In a recent report to the U.S. Securities & Exchange Commission (SEC), Premier Exhibitions reported:
“On June 20, 2016, the Company filed a number of motions in the Bankruptcy Court. Among the motions filed was a motion seeking permission to sell a portion of the Titanic artifacts awarded to the Company pursuant to a 1993 French administrative decree, which are from time to time referred to as the 1987 Artifacts in Company filings. At this time the Company does not know when the Bankruptcy Court will rule on this motion, and does not know the likely outcome of the motion.”
Since those artifacts are not part of the salvage award decision in the U.S., those stringent conditions imposed for sale do not apply here.
Before the news broke about the bankruptcy filing, the stock was trading at 51¢ but at the close of trading yesterday fell 27% to land finally at 37¢. The value of the stock is getting slimmer by the day.
The Grand Staircase of the RMS Olympic Photo:Public Domain (Wikipedia)
When I graduated from 8th grade back in the stone age, there was no dance. There was a ceremony to mark the occasion and not much else as I recall. Some places though go the extra step and have a dance for the graduating eighth graders as they head off to four years of high school. The graduating eighth graders of Canyon Lake Middle in Canyon, CA had a memorable dance. When the arrived at the schools multipurpose room they found it had been transformed into Titanic.
“They found the room transformed into the ship’s grand ballroom, with a projection of the grand staircase on stage, creating an upper class and steerage, along with sets that included a special entrance, a wooden gangplank and the nose of the Titanic for photo ops.”
From all accounts it went well. No word if anyone put in an appearance as Jack and Rose.
Stock charts are boring to look at unless it is a company you are invested in. And those who have invested in Premier Exhibitions, which owns RMS Titanic Inc and Titanic:The Artifact Exhibition, have to be wondering whether the company is going to survive. Over at FranklinIndependent.com, they took a look at the stock performance and had this to say:
If the $0.45 price target is reached, the company will be worth $270,600 less. Double bottoms are rare but powerful chart patterns. The stock is down 23.31% or $0.152 after the news, hitting $0.5 per share. About 12,100 shares traded hands or 206.25% up from the average. Premier Exhibitions, Inc. (OTCMKTS:PRXI) has declined 40.37% since October 22, 2015 and is downtrending. It has underperformed by 42.63% the S&P500.
Yikes. The market is not liking Premier Exhibitions right now and I bet a lot of shareholders who have seen their stock value drop are not happy either. Patience will not last long for the new company president if they do not see their stocks going up in value soon. Usually it means lawsuits and lawyers with accountants rummaging through documents.
Collapsible lifeboat D photographed by passenger on Carpathia on the morning of 15 April 1912. Public Domain(Wikipedia)The dedication for the headstone for Titanic hero Robert John Hopkins was recently held. You can view a photo of the headstone by going here.
The hits just keep coming against Clive Palmer and the un-Titanic II. Belfast Telegraph reports that CSC Jinling Shipyard in China is now referring all comments about Titanic II to Blue Star Line. The Telegraph follows an earlier story in Daily Mail that Deltamarin was no longer working on the ship design and in fact had suspended work 18 months ago. According to the newspaper:
But although Mr Palmer spent millions on marketing his childhood dream project, including a lavish project launch on USS Intrepid in New York, documents just published by the administrators of a former Palmer company, Queensland Nickel, show that little or no money has been put into the development of Titanic II for over two years. Indeed, the only funds directed towards the project were for offsite storage and IT-related expenses. Last week, Mr Palmer said at a press conference he would have to ask his wife if he could pursue the project in retirement – a statement that suggested he was well aware Titanic II was now a mere pipe dream.
Titanic Leaving Queenstown 11 April 1912. Believed to be the last photograph of ship before it sank. Public Domain
It has been a while since we have had a legitimate update about Clive Palmer’s Titanic II. A brief recap might be in order to remind everyone about this project. Amid great fanfare and lots of celebrity meals, Clive Palmer announced in 2012 that he was building a full size replica that would meet all present day safety standards. Firms were contracted for various aspects of planning, testing, and other needed things. Drawings were released and a Chinese shipbuilding firm was to be the its builder.
Then things went very quiet. Nothing was going on at the shipyard, Palmer tried getting Chinese investors aboard, and then he got into a row with the Chinese government. A new launch date of 2018 was announced, investors in Dubai showed interest in licensing Titanic for a major theme destination, and the maiden voyage was shifted from China to Dubai. And now here we are in May 2016 and no construction has yet taken place and no contract to build the ship has been signed. And now we learn from the Daily Mail that a Finnish company Deltamarin, contracted to design the new ship, ceased working with Blue Star back in 2014.
At this point we have no idea how far along Deltamarin was in designing the new ship. They may have done preliminary work and were waiting for Blue Star to commission full scale plans. If they did not commission them, it would be consistent with what we know so far. Palmer likely ran into trouble getting Chinese investors and his row with the Chinese government probably scuttled the ship being built there anyway. His only hope it would seem would be in Dubai these days but whether or not they want to commit to a full scale sailing replica is another matter. My guess is they might be more interested in the Titanic artifact collection that has yet to be sold and awaits a buyer. That would draw in lots of tourists but having a Titanic replica docked nearby could seal the deal. However they might decide to do it themselves without Palmer. Either way, the dream of Titanic II in 2018 looks quite remote at this point.
Collapsible lifeboat D photographed by passenger on Carpathia on the morning of 15 April 1912. Public Domain(Wikipedia)
Robert J. Hopkins was an able seaman on Titanic on that fateful night. He was assigned to lifeboat 13 with Fred Barrett. As the lifeboat reached the water, both he and Barrett had to quickly free it as lifeboat 15 was coming down nearly on top of them. Fortunately a knife was found and the ropes were cut allowing the lifeboat to drift away. After he arrived in New York, he sought assistance from the American Red Cross. There were some statements that were inaccurately attributed to him about possible bribery by Duff Gordon who was in lifeboat 1.
Hopkins was from Belfast and immigrated with his wife to the United States in 1900. They had two sons while living in New York but sadly his wife passed away in 1907. His brought his sons to Liverpool to be raised by the family. At the time he served on Titanic, he was living in Hoboken in New Jersey. He would live the rest of his life there and passed away on 17 November 1943. He was buried in Holy Name Cemetery but it never had a headstone till now. Thanks to the Archdiocese of Newark,Titanic International Society and his descendants,a headstone has been put in place. It will be dedicated on 14 May 2016 and blessed by Bishop John W. Flesey.
[Correction#1: NJ.com originally reported that the dedication/blessing was done last week. In fact it is not scheduled till 14 May 2016. The entry has been updated to reflect this information.]
I know others have mentioned this but some clever folks created a full length animation of Titanic sinking in real time. Meaning from start to finish it is 2 hours and 41 minutes. You get to see the ship collide, hear the orders given, and watch the evacuation and sinking. It is a pretty good rendering of Titanic but other experts will have to say if it passes muster or not. So if you have the desire to watch the whole thing, here it is.
Sorry folks not posting for a while. I have been quite busy on several projects. So lets get down to it.
RMS Titanic ready for launch(1911) Public Domain (U.S. Library of Congress, digital id#cph.3a27541)
1. Harland & Wolff never christened the ships they built but they did offer selected VIP’s the opportunity to watch the launch. Which is how Charlotte Irwin, a secretary for Harland & Wolff, got one to see Titanic’s launch. It was recently auctioned off by Henry Aldridge and Son (who ought to trademark the title “official auctioneer for Titanic memorabilia” considering how much they have auctioned off over the years)for £15,000 ($21,860). That figure exceeded the estimate of between £6,000-£10,000. A sextant owned by RMS Carpathia captain Arthur Rostron also was also auctioned off fetching £66,000 ($96,200).
Sources NI Secretary’s Souvenir Of Titanic Launch Day Sells For £15k At Auction(26 April 2016,Belfast Telegraph)
http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/northern-ireland/ni-secretarys-souvenir-of-titanic-launch-day-sells-for-15k-at-auction-34655751.html Sextant Used In Titanic Rescue Sells For £66,000 At Auction(24 April 2016,BBC News)
http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-wiltshire-36062539
2. A new book by Robert P Thompson delves into the Nazi propaganda Titanic movie. The movie was an attempt to take the story and show how a corrupt and decadent British government allowed the tragedy too happen. It was of course meant to show the superiority of the Nazi ideology over that of the British. The movie cost was extravagant and the resources it tied up caused problems as well. Add to it a director who insulted a war hero, arrested, and then was hung in his prison cell. The movie was a disaster and not shown in Germany during the war (although it was shown in occupied countries).
Memorial to Wallace Hartley, Colne Photo:Tim Greene (Flickr)
3. Wallace Hartley and all the musicians aboard Titanic were not employees of White Star Line. Although they were required to submit to Captain Smith’s authority,the worked for CW & FN, a music agency. According to a recently unearthed letter, Hartley complained that he and his fellow musicians were not given time off between voyages. After disembarking the Mauretania on 8 April 1912, the agency ordered that he and his fellow musicians would go to Titanic. Hartley notes in the letter to his parents that the agency had “rather vindictive spirit.” The letter is set to be auctioned off for £25,000.
Source:Titanic Band Leader Kept On Ship By ‘Vindictive’ Bosses(22 April 2016,Herald.ie)
(Note: Due to National Newspapers of Ireland (NNI) policy to license hyperlinks outside of personal use, no hyperlink is provided.)
4. Recovery of Titanic victims was a grim affair by all accounts. Bodies were found were found weeks and even several months after the sinking. One such event was on 13 May 1912 when the RMS Oceanic found a collapsible boat containing three bodies. It was later identified as Collapsible Boat A, which was washed over the side as Titanic sank. 30 people climbed aboard though many passed away from the cold before being transferred to another lifeboat. Two of the bodies appeared to be fireman from the engine room. The third body was well dressed in a dinner jacket and identified as first class passenger Thomson Beattie. All three bodies were buried at sea and Beattie’s family was notified. At the family plot in Fergus, Ontario his name is engraved on a tombstone.
Source(s)
1. Gruesome Truth Behind The Tragic Victims Found On Titanic’s Last Lifeboat(19 April 2016,Daily Mirror)
http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/world-news/gruesome-truth-behind-tragic-victims-7788475
2. Thomson Beattie Encyclopedia Titanica
http://www.encyclopedia-titanica.org/titanic-victim/thomson-beattie.html
In a recent report to the U.S. Securities & Exchange Commission (SEC), Premier Exhibitions reported:
Before the news broke about the bankruptcy filing, the stock was trading at 51¢ but at the close of trading yesterday fell 27% to land finally at 37¢. The value of the stock is getting slimmer by the day.
