metal that was originally part of the Titanic. Screws similar to the rivets of the Titanic hold together the different parts. Different versions, limited to 88 pens per version, will be available and some with solid gold, diamonds and gemstones. Each part will come complete with the certificate from the shipyard to certify the authenticity of the precious metal.

It is obviously not your ordinary fountain pen but one either for collectors or to be used for ceremonial occasions (like signing treaties). And it has the cost consummate with its elegance: $6,650. As the skit on the old Laugh-In said: “That’s a lot of Tootsie Rolls!”

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Titanic Exhibition In NYC-Times Square

 

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

If you are going to New York or live nearby, the touring Titanic Exhibitionis at the Discovery Times Square Exposition. The exhibition has gotten positive reviews in the New York Times and worth the trip. Ticket info:

Child $17.50 (child 4-12), Adult $19.50, Senior $18.50

Group tickets are also available by calling 866-9-NYCTIX (866-692-2849). TSX is open seven days a week from 10am to 10pm.

Tickets can purchased online.

Titanic Cliches

Holy Titanic Tomato Batman!

Okay there are lots of Titanic cliches out there to choose from recently. Thetomato usual political and business comparisons to Titanic and even a former Spice Girl doing a pose on a yacht with her boyfriend reminding everyone of the scene from the famous movie (she looks great, by the way). Spain though takes the prize with one heck of a tomato fight called La Tomatina. According to Yumsugar this annual event “….is an all-out escapade that involves more than 100 tons of overripe tomatoes, draws over 40,000 visitors from around the world, and spares absolutely no one.”

The whole event is  part of a week long festival of music, food, and dancing including the hour long tomato fight. It apparently started back in the 1940’s either as a spat between merchants or disgruntled citizens throwing tomatos at politicians (one ought to remember that General Franco was in power at the time so a food fight might be the most benign way to show displeasure at Hitler’s good friend).

Titanic

New Book: The Titanic and the Indifferent Stranger

This seems to be the year of Stanley Lord as we have another book CaptainStanleyLordexamining his culpability that tragic night in 1912. The Titanic and the Indifferent Stranger written by Paul Lee is now out in an expanded paperback edition. According to the press release, the book is a 440 page detailed anaylsis that follows the controversy from its roots all the way through the books published for and against Stanley Lord, and the internal deliberations of the British government.

“The Titanic and the Indifferent Stranger” is a 440 page detailed analysis of the case, chronologically following the controversy from initial press reports of the mysterious ship seen from the Titanic’s bows, to the pronouncements made in later years by authors keen to promote their books and opinions over their rivals. Assisting in Dr. Lee’s conclusions is the first printing of the internal deliberations of the UK Government as the campaigns to clear Captain Lord’s name in 1965, 1968 and the early 1990s were ignited by Lord’s friends. The bequeathed papers of Captain Lord’s foe and namesake Walter Lord, and the Captain’s ardent supporter Leslie Harrison have been scoured and provide a rich source of information on the tactics employed on both sides of the argument – culminating in a legal bid to suppress a book critical of the Californian and its crew.

A review by Paul Rogers on the electronic edition at Encyclopedia Titanica gives it high marks. “Lee’s book is, quite simply, the most comprehensive presentation of evidence in relation to Captain Lord and his infamous ship that I have read to date. Rather than relying on footnotes and references, Lee presents, within the text itself, the full transcripts from the American and British Inquiries that relate to the Californian and the other ships implicated in the Titanic disaster. There is no bias whatsoever that I could perceive and Lee treats all those involved with scrupulous fairness.”

I have no doubt that both sides of the debate (the Lordites and Anti-Lordites) will be making their own appraisals known of Lee’s work in the near future (if they have not all ready done so by now).

Signed copies of the book are available from the author’s site at http://www.paullee.com/book_details.php or you can buy it at amazon.co.uk.

Titanic

Titanic Cafe Closed For Health Violation

According to thisisleicestershire.co.uk, the Titanic Cafe in Belgrave Gate, gencaut1Leicester was closed (temporarily) on 13 Aug due to live rodents and mouse droppings found on the premises.

Officials from Leicester City Council’s food safety team found droppings and urine throughout the kitchen and serving area of the Titanic Cafe, in Belgrave Gate, Leicester. Cafe owner Nuri Bay appeared before city magistrates yesterday and was ordered to pay £866.62 costs after they upheld the council’s decision to issue an emergency hygiene notice to prevent the building from being used on August 13. The cafe has now reopened after inspectors revisited the premises prior to yesterday’s hearing.

Yuck.

Titanic

Recent Titanic News

The following news headlines have been posted at titanicnewschannel.com.

1. Surviving the Titanic: The Saga of Davit Vartanian (10 Aug 09, Armenian Weekly)

2. Titanic Exhibition Attracts Crowds To Dockside Museum (9 Aug 09, Yorkshire Post)

3. Shipwreck Declared National Historic Site (7 Aug 09, Canada.com)

4. Nomadic Refloats Titanic’s Tale (6 Aug 09, Belfast Telegraph)

5. Titanic Explorer Ballard To Speak At Wichita Museum (4 Aug 09, Kansas.com)

6. 100000 Visitors to Titanic: The Artifact Exhibition at Science Museum of Minnesota (4 Aug 09, PR Newswire-press release)

7. In Sinking Economy, Titanic Exhibit Floats (2 Aug 09, LocalNews8.com-Idaho Falls, ID, USA)

8. Titanic Memorial In DC (30 Jul 09, Examiner.com)

9. Titanic Exhibit Was A Fascinating Look At Human Nature (30 Jul 09, Georgina Advocate-Canada)

10. Titanic Exhibit Coming To Louisville (30 Jul 09, Louisville Courier-Journal-USA)

Titanic, historic ship, and general history news.