1 00:00:02,200 --> 00:00:04,600 Speaker 1: I guess what, mango, what's that? Well, you remember a 2 00:00:04,600 --> 00:00:06,640 Speaker 1: couple of weeks ago when the artist banks He pulled 3 00:00:06,680 --> 00:00:10,240 Speaker 1: that incredible prank on the entire auction world. Yeah, that 4 00:00:10,320 --> 00:00:13,039 Speaker 1: was when his painting just self destructed in front of everyone. 5 00:00:13,320 --> 00:00:16,319 Speaker 1: Wasn't it worth over a million dollars? It's actually one 6 00:00:16,400 --> 00:00:18,840 Speaker 1: point four million dollars. And the crazy part is they 7 00:00:18,840 --> 00:00:21,759 Speaker 1: say it's probably worth even more now and the person 8 00:00:21,800 --> 00:00:23,560 Speaker 1: who had bid on it, you know, has agreed to 9 00:00:23,600 --> 00:00:26,279 Speaker 1: pay that price. That's crazy. I mean, I guess it 10 00:00:26,320 --> 00:00:28,800 Speaker 1: does make it more unique, but it's still really weird 11 00:00:28,880 --> 00:00:31,600 Speaker 1: how much people will pay for things. No, it definitely is. 12 00:00:31,640 --> 00:00:34,559 Speaker 1: And actually I find this kind of thing fascinating. I mean, 13 00:00:34,600 --> 00:00:37,600 Speaker 1: it's it's always interesting to see what people will pay 14 00:00:37,640 --> 00:00:41,080 Speaker 1: big money for an auction. So I was recently looking 15 00:00:41,080 --> 00:00:43,120 Speaker 1: at this list of the things people have been on 16 00:00:43,200 --> 00:00:46,360 Speaker 1: over the years that are related to the Titanic disaster, 17 00:00:46,640 --> 00:00:49,239 Speaker 1: and one thing that went for even more than that 18 00:00:49,280 --> 00:00:52,840 Speaker 1: banks He painting is the violin played by William Hartley 19 00:00:52,880 --> 00:00:55,760 Speaker 1: as the Titanic sank that many of us have heard 20 00:00:55,800 --> 00:00:58,960 Speaker 1: this legend before, and it's of course impossible to verify, 21 00:00:59,120 --> 00:01:01,960 Speaker 1: you know, every piece of it, but the ideas that Hartley, 22 00:01:02,080 --> 00:01:04,360 Speaker 1: who was the band leader, that he asked his seven 23 00:01:04,440 --> 00:01:07,480 Speaker 1: musicians to keep playing as this ship was going down, 24 00:01:08,000 --> 00:01:09,880 Speaker 1: And so some tell the story that he led his 25 00:01:09,920 --> 00:01:13,000 Speaker 1: crew in playing Near My God to the and you know, 26 00:01:13,080 --> 00:01:15,720 Speaker 1: that may not be completely true. It does appear that 27 00:01:15,760 --> 00:01:19,760 Speaker 1: the musicians did maintain their composure and they continued playing 28 00:01:19,959 --> 00:01:22,679 Speaker 1: something what we don't know exactly what it was, but 29 00:01:23,319 --> 00:01:26,319 Speaker 1: that violin that hardly played sold back in two thousand 30 00:01:26,360 --> 00:01:31,320 Speaker 1: thirteen for one point seven million dollars. And I guess 31 00:01:31,360 --> 00:01:34,360 Speaker 1: it's really no surprise because, you know, more than a 32 00:01:34,400 --> 00:01:38,280 Speaker 1: hundred years after the tragic event, we're still fascinated by it. 33 00:01:38,680 --> 00:01:41,720 Speaker 1: So today we'll try to better understand why that is, 34 00:01:42,200 --> 00:01:44,319 Speaker 1: you know, and ask some of the questions like what 35 00:01:44,360 --> 00:01:47,040 Speaker 1: did people know about the Titanic before it set sail, 36 00:01:47,319 --> 00:01:49,840 Speaker 1: what was life like on board, and what were some 37 00:01:49,880 --> 00:01:52,720 Speaker 1: of the strange ways people chose to remember the ship 38 00:01:52,800 --> 00:02:17,640 Speaker 1: after the disaster. So let's get started, Hey, their podcast listeners, 39 00:02:17,680 --> 00:02:20,040 Speaker 1: welcome to Part Time Genius. I'm Will Pearson and as 40 00:02:20,080 --> 00:02:22,480 Speaker 1: always I'm joined by my good friend Man Guesh Ticketer 41 00:02:22,840 --> 00:02:25,000 Speaker 1: and on the other side of the soundproof glass, wearing 42 00:02:25,000 --> 00:02:27,920 Speaker 1: a button that just says proud member of the Just 43 00:02:28,160 --> 00:02:31,760 Speaker 1: Mystic Club. That's our friend and producer Tristan McNeil. Now 44 00:02:32,040 --> 00:02:34,440 Speaker 1: a lot of people don't know this, but Tristan very 45 00:02:34,560 --> 00:02:37,160 Speaker 1: nearly booked himself on a trip on the Titanic back 46 00:02:37,200 --> 00:02:40,840 Speaker 1: in nineteen twelve. Thankfully, the plan fell apart at the 47 00:02:41,000 --> 00:02:43,240 Speaker 1: very last minute, you know, on account of his not 48 00:02:43,320 --> 00:02:46,680 Speaker 1: having been born yet, so ultimately he missed the boat, 49 00:02:47,639 --> 00:02:50,320 Speaker 1: which is just such a lucky break. But you know, 50 00:02:50,600 --> 00:02:53,280 Speaker 1: Tristan isn't alone in telling tall tales about how he 51 00:02:53,400 --> 00:02:56,239 Speaker 1: narrowly escaped death on the Titanic. In fact, just five 52 00:02:56,320 --> 00:02:59,280 Speaker 1: days after the sinking, there are already press reports about 53 00:02:59,280 --> 00:03:01,480 Speaker 1: the so called just missed a Club and how it 54 00:03:01,520 --> 00:03:05,160 Speaker 1: already had six thousand, nine four members, And so this 55 00:03:05,240 --> 00:03:07,320 Speaker 1: was obviously tongue in cheek, but it was also kind 56 00:03:07,320 --> 00:03:10,079 Speaker 1: of true. Like a suspiciously large number of people had 57 00:03:10,080 --> 00:03:12,600 Speaker 1: come forward claiming they'd missed the boat because they've been 58 00:03:12,639 --> 00:03:15,200 Speaker 1: running late that morning, or they've gotten sick or whatever, 59 00:03:15,360 --> 00:03:18,480 Speaker 1: but everyone knew most of the stories were completely made up. 60 00:03:18,560 --> 00:03:21,079 Speaker 1: Like in one of the press reports I mentioned, they 61 00:03:21,080 --> 00:03:23,520 Speaker 1: had a sarcastic quote from a guy who said quote, 62 00:03:23,800 --> 00:03:25,919 Speaker 1: I count it lucky that I didn't have the money 63 00:03:25,960 --> 00:03:27,960 Speaker 1: to go abroad this year. If all of us who 64 00:03:28,120 --> 00:03:30,720 Speaker 1: just missed it had got aboard the Titanic, she would 65 00:03:30,720 --> 00:03:35,400 Speaker 1: have sunk at the Liverpool Dock from the overload. I'm 66 00:03:35,400 --> 00:03:37,960 Speaker 1: glad the public didn't fall for all these stories. I mean, 67 00:03:38,120 --> 00:03:40,960 Speaker 1: it's such a strange compulsion in the first place, you know, 68 00:03:41,040 --> 00:03:43,200 Speaker 1: to lie like that because I don't know, because you 69 00:03:43,200 --> 00:03:46,240 Speaker 1: want to attach yourself to a tragedy. But I guess 70 00:03:46,280 --> 00:03:49,000 Speaker 1: that goes to show how captivated people were by the 71 00:03:49,080 --> 00:03:52,120 Speaker 1: story of the Titanic. And the really amazing thing is 72 00:03:52,160 --> 00:03:54,720 Speaker 1: that more than a hundred years later, many of us 73 00:03:54,720 --> 00:03:57,800 Speaker 1: are still just as captivated. So at this point the 74 00:03:57,840 --> 00:03:59,880 Speaker 1: disaster it feels like it's taken on kind of a 75 00:04:00,040 --> 00:04:03,280 Speaker 1: mythical status and world culture, and it's become one of 76 00:04:03,320 --> 00:04:06,800 Speaker 1: those stories that everybody seems to know. In fact, I 77 00:04:06,840 --> 00:04:09,800 Speaker 1: read in Smithsonian that Titanic is actually the third most 78 00:04:09,840 --> 00:04:14,600 Speaker 1: recognized word in the world, just below God and Coca cola. 79 00:04:14,680 --> 00:04:16,599 Speaker 1: And you know, while it's true that interest in the 80 00:04:16,640 --> 00:04:19,679 Speaker 1: story has ebbed and flowed over time, it's still something 81 00:04:19,680 --> 00:04:22,919 Speaker 1: that we always seem to come back to. So today 82 00:04:22,960 --> 00:04:25,520 Speaker 1: we'll take a look at why that is and why 83 00:04:25,560 --> 00:04:29,440 Speaker 1: Titanic still fascinates us all these years later, and help 84 00:04:29,520 --> 00:04:32,039 Speaker 1: answer that. We'll talk about the impact the tragedy has 85 00:04:32,080 --> 00:04:34,200 Speaker 1: had on the world, both in the short term and 86 00:04:34,240 --> 00:04:37,160 Speaker 1: the long term, and we'll also dig a little deeper 87 00:04:37,200 --> 00:04:39,960 Speaker 1: into life aboard the ship, which you know, includes the 88 00:04:39,960 --> 00:04:43,640 Speaker 1: surprising stories of a few standout passengers. It's definitely a 89 00:04:43,640 --> 00:04:45,440 Speaker 1: lot to cover, so let's get to it. But but 90 00:04:45,480 --> 00:04:48,520 Speaker 1: where do you want to start, Mango, Well, I thought 91 00:04:48,560 --> 00:04:50,120 Speaker 1: we could start with one of the biggest reasons that 92 00:04:50,120 --> 00:04:53,120 Speaker 1: people have stayed invested in the Titanic, and that's just 93 00:04:53,240 --> 00:04:55,800 Speaker 1: the ship itself. So most of us know that at 94 00:04:55,800 --> 00:04:58,240 Speaker 1: the time it was the largest ocean liner ever constructed, 95 00:04:58,400 --> 00:05:01,480 Speaker 1: and more broadly, the large just men made moving object 96 00:05:01,560 --> 00:05:04,480 Speaker 1: in the world. It was about eight feet long and 97 00:05:04,640 --> 00:05:07,440 Speaker 1: a hundred seventy five ft tall, which means the ship 98 00:05:07,600 --> 00:05:10,680 Speaker 1: was as long as three football fields and as tall 99 00:05:10,720 --> 00:05:14,400 Speaker 1: as a seventeen story building. Isn't that insane? Yeah? I mean, 100 00:05:14,400 --> 00:05:16,520 Speaker 1: it was definitely a massive ship for its time, no 101 00:05:16,760 --> 00:05:20,000 Speaker 1: question about that, But it wouldn't really be that impressive 102 00:05:20,040 --> 00:05:21,920 Speaker 1: today though, right, I mean, we have cruise ships that 103 00:05:21,960 --> 00:05:25,039 Speaker 1: are more than four times that size now, So it 104 00:05:25,080 --> 00:05:26,919 Speaker 1: does make me wonder, like why the size of the 105 00:05:26,960 --> 00:05:30,880 Speaker 1: Titanic still captures people's interest. So I think it's partly 106 00:05:30,920 --> 00:05:33,640 Speaker 1: the perception that the Titanic was kind of tempting fate 107 00:05:33,680 --> 00:05:36,000 Speaker 1: in a way, like the fact that the ship held 108 00:05:36,040 --> 00:05:38,320 Speaker 1: that title as the world's largest and and then it 109 00:05:38,440 --> 00:05:41,240 Speaker 1: ended up sinking on his maiden voyage. It feels like 110 00:05:41,279 --> 00:05:44,400 Speaker 1: this cautionary tale about man's hubris in some people's minds, 111 00:05:44,440 --> 00:05:47,080 Speaker 1: Like it's almost like a Tower of Babble situation or 112 00:05:47,120 --> 00:05:49,560 Speaker 1: something where man kind of overreached and then was made 113 00:05:49,600 --> 00:05:52,400 Speaker 1: to suffer for it. And I think that still resonates 114 00:05:52,400 --> 00:05:55,120 Speaker 1: for people, especially since we've heard so many stories now 115 00:05:55,120 --> 00:05:59,000 Speaker 1: about how luxurious and decadent the ship was, especially compared 116 00:05:59,080 --> 00:06:01,159 Speaker 1: to others at the time. All right, well, before we 117 00:06:01,200 --> 00:06:03,640 Speaker 1: get to that fateful night with the iceberg, I do 118 00:06:03,720 --> 00:06:06,080 Speaker 1: want to spend a little more time on board and 119 00:06:06,080 --> 00:06:08,400 Speaker 1: and talk about a few of those decadit details that 120 00:06:08,480 --> 00:06:11,360 Speaker 1: you alluded to. So, for example, the Titanic was one 121 00:06:11,400 --> 00:06:14,040 Speaker 1: of the first ships to have electric lights in all 122 00:06:14,040 --> 00:06:16,880 Speaker 1: of its rooms. It also had way more amenities than 123 00:06:16,920 --> 00:06:19,279 Speaker 1: most other ships, and so just looking at the list, 124 00:06:19,279 --> 00:06:23,520 Speaker 1: here among those were four elevators, heated swimming pool, two 125 00:06:23,680 --> 00:06:28,560 Speaker 1: libraries to barbershops, a squash court, a Turkish bath, and 126 00:06:28,640 --> 00:06:32,719 Speaker 1: even it's on onboard newspaper called the Atlantic Daily Bulletin. 127 00:06:33,120 --> 00:06:35,599 Speaker 1: So I hadn't heard about the paper. I'm guessing that 128 00:06:35,640 --> 00:06:37,880 Speaker 1: means that they had a printing press on board. Yeah, 129 00:06:37,920 --> 00:06:39,719 Speaker 1: I mean there was a small print shop on the 130 00:06:39,800 --> 00:06:41,880 Speaker 1: D deck and and of course this was close to 131 00:06:41,920 --> 00:06:45,320 Speaker 1: the butcher's shop in case you're wondering, now I know 132 00:06:45,360 --> 00:06:48,880 Speaker 1: where I get my pastrom that's right. But I mean, 133 00:06:49,080 --> 00:06:51,400 Speaker 1: it really does feel like they thought about everything. My 134 00:06:51,480 --> 00:06:54,960 Speaker 1: favorite Titanic community, though it is probably the onboard gymnasium, 135 00:06:55,160 --> 00:06:58,440 Speaker 1: Like it had all the best equipment naturally, including old 136 00:06:58,480 --> 00:07:02,160 Speaker 1: standards like rowing machines, weights, punching bags, but it also 137 00:07:02,200 --> 00:07:05,880 Speaker 1: had this cutting edge gear, like they had two static 138 00:07:05,880 --> 00:07:09,279 Speaker 1: bicycles with two foot dials attached to show the distance 139 00:07:09,279 --> 00:07:11,720 Speaker 1: that had been traveled. And there were also a few 140 00:07:11,720 --> 00:07:15,160 Speaker 1: electric horses, which were these big mechanical saddles meant to 141 00:07:15,200 --> 00:07:18,400 Speaker 1: mimic riding a horse. I mean, does that even count 142 00:07:18,400 --> 00:07:20,440 Speaker 1: as exercise? It kind of feels like it would be 143 00:07:20,560 --> 00:07:22,880 Speaker 1: less of a workout for the rider than for the horse, 144 00:07:23,000 --> 00:07:26,040 Speaker 1: or I guess the saddle in this case. I mean, 145 00:07:26,040 --> 00:07:28,200 Speaker 1: I think it was supposed to strengthen your core or 146 00:07:28,240 --> 00:07:31,960 Speaker 1: maybe some leg muscles, but either way, I doubt any 147 00:07:32,000 --> 00:07:34,240 Speaker 1: of the passengers worked up that much of a sweat. Like, 148 00:07:34,320 --> 00:07:36,360 Speaker 1: if you look at pictures from floating gyms on the 149 00:07:36,360 --> 00:07:39,040 Speaker 1: Titanic and other ships of the era, most of the 150 00:07:39,080 --> 00:07:42,280 Speaker 1: passengers are exercising while they're wearing their full get up, 151 00:07:42,360 --> 00:07:45,440 Speaker 1: So it's like a bunch of releasedate and calm looking 152 00:07:45,480 --> 00:07:48,560 Speaker 1: people in these three piece suits or or like big 153 00:07:48,680 --> 00:07:52,000 Speaker 1: Edwardian dresses and hats, and they're just kind of halfheartedly 154 00:07:52,040 --> 00:07:56,040 Speaker 1: peddling on the bikes or whatever. It's it's pretty lazy looking. Yeah, 155 00:07:56,200 --> 00:07:58,960 Speaker 1: I've actually seen some of these pictures, and honestly, my 156 00:07:59,000 --> 00:08:00,920 Speaker 1: guess is that it's the first time in a gym 157 00:08:01,000 --> 00:08:03,240 Speaker 1: for most of them, because nobody looks like they know 158 00:08:03,640 --> 00:08:06,680 Speaker 1: what they're doing at all. I mean, it's a good 159 00:08:06,720 --> 00:08:09,680 Speaker 1: thing that they had a personal trainer on board the Titanic. 160 00:08:10,000 --> 00:08:13,160 Speaker 1: This is real. His name was Thomas McCauley, and it 161 00:08:13,240 --> 00:08:15,520 Speaker 1: was this guy's job to show passengers how to use 162 00:08:15,520 --> 00:08:18,840 Speaker 1: the equipment and even to provide one on one training sessions. 163 00:08:18,920 --> 00:08:21,640 Speaker 1: And it seems like McCauley took his job super seriously 164 00:08:21,680 --> 00:08:24,680 Speaker 1: because the night the ship sank, he actually chose to 165 00:08:24,720 --> 00:08:27,080 Speaker 1: stay at his post in the gym and go down 166 00:08:27,120 --> 00:08:30,600 Speaker 1: with the ship. Wait, seriously, I mean, I don't want 167 00:08:30,600 --> 00:08:32,679 Speaker 1: to speak ill of the dead, but that sort of 168 00:08:32,760 --> 00:08:36,079 Speaker 1: seems a little bit unnecessary. I mean, we did talk 169 00:08:36,080 --> 00:08:38,600 Speaker 1: about how the band chose to continue playing as the 170 00:08:38,600 --> 00:08:41,439 Speaker 1: ship sank, and to me though, that makes sense because 171 00:08:41,480 --> 00:08:44,520 Speaker 1: it was a way to sacrifice and to calm the passengers, 172 00:08:44,640 --> 00:08:47,200 Speaker 1: or to give them at least some sense of peace. 173 00:08:47,240 --> 00:08:49,800 Speaker 1: But I mean, why keep the gym open. I can't 174 00:08:49,840 --> 00:08:52,079 Speaker 1: imagine anybody was thinking, like, I think, I'll just get 175 00:08:52,120 --> 00:08:55,600 Speaker 1: in a few more reps before whatever happens here happens. Yeah. 176 00:08:55,760 --> 00:08:58,440 Speaker 1: Probably not. If anyone was trying to burn like a 177 00:08:58,440 --> 00:09:01,560 Speaker 1: few calories for the road, I really wouldn't blame them. 178 00:09:01,840 --> 00:09:04,760 Speaker 1: I mean, the meals on board the Titanic were pretty epic, 179 00:09:05,160 --> 00:09:07,760 Speaker 1: at least for the first class passengers, and so the 180 00:09:07,840 --> 00:09:11,520 Speaker 1: dinners were gourmet affairs with up to thirteen courses, each 181 00:09:11,559 --> 00:09:13,719 Speaker 1: of which came with its own paired wine. There was 182 00:09:13,760 --> 00:09:16,080 Speaker 1: also a pre dinner cocktail service that was added as 183 00:09:16,120 --> 00:09:20,439 Speaker 1: a concession to American passengers. Apparently European passengers weren't fans 184 00:09:20,440 --> 00:09:22,560 Speaker 1: of this idea because they thought mixed drinks ruined your 185 00:09:22,600 --> 00:09:26,520 Speaker 1: palette before eating. But from start to finish, these elaborate 186 00:09:26,520 --> 00:09:28,680 Speaker 1: meals could last as long as four or five hours, 187 00:09:28,760 --> 00:09:31,760 Speaker 1: and because the first class menu was actually later recovered, 188 00:09:31,920 --> 00:09:35,439 Speaker 1: we actually know exactly what the wealthiest Titanic passengers had 189 00:09:35,440 --> 00:09:37,800 Speaker 1: for dinner the night the ship went down, and it 190 00:09:37,880 --> 00:09:41,400 Speaker 1: was an incredible spread. The feast started with raw oysters 191 00:09:41,400 --> 00:09:44,200 Speaker 1: and a selection of order ivs, followed by a choice 192 00:09:44,200 --> 00:09:47,480 Speaker 1: of two soups. Then came a lightly pushed Atlantic salmon 193 00:09:47,520 --> 00:09:50,920 Speaker 1: topped with a rich moose. For the fourth and fifth courses, 194 00:09:50,960 --> 00:09:55,040 Speaker 1: passengers chose from such rich entrees as a filet mignon 195 00:09:55,679 --> 00:09:59,120 Speaker 1: or a lamb with mint sauce. And then at the 196 00:09:59,200 --> 00:10:03,880 Speaker 1: halfway point the meal this is on you get a 197 00:10:03,920 --> 00:10:07,600 Speaker 1: palate cleanser. It's it's a punch romain, which I guess 198 00:10:07,640 --> 00:10:10,880 Speaker 1: is a boozy mix and wine, rum and champagne. And 199 00:10:10,880 --> 00:10:13,920 Speaker 1: then once you've regained your appetite, the feasting resumes. There's 200 00:10:13,960 --> 00:10:18,320 Speaker 1: a roast squab course, cold asparagus, vinaigrette fois gras, and 201 00:10:18,320 --> 00:10:21,880 Speaker 1: then there's dessert, which includes peaches and shark trees, jelly chocolate, 202 00:10:22,000 --> 00:10:25,679 Speaker 1: Vanilla Claire's French ice cream, and then to close off 203 00:10:25,720 --> 00:10:28,280 Speaker 1: the meal, there's a variety of fruits, nuts, and cheeses 204 00:10:28,960 --> 00:10:34,280 Speaker 1: with coffee, poor cigars and cordials. It's pretty It feels 205 00:10:34,320 --> 00:10:37,040 Speaker 1: like they just accidentally went ahead and cooked everything for 206 00:10:37,080 --> 00:10:38,800 Speaker 1: the week for one meal. I don't even know how 207 00:10:38,800 --> 00:10:41,839 Speaker 1: these people would get up and walk after eating all 208 00:10:41,880 --> 00:10:43,439 Speaker 1: of this stuff. I don't feel like I could make 209 00:10:43,480 --> 00:10:46,600 Speaker 1: it through a single meal, I know, but if you 210 00:10:46,640 --> 00:10:48,520 Speaker 1: did want to try. They're actually places all over the 211 00:10:48,559 --> 00:10:51,480 Speaker 1: world that now offer dinners that recreate that last meal 212 00:10:51,559 --> 00:10:54,280 Speaker 1: that the first class passengers eight on the ship. And 213 00:10:54,640 --> 00:10:57,200 Speaker 1: it's kind of a cop but some people claim it's 214 00:10:57,240 --> 00:11:00,760 Speaker 1: a great way to humanize the tragedy or to understand 215 00:11:00,800 --> 00:11:03,600 Speaker 1: the history of it. The ethics acide like. The biggest 216 00:11:03,640 --> 00:11:06,600 Speaker 1: drawback is probably the price of these dinners. So, for instance, 217 00:11:06,600 --> 00:11:09,959 Speaker 1: there's one restaurant in Houston it offers a ten course 218 00:11:10,040 --> 00:11:13,040 Speaker 1: menu for a thousand dollars per person. There's also a 219 00:11:13,120 --> 00:11:15,760 Speaker 1: version of this on a luxury hotel in Hong Kong, 220 00:11:15,800 --> 00:11:18,960 Speaker 1: where um, the prices doubled because it reportedly serves this 221 00:11:19,120 --> 00:11:23,080 Speaker 1: vintage seven bottle of wine that's actually salvage from the 222 00:11:23,120 --> 00:11:26,000 Speaker 1: wreck of the Titanic. I like this idea that it's 223 00:11:26,040 --> 00:11:29,559 Speaker 1: somehow humanizes the tragedy by just sitting there and stuffing 224 00:11:29,600 --> 00:11:32,440 Speaker 1: yourself with all of this and drinking fancy old wine. 225 00:11:32,520 --> 00:11:34,360 Speaker 1: Don't forget. Yeah, well, I guess so. I guess they 226 00:11:34,360 --> 00:11:36,200 Speaker 1: know exactly what it was like to be on the 227 00:11:36,240 --> 00:11:39,360 Speaker 1: Titanic then, But it feels a little too rich for 228 00:11:39,440 --> 00:11:41,720 Speaker 1: my blood. I feel like maybe i'd spring for a 229 00:11:41,760 --> 00:11:44,800 Speaker 1: recreation of maybe like the third class dinner. I mean, 230 00:11:44,840 --> 00:11:47,160 Speaker 1: that's got to be a lot cheaper, right, Like I 231 00:11:47,160 --> 00:11:49,640 Speaker 1: imagined there were a bit more down to earth at 232 00:11:49,679 --> 00:11:53,120 Speaker 1: the second and third class tables, right, So I think 233 00:11:53,160 --> 00:11:55,600 Speaker 1: that's a really funny idea, But not as much as 234 00:11:55,640 --> 00:11:58,160 Speaker 1: you think, right. Like, so, the first and second class 235 00:11:58,160 --> 00:12:01,240 Speaker 1: dining rooms actually shared a galley, so there was probably 236 00:12:01,280 --> 00:12:03,080 Speaker 1: a good bit of crossover when it comes to what 237 00:12:03,200 --> 00:12:05,520 Speaker 1: was served, kind of like business of first class on 238 00:12:05,520 --> 00:12:08,000 Speaker 1: a plane or something. But the main difference would have 239 00:12:08,040 --> 00:12:09,959 Speaker 1: been that second class diners wouldn't have had all the 240 00:12:10,000 --> 00:12:12,640 Speaker 1: crazy wine pairings, a few of the other frills that 241 00:12:12,720 --> 00:12:16,400 Speaker 1: the first class people enjoyed, and honestly, even third class 242 00:12:16,400 --> 00:12:18,720 Speaker 1: passengers didn't have it too bad when it came to food. 243 00:12:18,800 --> 00:12:21,240 Speaker 1: So there was a lot less lamb with mint sauce 244 00:12:21,280 --> 00:12:23,839 Speaker 1: and a lot more roast beef and boiled potatoes. But 245 00:12:24,280 --> 00:12:26,800 Speaker 1: you actually wouldn't hear that many people complaining about it. 246 00:12:27,200 --> 00:12:30,559 Speaker 1: At the time, most ocean liners required third class passengers 247 00:12:30,559 --> 00:12:33,239 Speaker 1: to bring their own food to last the entire voyage, 248 00:12:33,280 --> 00:12:35,760 Speaker 1: which would have made the Titanics prepared meals seemed really 249 00:12:35,800 --> 00:12:39,000 Speaker 1: decadent to most people. I mean, the same can't be 250 00:12:39,080 --> 00:12:42,160 Speaker 1: said for the accommodations, though there were actually only two 251 00:12:42,200 --> 00:12:47,640 Speaker 1: bathtubs for all seven third class passengers to share. Oh gosh, well, 252 00:12:47,720 --> 00:12:50,959 Speaker 1: let's let maybe let's not dwell on that. But getting 253 00:12:51,000 --> 00:12:52,800 Speaker 1: back to the food, it's hard for me to even 254 00:12:52,880 --> 00:12:55,280 Speaker 1: wrap my head around the amount of work that must 255 00:12:55,280 --> 00:12:58,320 Speaker 1: have gone into feating this many people and multiple times 256 00:12:58,320 --> 00:13:01,520 Speaker 1: a day, Like there were need two hundred people aboard 257 00:13:01,559 --> 00:13:07,040 Speaker 1: the Titanic. You've got passengers nine crew members, so they're 258 00:13:07,040 --> 00:13:08,719 Speaker 1: just doing the math, like three meals a day, that 259 00:13:08,880 --> 00:13:11,840 Speaker 1: sixty meals that the kitchens had to crank out every 260 00:13:11,960 --> 00:13:13,920 Speaker 1: twenty four hours, and it must have been a pretty 261 00:13:14,000 --> 00:13:17,439 Speaker 1: colossal effort. It definitely was. So I read this interview 262 00:13:17,480 --> 00:13:20,000 Speaker 1: with Dana McCauley. She co wrote a book called Last 263 00:13:20,000 --> 00:13:23,280 Speaker 1: Dinner on the Titanic, and she says the Titanics kitchen 264 00:13:23,320 --> 00:13:27,640 Speaker 1: crew included a hundred thirteen cooks, fifteen first cooks who 265 00:13:27,640 --> 00:13:32,800 Speaker 1: supervised things, twelve pastry chefs, six bakers, five butchers, and 266 00:13:32,840 --> 00:13:35,520 Speaker 1: five sous chefs. And you know, you think about that, 267 00:13:35,520 --> 00:13:37,880 Speaker 1: that's not even mentioning the dozens of waiters or bus 268 00:13:37,880 --> 00:13:40,640 Speaker 1: boys that each meal required. Yeah, I mean, that's a 269 00:13:40,679 --> 00:13:43,160 Speaker 1: pretty huge staff, but I'm actually a bit surprised it's 270 00:13:43,160 --> 00:13:45,840 Speaker 1: not even bigger when you consider how many people they 271 00:13:45,840 --> 00:13:48,840 Speaker 1: were feeding and just the level of sheer variety on 272 00:13:48,920 --> 00:13:51,520 Speaker 1: those menus that you talked about. But you know, since 273 00:13:51,520 --> 00:13:53,920 Speaker 1: you mentioned the Titanics bakers, I want to take a 274 00:13:53,960 --> 00:13:57,040 Speaker 1: second and talk about the ship's chief baker. He was 275 00:13:57,040 --> 00:13:59,880 Speaker 1: a guy named Charles Joffin, and he was a sort 276 00:13:59,880 --> 00:14:02,480 Speaker 1: of either of the wreck and live for decades afterward, 277 00:14:02,559 --> 00:14:05,280 Speaker 1: but he was also examined as part of a British 278 00:14:05,280 --> 00:14:09,000 Speaker 1: inquiry after the accident, and the picture he paints during 279 00:14:09,000 --> 00:14:13,240 Speaker 1: his testimony is really pretty amazing. So after the Titanic 280 00:14:13,320 --> 00:14:16,800 Speaker 1: hits the iceberg, sorry for the spoiler there, but Charles 281 00:14:16,840 --> 00:14:19,720 Speaker 1: immediately gets to work and he starts rounding up all 282 00:14:19,760 --> 00:14:22,560 Speaker 1: the bread he can find to help bolster their provisions 283 00:14:22,680 --> 00:14:25,360 Speaker 1: and all the lifeboats. Now he ends up sending something 284 00:14:25,400 --> 00:14:28,120 Speaker 1: like forty pounds of bread loaves to the upper decks, 285 00:14:28,160 --> 00:14:30,360 Speaker 1: and then he heads back to his cabin where he 286 00:14:30,400 --> 00:14:33,200 Speaker 1: proceeds to steal himself with what he called, quote a 287 00:14:33,320 --> 00:14:36,000 Speaker 1: drop of liqueur, and I have a feeling was a 288 00:14:36,080 --> 00:14:39,080 Speaker 1: little more than a drop, And honestly, in that situation, 289 00:14:39,200 --> 00:14:42,520 Speaker 1: who can blame him. But then Charles heads to the 290 00:14:42,560 --> 00:14:45,520 Speaker 1: a deck and he starts helping to load the lifeboats. 291 00:14:45,960 --> 00:14:48,800 Speaker 1: Now this is something I hadn't heard before, but apparently 292 00:14:48,840 --> 00:14:51,720 Speaker 1: many of the passengers were reluctant to leave the ship, 293 00:14:51,920 --> 00:14:54,640 Speaker 1: Like in the first hour or so after the collision, 294 00:14:54,920 --> 00:14:57,440 Speaker 1: when only the lower decks were flooding. At that point, 295 00:14:57,720 --> 00:14:59,600 Speaker 1: a lot of the people tried to wave off the 296 00:14:59,680 --> 00:15:03,640 Speaker 1: danger and actually refused to get on these lifeboats. So 297 00:15:03,760 --> 00:15:06,480 Speaker 1: Charles knew better in this situation, and so when he 298 00:15:06,520 --> 00:15:09,680 Speaker 1: found women and children just squatting on the deck. Refusing 299 00:15:09,760 --> 00:15:12,600 Speaker 1: to budge, he and other crew members began picking up 300 00:15:12,640 --> 00:15:16,280 Speaker 1: these stubborn passengers and actually throwing them into the lifeboats. 301 00:15:16,800 --> 00:15:19,600 Speaker 1: And then when these last lifeboats were filled and lowered, 302 00:15:19,920 --> 00:15:22,720 Speaker 1: Charles went back down to his cabin, had himself another 303 00:15:22,800 --> 00:15:26,400 Speaker 1: drop of liqueur, and went right back on the deck. Now, 304 00:15:26,440 --> 00:15:28,960 Speaker 1: at this point, the ship was sinking in earnest and 305 00:15:29,440 --> 00:15:31,600 Speaker 1: it was clear that the majority of the passengers were 306 00:15:31,680 --> 00:15:34,720 Speaker 1: still on board. So he was helpful to the very 307 00:15:34,840 --> 00:15:38,000 Speaker 1: last minute, and he tossed some fifty odd deck chairs 308 00:15:38,080 --> 00:15:40,480 Speaker 1: into the water so that people would have something to 309 00:15:40,480 --> 00:15:43,920 Speaker 1: cling onto when the ship inevitably went under. That that 310 00:15:44,040 --> 00:15:47,160 Speaker 1: really is inspiring. Also, can I just say how perfect 311 00:15:47,160 --> 00:15:50,240 Speaker 1: an activity he chose given his circumstances, Like checking deck 312 00:15:50,320 --> 00:15:52,680 Speaker 1: chairs into the ocean is exactly the thing you should 313 00:15:52,680 --> 00:15:54,680 Speaker 1: do if you're trapped on a sinking chip and you've 314 00:15:54,720 --> 00:15:57,760 Speaker 1: had a few drinks. No, it does seem pretty fitting 315 00:15:57,800 --> 00:16:01,920 Speaker 1: in that scenario. But here's where really achieves legend status 316 00:16:01,960 --> 00:16:04,640 Speaker 1: in my eyes, Like he was actually still aboard the 317 00:16:04,640 --> 00:16:08,479 Speaker 1: Titanic when it's split in half. In fact, he reportedly 318 00:16:08,600 --> 00:16:12,120 Speaker 1: climbed over the railing rode the ship down as it sank, 319 00:16:12,200 --> 00:16:14,520 Speaker 1: and when asked during his enquiry if he had been 320 00:16:14,600 --> 00:16:17,800 Speaker 1: dragged under with the ship, Charles just replied, I do 321 00:16:17,880 --> 00:16:20,400 Speaker 1: not believe my head went underwater at all. It may 322 00:16:20,400 --> 00:16:24,040 Speaker 1: have been wetted, but no more. Okay, so this guy's 323 00:16:24,040 --> 00:16:26,880 Speaker 1: my new hero. Well, and that's really saying something because 324 00:16:26,880 --> 00:16:29,720 Speaker 1: there are a ton of stories about passengers behaving bravely 325 00:16:29,800 --> 00:16:32,600 Speaker 1: while the ship went down. And of course these days 326 00:16:32,600 --> 00:16:35,080 Speaker 1: a lot of people say chivalry is dead, but that 327 00:16:35,240 --> 00:16:39,000 Speaker 1: definitely wasn't the case aboard the Titanic. Yeah, that's true. 328 00:16:39,000 --> 00:16:41,880 Speaker 1: I think most people know the famous policy about evacuating 329 00:16:41,880 --> 00:16:45,000 Speaker 1: women and children first, and that really was an explicit 330 00:16:45,080 --> 00:16:47,760 Speaker 1: order that Captain Smith gave the night the Titanic sank. 331 00:16:47,880 --> 00:16:50,680 Speaker 1: But what I never knew before this week is that 332 00:16:50,680 --> 00:16:53,440 Speaker 1: Titanic actually approved the exception in that regard rather than 333 00:16:53,440 --> 00:16:57,080 Speaker 1: the rule, because it turns out that in most maritime disasters, 334 00:16:57,480 --> 00:17:00,440 Speaker 1: men have had a significantly higher survival rate than women 335 00:17:00,440 --> 00:17:03,560 Speaker 1: and children. Really, I don't think I would have guessed that. 336 00:17:03,640 --> 00:17:05,960 Speaker 1: But all right, we'll have a ton of questions to ask, 337 00:17:06,000 --> 00:17:08,040 Speaker 1: and at some point we do need to talk about 338 00:17:08,119 --> 00:17:10,520 Speaker 1: the crash itself. But before we get to any of that. 339 00:17:10,600 --> 00:17:27,959 Speaker 1: Let's take a quick break. You're listening to Part Time 340 00:17:28,040 --> 00:17:30,480 Speaker 1: Genius and we're talking about the enduring legacy of the 341 00:17:30,640 --> 00:17:33,840 Speaker 1: RMS Titanic, all right, Mago. So before the break, you 342 00:17:33,880 --> 00:17:37,240 Speaker 1: were saying that when disaster strikes at sea that men 343 00:17:37,359 --> 00:17:40,239 Speaker 1: generally fair better than women and children. So can you 344 00:17:40,280 --> 00:17:43,640 Speaker 1: explain what you mean by that? Sure? So this comes 345 00:17:43,680 --> 00:17:46,920 Speaker 1: from the sweetest study where researchers looked at eighteen maritime 346 00:17:46,960 --> 00:17:50,399 Speaker 1: disasters that happened between eighteen fifty two and two thousand eleven, 347 00:17:50,960 --> 00:17:53,600 Speaker 1: and what they found was that women and children survived 348 00:17:53,600 --> 00:17:56,119 Speaker 1: in greater numbers than men in only two of the 349 00:17:56,160 --> 00:17:59,639 Speaker 1: eighteen cases. It was for the HMS Broken Stock in 350 00:17:59,760 --> 00:18:04,280 Speaker 1: eight fifty two and the Titanic in In all other cases, 351 00:18:04,320 --> 00:18:06,440 Speaker 1: men came out ahead with an average survival rate of 352 00:18:07,840 --> 00:18:11,600 Speaker 1: compared to scent for women and just fifteen percent for children. 353 00:18:12,119 --> 00:18:13,879 Speaker 1: And that was the only surprise to come out of 354 00:18:13,880 --> 00:18:16,520 Speaker 1: the study either, because it turns out the crew members 355 00:18:16,560 --> 00:18:19,159 Speaker 1: actually have the highest survival rate. They come out with 356 00:18:19,160 --> 00:18:23,639 Speaker 1: a whopping sixty. And you know this romantic idea of 357 00:18:23,680 --> 00:18:26,199 Speaker 1: captains choosing to go down with the ships, right, that 358 00:18:26,280 --> 00:18:29,200 Speaker 1: apparently doesn't happen as often as we assume, because even 359 00:18:29,240 --> 00:18:31,919 Speaker 1: captains tend to have a higher survival rate than passengers. 360 00:18:32,720 --> 00:18:34,760 Speaker 1: But you're saying that wasn't the case the night the 361 00:18:34,800 --> 00:18:39,199 Speaker 1: Titanic sank exactly So with Titanic, women actually had a 362 00:18:39,240 --> 00:18:42,760 Speaker 1: seventy survival rate compared to just seventeen percent for men. 363 00:18:43,160 --> 00:18:45,720 Speaker 1: And it's the same with children. Half the kids aboard 364 00:18:45,720 --> 00:18:48,040 Speaker 1: the Titanic survived the ordeal, all right, So do we 365 00:18:48,119 --> 00:18:51,680 Speaker 1: know why that is? Like, what made the Titanic so different? 366 00:18:51,760 --> 00:18:54,080 Speaker 1: Was its crew just like that much better at following 367 00:18:54,119 --> 00:18:57,719 Speaker 1: the correct procedure or what happened there? That's the thing. 368 00:18:57,800 --> 00:19:01,080 Speaker 1: The whole women and children first was an explicit and 369 00:19:01,119 --> 00:19:03,119 Speaker 1: it wasn't this like written rule at the time. And 370 00:19:03,160 --> 00:19:05,760 Speaker 1: in fact, as we see with those other sixteen cases, 371 00:19:06,040 --> 00:19:08,520 Speaker 1: the real policy is closer to first come, first serve, 372 00:19:08,680 --> 00:19:12,200 Speaker 1: or even every man for himself. But that's one way 373 00:19:12,240 --> 00:19:14,800 Speaker 1: in which Birkenstock and Titanic stick out from the others, 374 00:19:15,040 --> 00:19:17,640 Speaker 1: because in both those cases, the captains gave this direct 375 00:19:17,760 --> 00:19:21,640 Speaker 1: order that women and children should be evacuated first. So 376 00:19:21,680 --> 00:19:24,000 Speaker 1: if that's the case, then the higher survival rates for 377 00:19:24,000 --> 00:19:26,480 Speaker 1: women and children it's really things more to the captains 378 00:19:26,480 --> 00:19:29,560 Speaker 1: and crew like, not necessarily the passengers of the Titanic 379 00:19:29,600 --> 00:19:33,520 Speaker 1: being chivalrous was really more than captain, So that is 380 00:19:33,600 --> 00:19:35,600 Speaker 1: one way to look at it. But on the other hand, 381 00:19:35,720 --> 00:19:38,360 Speaker 1: we do have plenty of reports of crew members and 382 00:19:38,560 --> 00:19:40,920 Speaker 1: even passengers who chose to remain on board and help 383 00:19:40,960 --> 00:19:43,720 Speaker 1: others rather than take up space and lifeboats. I mean, 384 00:19:43,840 --> 00:19:47,080 Speaker 1: supposedly there were just people on deck just standing and 385 00:19:47,160 --> 00:19:50,200 Speaker 1: smoking cigars, drinking brandy while others fled for their lives. 386 00:19:50,280 --> 00:19:52,919 Speaker 1: And while that might sound kind of silly or naive 387 00:19:52,960 --> 00:19:55,480 Speaker 1: to us, I think those guys absolutely knew what they 388 00:19:55,480 --> 00:19:57,440 Speaker 1: were doing. They were willing to die in order to 389 00:19:57,480 --> 00:20:00,560 Speaker 1: give other people a shot at living, all right, So 390 00:20:00,600 --> 00:20:02,399 Speaker 1: then what do we make of this? Like, are we 391 00:20:02,480 --> 00:20:05,680 Speaker 1: saying the pastors of Titanic And I guess Birkin Stock 392 00:20:05,800 --> 00:20:08,560 Speaker 1: just happened to be more selfless than you know, people 393 00:20:08,560 --> 00:20:10,200 Speaker 1: in these other ship breaks, And I feel like there's 394 00:20:10,200 --> 00:20:12,640 Speaker 1: got to be more to it than that. I read 395 00:20:12,680 --> 00:20:16,440 Speaker 1: the study from an Australian economist. His name's David Savage, 396 00:20:16,560 --> 00:20:20,560 Speaker 1: and he actually suggested that Titanics passengers behaved more altruistically 397 00:20:20,960 --> 00:20:23,600 Speaker 1: simply because they had the time to do so. Like, 398 00:20:23,920 --> 00:20:26,080 Speaker 1: if you think about the wreck of the Lusitania, which 399 00:20:26,160 --> 00:20:28,760 Speaker 1: was this other luxury liner from the era, which I'm 400 00:20:28,800 --> 00:20:30,880 Speaker 1: sure you've heard of it. It had a similar number 401 00:20:30,880 --> 00:20:34,040 Speaker 1: of passengers and survive us to the Titanic. But whereas 402 00:20:34,080 --> 00:20:37,680 Speaker 1: the Lusitania sank in less than twenty minutes, Titanic took 403 00:20:37,760 --> 00:20:41,600 Speaker 1: nearly three hours. And that's why Savage suggests that the 404 00:20:41,680 --> 00:20:45,600 Speaker 1: longer timeline allowed social norms to assert themselves aboard the Titanic. 405 00:20:46,200 --> 00:20:48,520 Speaker 1: So instead of giving into the panic self interest as 406 00:20:48,520 --> 00:20:51,840 Speaker 1: passengers aboard the Lusitania and most of the other ships did, 407 00:20:52,320 --> 00:20:54,760 Speaker 1: the people aboard the Titanic had enough time to tamp 408 00:20:54,840 --> 00:20:58,399 Speaker 1: down their self preservation instincts and really act in favor 409 00:20:58,440 --> 00:21:00,840 Speaker 1: of the group instead. And you know, I have to 410 00:21:00,880 --> 00:21:02,879 Speaker 1: wonder if that, in itself is one of the reasons 411 00:21:02,920 --> 00:21:06,160 Speaker 1: that people are still so affected by the Titanic story today. Like, 412 00:21:06,560 --> 00:21:08,280 Speaker 1: if you think about it, this was one of those 413 00:21:08,359 --> 00:21:11,600 Speaker 1: rare tragedies where the people involved actually had the time 414 00:21:11,680 --> 00:21:14,480 Speaker 1: to think about their circumstances and how they wanted to 415 00:21:14,480 --> 00:21:17,000 Speaker 1: spend their final moments. And that's not really a luxury 416 00:21:17,080 --> 00:21:19,360 Speaker 1: that many have had, and major disasters in the last 417 00:21:19,400 --> 00:21:22,720 Speaker 1: century well, and think about how much worse things could 418 00:21:22,720 --> 00:21:25,400 Speaker 1: have gone if the passengers didn't have that extra bit 419 00:21:25,440 --> 00:21:27,760 Speaker 1: of time. I mean, as it stands, there were only 420 00:21:27,760 --> 00:21:32,480 Speaker 1: about seven hundred survivors from Titanic, which means roughly people 421 00:21:32,600 --> 00:21:35,199 Speaker 1: lost their lives that night, and if there had been 422 00:21:35,280 --> 00:21:38,040 Speaker 1: mass panic, it's likely that even more people would have 423 00:21:38,080 --> 00:21:41,560 Speaker 1: died in the process. Yeah, though I do question how 424 00:21:41,600 --> 00:21:44,280 Speaker 1: much better things really could have been. Like at the 425 00:21:44,359 --> 00:21:46,520 Speaker 1: end of the day, the ship just didn't have anywhere 426 00:21:46,560 --> 00:21:49,040 Speaker 1: near the number of lifeboats it would have technically taken 427 00:21:49,400 --> 00:21:52,320 Speaker 1: to save everyone on board. And that's what the ship 428 00:21:52,359 --> 00:21:55,560 Speaker 1: at half capacity like the Titanic technically could have fit 429 00:21:55,600 --> 00:21:59,760 Speaker 1: another people on board, which undoubtedly would have made an 430 00:21:59,800 --> 00:22:03,200 Speaker 1: even bigger tragedy. Yeah, that's true, And you know, people 431 00:22:03,240 --> 00:22:06,639 Speaker 1: often point to those lack of lifeboats aboard the Titanic 432 00:22:06,760 --> 00:22:10,240 Speaker 1: is another example of the hubrists of the ship's owners 433 00:22:10,280 --> 00:22:13,199 Speaker 1: and creators. And you know, to a certain extent that 434 00:22:13,320 --> 00:22:15,520 Speaker 1: makes sense. Like one of the stories I hear a 435 00:22:15,520 --> 00:22:18,240 Speaker 1: lot is how the ship could have easily carried twice 436 00:22:18,280 --> 00:22:21,560 Speaker 1: the amount of lifeboats that it had, only the designers 437 00:22:21,560 --> 00:22:24,280 Speaker 1: didn't want to ruin the aesthetics by cluttering the deck 438 00:22:24,359 --> 00:22:27,480 Speaker 1: with more boats. I mean, it's just absurd. And well, 439 00:22:27,520 --> 00:22:29,800 Speaker 1: that may be true, it's worth noting that Titanic was 440 00:22:29,840 --> 00:22:33,080 Speaker 1: completely up to code when it came to lifeboats. In fact, 441 00:22:33,760 --> 00:22:37,000 Speaker 1: it was actually more compliant than it even had to be, 442 00:22:37,000 --> 00:22:40,320 Speaker 1: because instead of having sixteen lifeboats as the Board of 443 00:22:40,320 --> 00:22:44,800 Speaker 1: Trade required, the ship actually had twenty. I mean that 444 00:22:44,840 --> 00:22:47,399 Speaker 1: sounds ridiculous, like like a ship as big as the 445 00:22:47,400 --> 00:22:50,680 Speaker 1: Titanic was only required to have sixteen lifeboats. How is 446 00:22:50,720 --> 00:22:52,920 Speaker 1: that even possible? Like didn't they know how many people 447 00:22:53,000 --> 00:22:55,679 Speaker 1: were going to be on board? Well they did, but 448 00:22:55,720 --> 00:22:58,879 Speaker 1: the thing is like the number of passengers wasn't actually 449 00:22:59,000 --> 00:23:02,440 Speaker 1: a factor and the hermiting this. So prior to Titanic, 450 00:23:02,480 --> 00:23:05,280 Speaker 1: the number of lifeboats needed was based solely on a 451 00:23:05,359 --> 00:23:08,320 Speaker 1: ship's weight. So whether the ship the size of the 452 00:23:08,320 --> 00:23:12,040 Speaker 1: Titanic was sailing half full or completely empty, it would 453 00:23:12,040 --> 00:23:15,840 Speaker 1: have still been required to carry just sixteen lifeboats. Now, 454 00:23:15,880 --> 00:23:18,239 Speaker 1: the good news is that Titanic shine to light on 455 00:23:18,280 --> 00:23:21,800 Speaker 1: how little since this made and practice, and so thanks 456 00:23:21,840 --> 00:23:24,920 Speaker 1: to that public scrutiny and sending inquiries that took place 457 00:23:24,920 --> 00:23:29,280 Speaker 1: in the days after the disaster, regulations definitely changed and 458 00:23:29,640 --> 00:23:31,720 Speaker 1: the number of lifeboats started to be determined by the 459 00:23:31,800 --> 00:23:34,359 Speaker 1: number of people on board, not by how much a 460 00:23:34,400 --> 00:23:37,159 Speaker 1: ship weight, which just seems weird that we even have 461 00:23:37,400 --> 00:23:39,600 Speaker 1: to say that, because who else would be getting on 462 00:23:39,640 --> 00:23:44,240 Speaker 1: these lifeboats other than the people on the ship. Definitely 463 00:23:44,280 --> 00:23:46,800 Speaker 1: a smart change, and you know, there were actually a 464 00:23:46,800 --> 00:23:49,000 Speaker 1: couple of other positive things to come out of the 465 00:23:49,080 --> 00:23:52,960 Speaker 1: Titanic tragedy. For example, maritime agencies began using round the 466 00:23:52,960 --> 00:23:56,720 Speaker 1: clock wireless maryring to keep track of ships and to 467 00:23:56,880 --> 00:23:59,880 Speaker 1: make sure that few distress calls were missed, and that's 468 00:23:59,880 --> 00:24:01,960 Speaker 1: a thing that made a huge difference during World War One, 469 00:24:02,000 --> 00:24:05,880 Speaker 1: when large ships were frequent targets for enemy torpedoes. In fact, 470 00:24:05,920 --> 00:24:08,320 Speaker 1: the ship that rescued the Titanic, I think it was 471 00:24:08,359 --> 00:24:12,040 Speaker 1: called the Carpathia, It was sunk six years later by 472 00:24:12,040 --> 00:24:14,920 Speaker 1: a torpedo fired from a German U boat. But thanks 473 00:24:14,920 --> 00:24:17,560 Speaker 1: to the lessons from Titanic, the Carpathia had plenty of 474 00:24:17,560 --> 00:24:20,240 Speaker 1: lifeboats in a direct line to call for help. And 475 00:24:20,280 --> 00:24:22,680 Speaker 1: as a result of this preparedness, not a single crew 476 00:24:22,680 --> 00:24:26,600 Speaker 1: member or passenger drowned that day. That's pretty amazing, And 477 00:24:26,720 --> 00:24:30,040 Speaker 1: you know, actually we neglected to mention what's probably my 478 00:24:30,119 --> 00:24:32,760 Speaker 1: favorite advancement to come out of Titanic, and that's the 479 00:24:32,840 --> 00:24:36,560 Speaker 1: creation of what's called the International Ice Patrol. Now, this 480 00:24:36,640 --> 00:24:39,639 Speaker 1: was established the very next year after the Titanic sank, 481 00:24:39,720 --> 00:24:43,040 Speaker 1: and the organization has spent the last hundred plus years 482 00:24:43,080 --> 00:24:47,440 Speaker 1: just patrolling the North Atlantic and tracking the movement of icebergs. 483 00:24:47,600 --> 00:24:49,240 Speaker 1: And so, you know, the way that it worked in 484 00:24:49,280 --> 00:24:51,760 Speaker 1: the early days is that a patrol ship would just 485 00:24:51,800 --> 00:24:54,840 Speaker 1: head out into the open ocean, find the southernmost iceberg 486 00:24:54,920 --> 00:24:56,879 Speaker 1: and then just kind of keep an eye on it 487 00:24:56,920 --> 00:24:59,080 Speaker 1: for the rest of the season. And so it would 488 00:24:59,160 --> 00:25:01,960 Speaker 1: follow the iceberg wherever it went and then just report 489 00:25:02,000 --> 00:25:04,440 Speaker 1: those movements so that the other boats would know how 490 00:25:04,440 --> 00:25:07,359 Speaker 1: to steer clear, which is awesome. And you said, this 491 00:25:07,400 --> 00:25:10,280 Speaker 1: is something that still goes on today. Yeah, the Patrol 492 00:25:10,320 --> 00:25:12,680 Speaker 1: is actually part of the U. S. Coast Guard now 493 00:25:12,720 --> 00:25:15,959 Speaker 1: and so these days they mostly do their scouting by plane, 494 00:25:16,000 --> 00:25:19,040 Speaker 1: but satellites are also a factor now, and of course 495 00:25:19,200 --> 00:25:21,600 Speaker 1: sometimes the team will still take a ship out and 496 00:25:22,040 --> 00:25:25,840 Speaker 1: babysit the icebergs, really kind of the old fashioned way. Well, 497 00:25:25,920 --> 00:25:27,639 Speaker 1: I know, we also wanted to talk about some of 498 00:25:27,640 --> 00:25:30,159 Speaker 1: the impact that Titanics had on culture, both in the 499 00:25:30,240 --> 00:25:32,439 Speaker 1: US and abroad. But before we do that, let's take 500 00:25:32,480 --> 00:25:50,000 Speaker 1: one more quick break. Okay, well, so let's talk about 501 00:25:50,000 --> 00:25:53,399 Speaker 1: the first time Titanic fever gripped society, which of course 502 00:25:53,480 --> 00:25:55,760 Speaker 1: was back when news of the ships sinking first broke. 503 00:25:56,000 --> 00:25:58,080 Speaker 1: And the guy who actually got the scoop was this 504 00:25:58,160 --> 00:26:01,280 Speaker 1: journalist named Carlos Heard who happened to be in just 505 00:26:01,440 --> 00:26:03,720 Speaker 1: the right place at just the right time. But you 506 00:26:03,760 --> 00:26:06,280 Speaker 1: don't tell me he was actually a passenger on the Titanic, 507 00:26:06,400 --> 00:26:08,760 Speaker 1: was he? No? But super close? He He was actually 508 00:26:08,760 --> 00:26:11,560 Speaker 1: one of the original passengers on board the Carpathia before 509 00:26:11,600 --> 00:26:14,800 Speaker 1: it was rerouted to aid in the rescue operation. So 510 00:26:15,040 --> 00:26:17,280 Speaker 1: during the four day trip to New York, Carlos was 511 00:26:17,320 --> 00:26:19,679 Speaker 1: able to interview many of the Titanic survivors and then 512 00:26:19,720 --> 00:26:22,399 Speaker 1: turned those accounts into a five thousand words story. So 513 00:26:22,640 --> 00:26:25,159 Speaker 1: is it true like the public didn't know anything about 514 00:26:25,200 --> 00:26:28,520 Speaker 1: the disaster until his story came out? Well, where did 515 00:26:28,560 --> 00:26:31,440 Speaker 1: the collision reach the mainland? Thanks to wireless messages sent 516 00:26:31,480 --> 00:26:35,040 Speaker 1: from both the Titanic and the Carpathia, But these communications 517 00:26:35,040 --> 00:26:37,520 Speaker 1: were short on details, and they came nowhere close to 518 00:26:37,600 --> 00:26:40,800 Speaker 1: capturing the full scope of the tragedy, and while there 519 00:26:40,840 --> 00:26:42,879 Speaker 1: was plenty of time to fill people in during the 520 00:26:42,920 --> 00:26:46,119 Speaker 1: voyage to New York, like, the captain of Carpathia actually 521 00:26:46,160 --> 00:26:48,600 Speaker 1: banned everyone on board from sharing any information with the 522 00:26:48,640 --> 00:26:51,680 Speaker 1: media aside from a list of which passengers had survived 523 00:26:51,680 --> 00:26:55,680 Speaker 1: and which had perished. And so did people honor his wishes? 524 00:26:56,440 --> 00:26:59,680 Speaker 1: Definitely not, because when the Carpathia finally arrived at port, 525 00:27:00,080 --> 00:27:02,639 Speaker 1: it was immediately surrounded by small boats that have been 526 00:27:02,720 --> 00:27:07,200 Speaker 1: chartered by overeager news companies. According to the Smithsonian quote, 527 00:27:07,200 --> 00:27:10,960 Speaker 1: reporters shouted through megaphones on their tug boats offered terrific 528 00:27:10,960 --> 00:27:14,800 Speaker 1: sums of money for information exclusives, but Captain Rosstron said 529 00:27:14,840 --> 00:27:19,040 Speaker 1: he would shoot any pressman who dared ventured aboard his ship. Alright, Well, 530 00:27:19,040 --> 00:27:21,480 Speaker 1: so then how did Carlos Herd get his story out? 531 00:27:21,520 --> 00:27:23,800 Speaker 1: Because I'm gonna have to imagine he and others were 532 00:27:23,840 --> 00:27:25,960 Speaker 1: stuck on the boat for a while once they got 533 00:27:26,000 --> 00:27:28,280 Speaker 1: to New York, and especially if they were so besieged 534 00:27:28,280 --> 00:27:31,000 Speaker 1: by the press. That is true, which is why Carlos 535 00:27:31,080 --> 00:27:32,640 Speaker 1: had to get creative if he was going to crack 536 00:27:32,680 --> 00:27:34,880 Speaker 1: one of the biggest stories of the decade. And this 537 00:27:34,960 --> 00:27:38,280 Speaker 1: is incredible. So you know, he sent the secret wireless 538 00:27:38,320 --> 00:27:40,840 Speaker 1: message to a friend at a New York newspaper telling 539 00:27:40,880 --> 00:27:43,440 Speaker 1: him to charter a tug boat, and then the guys 540 00:27:43,480 --> 00:27:47,160 Speaker 1: sailed to the Carpatia that evening. Then behind the captain's back, 541 00:27:47,400 --> 00:27:50,399 Speaker 1: Carlos stuffed his story into a waterproof bag and discreetly 542 00:27:50,560 --> 00:27:53,760 Speaker 1: tossed it onto this waiting vote. And later that very night, 543 00:27:53,800 --> 00:27:56,199 Speaker 1: the New York Evening World published his story. It was 544 00:27:56,240 --> 00:28:00,199 Speaker 1: the first include accurate details about what had happened. And 545 00:28:00,200 --> 00:28:02,760 Speaker 1: it's wild to look back and see just how fast 546 00:28:02,840 --> 00:28:05,200 Speaker 1: the story spread and kind of took root in people's 547 00:28:05,240 --> 00:28:08,719 Speaker 1: minds after that, and all in the days before television 548 00:28:08,880 --> 00:28:11,600 Speaker 1: or really even the radio craze for that matter. And 549 00:28:11,840 --> 00:28:14,600 Speaker 1: for instance, I was reading how manufacturers rushed to produce 550 00:28:14,680 --> 00:28:18,520 Speaker 1: Titanic merchandise and the days following the crash, so in 551 00:28:18,520 --> 00:28:21,200 Speaker 1: a matter of weeks the market was flooded with all 552 00:28:21,240 --> 00:28:25,320 Speaker 1: sorts of commemorative products, from postcards and dinner plates to 553 00:28:25,480 --> 00:28:29,240 Speaker 1: music boxes, whiskey jiggers. I was even reading about this 554 00:28:29,280 --> 00:28:32,919 Speaker 1: German toy company called Steve that released a limited edition 555 00:28:33,040 --> 00:28:37,080 Speaker 1: Titanic teddy bears shortly after the ships sank, and it's 556 00:28:37,119 --> 00:28:39,880 Speaker 1: really weird, like it was actually called the Morning Bear 557 00:28:39,920 --> 00:28:42,080 Speaker 1: because it was made to look like it was grieving 558 00:28:42,120 --> 00:28:45,680 Speaker 1: the victims, like it had all black fur and these 559 00:28:45,720 --> 00:28:48,160 Speaker 1: red rimmed eyes to make it look like the bear 560 00:28:48,200 --> 00:28:51,000 Speaker 1: had been crying, and it's just gross, to be honest 561 00:28:51,040 --> 00:28:52,960 Speaker 1: with you. And apparently the idea had come from a 562 00:28:53,000 --> 00:28:56,920 Speaker 1: report about the Titanic senior engineer William Moves, who went 563 00:28:57,040 --> 00:29:00,320 Speaker 1: down with the ship and supposedly he had a Steve 564 00:29:00,320 --> 00:29:03,640 Speaker 1: Teddy bear on board with him, so the company decided 565 00:29:03,640 --> 00:29:06,760 Speaker 1: to release a memorial bear in his honor. And the 566 00:29:06,800 --> 00:29:09,400 Speaker 1: craziest part is that today the Steve Morning Bears typically 567 00:29:09,440 --> 00:29:13,560 Speaker 1: go for upwards of twenty grand apiece at auction. That 568 00:29:13,760 --> 00:29:17,680 Speaker 1: is insane. So one of the biggest surprises in preparing 569 00:29:17,680 --> 00:29:20,800 Speaker 1: for today's episode was really that, like seeing just how 570 00:29:20,880 --> 00:29:24,240 Speaker 1: quickly people began to capitalize on Titanic. And I think 571 00:29:24,280 --> 00:29:26,640 Speaker 1: one of the best examples of that is the fact 572 00:29:26,680 --> 00:29:29,240 Speaker 1: that exactly one month after the ship went down, the 573 00:29:29,360 --> 00:29:33,280 Speaker 1: very first movie about Titanic premiered in theaters. Wait did 574 00:29:33,320 --> 00:29:36,280 Speaker 1: you say one month after? Like I obviously knew the 575 00:29:37,240 --> 00:29:40,480 Speaker 1: movie wasn't the first to tackle this subject. But I mean, 576 00:29:40,520 --> 00:29:42,560 Speaker 1: I can't see any way that something could have come 577 00:29:42,560 --> 00:29:47,280 Speaker 1: out that quickly one month after such a real life tragedy. Yeah, 578 00:29:47,360 --> 00:29:49,440 Speaker 1: and you haven't even heard the wildest part yet, because 579 00:29:49,560 --> 00:29:52,760 Speaker 1: this movie, which was called Saved from the Titanic, actually 580 00:29:52,800 --> 00:29:56,120 Speaker 1: started a young silent film actress named Dorothy Gibson, and 581 00:29:56,200 --> 00:29:59,080 Speaker 1: Dorothy and her mother were both survivors of the real Titanic. 582 00:30:00,000 --> 00:30:01,880 Speaker 1: I mean, can you even imagine like living through a 583 00:30:01,960 --> 00:30:04,000 Speaker 1: nightmare like that and then re enacting the whole thing 584 00:30:04,080 --> 00:30:07,920 Speaker 1: just two weeks later? I mean, I can't imagine that, 585 00:30:08,000 --> 00:30:10,280 Speaker 1: nor would I want to. But what on earth made 586 00:30:10,280 --> 00:30:13,360 Speaker 1: her want to do this? So Dorothy apparently did not 587 00:30:13,480 --> 00:30:15,120 Speaker 1: want to do the movie at all, but she got 588 00:30:15,160 --> 00:30:18,120 Speaker 1: talked into it by her producer slash boyfriend, who is 589 00:30:18,720 --> 00:30:22,960 Speaker 1: I guess this unscrupulous Hollywood mogul type like. His name 590 00:30:23,000 --> 00:30:26,000 Speaker 1: was Jules Brulator. He had put together this news reel 591 00:30:26,000 --> 00:30:28,160 Speaker 1: on the Titanic that proved to be this huge hit. 592 00:30:28,320 --> 00:30:31,440 Speaker 1: So he figured that a dramatization of the event starring 593 00:30:31,480 --> 00:30:35,239 Speaker 1: an actual survivor would make a great next act, and so, 594 00:30:35,400 --> 00:30:38,240 Speaker 1: with the help of a thousand dollar engagement ring, he 595 00:30:38,360 --> 00:30:41,360 Speaker 1: made his pitch to Dorothy, and she ultimately agreed to 596 00:30:41,400 --> 00:30:44,760 Speaker 1: make this one reel film about her experience, but as 597 00:30:44,760 --> 00:30:47,520 Speaker 1: you can imagine, it was not easy. For the sake 598 00:30:47,520 --> 00:30:50,640 Speaker 1: of realism, she chose to wear the same evening dress, 599 00:30:50,800 --> 00:30:53,360 Speaker 1: coat and shoes that she'd worn the night Titanic sank, 600 00:30:53,920 --> 00:30:57,760 Speaker 1: and Dorothy reportedly burst into tears multiple times during the shooting, 601 00:30:57,840 --> 00:31:00,360 Speaker 1: and once the film had wrapped, she walked away from 602 00:31:00,360 --> 00:31:03,080 Speaker 1: the movie business for good. She stated simply that she 603 00:31:03,160 --> 00:31:07,520 Speaker 1: felt quote dissatisfied. I mean, I can't blame her for 604 00:31:07,560 --> 00:31:09,520 Speaker 1: wanting to get away from an industry that would push 605 00:31:09,520 --> 00:31:13,600 Speaker 1: her into reliving a trauma like that. But honestly, though, 606 00:31:13,600 --> 00:31:15,320 Speaker 1: I mean, I have to men, I would be curious 607 00:31:15,320 --> 00:31:18,240 Speaker 1: to see the movie, and the truth is, you're not 608 00:31:18,360 --> 00:31:21,360 Speaker 1: the only one. So Save from the Titanic is actually 609 00:31:21,400 --> 00:31:24,040 Speaker 1: one of the holy grails for silent movie buffs. And 610 00:31:24,080 --> 00:31:27,080 Speaker 1: that's because two years after it was made, this massive 611 00:31:27,120 --> 00:31:29,400 Speaker 1: fire broke out at the studio and all the known 612 00:31:29,480 --> 00:31:33,000 Speaker 1: prints were destroyed. So nobody's seen the movie since its 613 00:31:33,000 --> 00:31:35,440 Speaker 1: original run in theaters over a hundred years ago. And 614 00:31:35,960 --> 00:31:37,760 Speaker 1: as much as I wish the film could have been 615 00:31:37,760 --> 00:31:41,080 Speaker 1: preserved for posterity, it's kind of poetic that no one 616 00:31:41,080 --> 00:31:44,760 Speaker 1: can make her re enact that experience every again. Yeah, 617 00:31:44,760 --> 00:31:46,880 Speaker 1: I mean, I guess there's a certain kind of justice 618 00:31:46,880 --> 00:31:48,760 Speaker 1: in that, But I mean what I find ironic is 619 00:31:48,760 --> 00:31:50,880 Speaker 1: that there are plenty of people today who will go 620 00:31:50,960 --> 00:31:54,320 Speaker 1: to great links and great expense to sort of relive 621 00:31:54,400 --> 00:31:57,360 Speaker 1: the experience of the Titanic. I mean, you mentioned earlier 622 00:31:57,400 --> 00:32:01,000 Speaker 1: how people pay big money to recreate the ships lavish meals, 623 00:32:01,040 --> 00:32:04,360 Speaker 1: and they're also companies that offer one hundred thousand dollar 624 00:32:04,480 --> 00:32:08,360 Speaker 1: submarine voyages to see the actual Titanic wreckage and all 625 00:32:08,480 --> 00:32:11,560 Speaker 1: its glory. And I actually I read about an American 626 00:32:11,600 --> 00:32:14,760 Speaker 1: couple that even got married and a tiny subduct on 627 00:32:14,840 --> 00:32:19,200 Speaker 1: the bow of the tiny shipwreck. So I'm sure that 628 00:32:19,320 --> 00:32:22,200 Speaker 1: made for some pretty amazing wedding fishers. But it does 629 00:32:22,240 --> 00:32:25,440 Speaker 1: seem a little disrespectful to me, right, like it's effectively 630 00:32:25,480 --> 00:32:28,880 Speaker 1: this mass grave. Well, I mean, you're not the only 631 00:32:28,920 --> 00:32:30,960 Speaker 1: one to point that out, And in fact, listen to 632 00:32:30,960 --> 00:32:33,560 Speaker 1: what the company that put on the undersea wedding said 633 00:32:33,640 --> 00:32:36,280 Speaker 1: in its defense. It said, Um, what's got to be 634 00:32:36,320 --> 00:32:39,120 Speaker 1: remembered is that every time a couple gets married in church, 635 00:32:39,560 --> 00:32:41,760 Speaker 1: they have to walk through a graveyard to get to 636 00:32:41,760 --> 00:32:44,760 Speaker 1: the altar. Yeah. I mean, plenty of people get married 637 00:32:44,760 --> 00:32:47,520 Speaker 1: in churches that have on site cemeteries, but in those 638 00:32:47,560 --> 00:32:50,480 Speaker 1: cases the graveyard isn't the selling point like it is 639 00:32:50,520 --> 00:32:54,240 Speaker 1: with the Titanic. Well, I think the Titanic tourism stuff 640 00:32:54,240 --> 00:32:57,640 Speaker 1: probably comes from that same place, as as those just 641 00:32:57,720 --> 00:32:59,640 Speaker 1: missed it stories we talked about at the top of 642 00:32:59,680 --> 00:33:02,000 Speaker 1: the show, and that kind of weird desire that people 643 00:33:02,040 --> 00:33:06,360 Speaker 1: feel to tie themselves to someone else's tragedy. But I mean, 644 00:33:06,600 --> 00:33:08,320 Speaker 1: in this case, I feel like it goes a little 645 00:33:08,320 --> 00:33:12,320 Speaker 1: too far, which sounds right, but I pretty much signed 646 00:33:12,320 --> 00:33:15,719 Speaker 1: with Robert Ballard, who is the oceanographer who first discovered 647 00:33:15,760 --> 00:33:18,640 Speaker 1: the Titanic wreckage back in eighty five, and he refused 648 00:33:18,640 --> 00:33:21,560 Speaker 1: to divulige to the ship's exact location for fear that 649 00:33:21,560 --> 00:33:25,600 Speaker 1: treasure hunters and corporations would swoop into exploit it. And 650 00:33:25,840 --> 00:33:28,600 Speaker 1: it's an act that Ballard actually saw his tantamount to 651 00:33:28,760 --> 00:33:32,280 Speaker 1: grave robbing. Of course, the coordinates eventually leaked anyway, and 652 00:33:32,360 --> 00:33:34,280 Speaker 1: not more than a hundred forty people have visited the 653 00:33:34,280 --> 00:33:38,000 Speaker 1: shipwreck off the coast of Newfoundland altogether, though these visitors 654 00:33:38,040 --> 00:33:41,880 Speaker 1: have extracted some five thousand artifacts and done untold damaged 655 00:33:41,960 --> 00:33:44,840 Speaker 1: the ship itself in the process. It's always a little 656 00:33:44,880 --> 00:33:47,480 Speaker 1: unsettling to see the final resting place of so many 657 00:33:47,480 --> 00:33:50,440 Speaker 1: people picked apart like that. But actually I read somewhere 658 00:33:50,480 --> 00:33:54,440 Speaker 1: that the Titanics under UNESCO protection now, though, isn't it? Yeah, 659 00:33:54,600 --> 00:33:57,560 Speaker 1: ever since the hundredth anniversary of the wreck. I believe so. 660 00:33:57,680 --> 00:34:02,040 Speaker 1: Then it's considered like this underwater cultural heritage site or 661 00:34:02,120 --> 00:34:04,760 Speaker 1: something like that, and so any kind of excavation would 662 00:34:04,760 --> 00:34:07,560 Speaker 1: actually be off limits at this point. Yeah, that's true, 663 00:34:07,600 --> 00:34:10,040 Speaker 1: and legal protections, even ones that are a few decades 664 00:34:10,080 --> 00:34:12,799 Speaker 1: too late, are a nice deterrent to these would be 665 00:34:12,960 --> 00:34:16,560 Speaker 1: pirates and scavengers. But the reality is that Titanic won't 666 00:34:16,560 --> 00:34:19,399 Speaker 1: be around much longer, no matter what we do. And 667 00:34:19,560 --> 00:34:22,319 Speaker 1: that's because about a decade ago, scientists discovered a new 668 00:34:22,360 --> 00:34:25,919 Speaker 1: species of bacteria that's been slowly devouring the ship's iron hull. 669 00:34:26,440 --> 00:34:29,160 Speaker 1: Not only that, but as the microbes munch away, they 670 00:34:29,200 --> 00:34:33,520 Speaker 1: formed these icicle like communities called rusticles. And this happens 671 00:34:33,560 --> 00:34:35,800 Speaker 1: all over the ship, inside it out. And as the 672 00:34:35,880 --> 00:34:38,840 Speaker 1: rusticles get heavier and heavier, they start to pull the 673 00:34:38,840 --> 00:34:42,440 Speaker 1: ship apart piece by piece. Meanwhile, the mollusks have made 674 00:34:42,440 --> 00:34:44,719 Speaker 1: short work of the wood from Titanic, and of course 675 00:34:44,719 --> 00:34:47,440 Speaker 1: any human remains were consumed by marine life long ago. 676 00:34:47,840 --> 00:34:50,880 Speaker 1: So at this point most researchers think it's just another 677 00:34:50,920 --> 00:34:53,480 Speaker 1: decade or two until the ship is gone forever. Yeah, 678 00:34:53,480 --> 00:34:55,440 Speaker 1: I mean, that will really be the end of an era. 679 00:34:55,560 --> 00:34:58,759 Speaker 1: But of course, with all the biographies and movies and 680 00:34:59,320 --> 00:35:01,759 Speaker 1: Teddy Bears and themed dinners, I mean, I think we'll 681 00:35:01,800 --> 00:35:05,239 Speaker 1: always have plenty to remember the Titanic and its passengers 682 00:35:05,239 --> 00:35:09,040 Speaker 1: by absolutely, And speaking of remembrances, Robert Ballard gave a 683 00:35:09,120 --> 00:35:12,600 Speaker 1: really touching one shortly after he found the shipwreck, and 684 00:35:12,800 --> 00:35:14,719 Speaker 1: it kind of works as a eulogy for the ship 685 00:35:14,840 --> 00:35:17,000 Speaker 1: and for the event as a whole. So I thought 686 00:35:17,000 --> 00:35:18,640 Speaker 1: it might be a nice way to close out the show. 687 00:35:18,920 --> 00:35:20,600 Speaker 1: Do you mind if I read it and then we 688 00:35:20,600 --> 00:35:24,640 Speaker 1: can go straight to the fact off. Yeah, go for it, Okay. 689 00:35:24,680 --> 00:35:28,520 Speaker 1: So this is what Ballard said. Quote. The Titanic lies 690 00:35:28,600 --> 00:35:31,560 Speaker 1: now in thirteen thousand feet of water on a gently 691 00:35:31,600 --> 00:35:36,200 Speaker 1: sloping alpine looking countryside, overlooking a small canyon below. Its 692 00:35:36,280 --> 00:35:39,840 Speaker 1: bow faces north. The ship sits upright on its bottom, 693 00:35:39,880 --> 00:35:43,000 Speaker 1: with its mighty stacks pointed upward. There is no light 694 00:35:43,080 --> 00:35:45,440 Speaker 1: at this great depth, and little life can be found. 695 00:35:45,960 --> 00:35:48,680 Speaker 1: It is a quiet and peaceful place, and a fitting 696 00:35:48,680 --> 00:35:51,440 Speaker 1: place for the remains of this greatest of sea tragedies 697 00:35:51,480 --> 00:35:54,600 Speaker 1: to rest forever. May it remain that way, and may 698 00:35:54,640 --> 00:36:06,120 Speaker 1: God bless these now found souls. So one of the 699 00:36:06,160 --> 00:36:08,560 Speaker 1: weirder things to read about is all the ways people 700 00:36:08,680 --> 00:36:11,279 Speaker 1: plan to try to bring the Titanic back up to 701 00:36:11,320 --> 00:36:13,840 Speaker 1: the surface. And some of the weird ones that I 702 00:36:13,960 --> 00:36:17,680 Speaker 1: just jotted down here are One was filling polyester bags 703 00:36:17,719 --> 00:36:21,000 Speaker 1: with vasoline, and the idea here is that vasoline would 704 00:36:21,000 --> 00:36:24,280 Speaker 1: harden then become buoyant, and that that would somehow lift 705 00:36:24,360 --> 00:36:28,240 Speaker 1: the Titanic. Another was filling the whole of the ship 706 00:36:28,320 --> 00:36:32,200 Speaker 1: with thousands of ping pong balls. Uh. And then another 707 00:36:32,239 --> 00:36:34,720 Speaker 1: one is in case the ship in ice, which would 708 00:36:34,760 --> 00:36:37,400 Speaker 1: basically be the equivalent of creating a big ice cube 709 00:36:37,400 --> 00:36:39,560 Speaker 1: and a drink, and that we all know what happens 710 00:36:39,560 --> 00:36:41,879 Speaker 1: with ice cubes and a drink. They they float. So 711 00:36:42,480 --> 00:36:45,160 Speaker 1: these were all brilliant ideas, but somehow none of these 712 00:36:45,200 --> 00:36:49,719 Speaker 1: ideas came to life. So back in six the writer 713 00:36:49,880 --> 00:36:53,000 Speaker 1: William t Stead wrote a fictional piece about a male 714 00:36:53,080 --> 00:36:56,640 Speaker 1: steamer wrecking and then most of his passengers dying because 715 00:36:56,680 --> 00:36:59,680 Speaker 1: there weren't enough lifeboats. And in the story he pointed 716 00:36:59,680 --> 00:37:02,560 Speaker 1: out the fact that there really lax regulations didn't require 717 00:37:02,560 --> 00:37:05,240 Speaker 1: ships to have enough lifeboats for every person on the ship. 718 00:37:05,800 --> 00:37:08,160 Speaker 1: Just a few years later, Steve came back to his 719 00:37:08,280 --> 00:37:11,120 Speaker 1: theme and wrote about a ship crashing into ice. And 720 00:37:11,120 --> 00:37:13,040 Speaker 1: then we fast forward a couple of decades and one 721 00:37:13,040 --> 00:37:15,799 Speaker 1: of the passengers who died in the Titanic tragedy was 722 00:37:15,920 --> 00:37:18,799 Speaker 1: none other than Steed, and he did so because there 723 00:37:18,800 --> 00:37:23,640 Speaker 1: were enough lifeboats on board. Wow. Well, we talked about 724 00:37:23,640 --> 00:37:27,160 Speaker 1: this before, about how anytime there's a disaster like this, 725 00:37:27,480 --> 00:37:30,239 Speaker 1: lots of people claim that they were almost a part 726 00:37:30,280 --> 00:37:33,439 Speaker 1: of it. But there's actually one famous person that has 727 00:37:33,440 --> 00:37:35,560 Speaker 1: pretty good proof of this. It turns out that Milton 728 00:37:35,640 --> 00:37:38,600 Speaker 1: Snavely Hershey, you know, the man behind the legendary chocolate 729 00:37:38,600 --> 00:37:41,400 Speaker 1: brand things like her She's Kisses her She chocolate bars. 730 00:37:41,600 --> 00:37:43,239 Speaker 1: Do you need me to give more examples? Mango or 731 00:37:44,360 --> 00:37:47,680 Speaker 1: with her Sheah? Well, anyway, he was scheduled to be 732 00:37:47,800 --> 00:37:50,919 Speaker 1: on the ship. So if you head to Hershey, Pennsylvania 733 00:37:50,960 --> 00:37:53,880 Speaker 1: and visit the community archives there, you can see a 734 00:37:53,960 --> 00:37:56,360 Speaker 1: three hundred dollar check that hers She had written to 735 00:37:56,400 --> 00:37:59,120 Speaker 1: the White Star Line, and it's believed to be a 736 00:37:59,160 --> 00:38:02,239 Speaker 1: deposit tour a stateroom, but it turns out that he 737 00:38:02,280 --> 00:38:04,759 Speaker 1: had more urgent business back in the States, and so 738 00:38:05,080 --> 00:38:08,080 Speaker 1: Hershey and his wife took an earlier ship, the America, 739 00:38:08,160 --> 00:38:11,040 Speaker 1: which strangely was one of the mini ships that sent 740 00:38:11,120 --> 00:38:15,600 Speaker 1: back warnings to the Titanic. You know the iconic scene 741 00:38:15,600 --> 00:38:18,520 Speaker 1: in the movie Titanic where Roses lying on the driftwood 742 00:38:18,560 --> 00:38:21,640 Speaker 1: and staring up at the sky. Right, So Neil deGrasse 743 00:38:21,719 --> 00:38:24,200 Speaker 1: Tyson apparently saw the scene and decided to send a 744 00:38:24,239 --> 00:38:26,680 Speaker 1: note to James Cameron to point out that the star 745 00:38:26,800 --> 00:38:29,000 Speaker 1: Rose was looking up at wouldn't have actually been the 746 00:38:29,040 --> 00:38:31,479 Speaker 1: one she would have seen at that real place in time. 747 00:38:32,120 --> 00:38:34,120 Speaker 1: The only issue is that Tyson didn't see this movie 748 00:38:34,200 --> 00:38:37,880 Speaker 1: until about a decade after its initial release. But Cameron 749 00:38:38,360 --> 00:38:40,880 Speaker 1: is such a perfectionist that he decided to reshoot the 750 00:38:40,880 --> 00:38:43,720 Speaker 1: scene in preparation for the release of the three D edition, 751 00:38:44,800 --> 00:38:47,520 Speaker 1: so more than a decade later. That's pretty wild and 752 00:38:48,360 --> 00:38:51,000 Speaker 1: also pretty impressive that we made it near the end 753 00:38:51,000 --> 00:38:53,640 Speaker 1: of the fact off before we really did a fact 754 00:38:53,719 --> 00:38:58,319 Speaker 1: about the movie. Yeah, alright, Well, we all know that 755 00:38:58,400 --> 00:39:02,040 Speaker 1: the Titanic sunk after fighting with an iceberg, but some 756 00:39:02,120 --> 00:39:04,640 Speaker 1: believe that there was a massive coal fire in the 757 00:39:04,680 --> 00:39:08,680 Speaker 1: bunker of the ship that actually caused significant structural weakening 758 00:39:08,719 --> 00:39:11,640 Speaker 1: of the outside of the ship. Now, journalists sin and 759 00:39:11,719 --> 00:39:14,960 Speaker 1: Maloney has been researching this subject for decades now, and 760 00:39:15,320 --> 00:39:18,320 Speaker 1: he points to these photographs of the Titanic right before 761 00:39:18,360 --> 00:39:21,880 Speaker 1: its final trip, and the photos show this huge black 762 00:39:21,920 --> 00:39:24,360 Speaker 1: mark on the whole of the ship, which is of 763 00:39:24,400 --> 00:39:27,400 Speaker 1: course where the ship would later hit the iceberg. Now, 764 00:39:27,400 --> 00:39:30,279 Speaker 1: Maloney also believes that the owners of the Titanic were 765 00:39:30,320 --> 00:39:33,280 Speaker 1: well aware of this damage, but not wanting to delay 766 00:39:33,280 --> 00:39:35,239 Speaker 1: a trip, which would of course cost them a bunch 767 00:39:35,280 --> 00:39:38,600 Speaker 1: of money, they decided to just ignore it. Now. I 768 00:39:38,600 --> 00:39:41,120 Speaker 1: should note that many engineers looking at the situation have 769 00:39:41,239 --> 00:39:44,240 Speaker 1: said it's difficult to tell how much that prior damage 770 00:39:44,280 --> 00:39:48,400 Speaker 1: really contributed to the disaster. It may have all happened anyway, 771 00:39:48,440 --> 00:39:51,160 Speaker 1: but it's still pretty interesting to look at this theory. 772 00:39:51,239 --> 00:39:53,719 Speaker 1: I mean, it is crazy that their conspiracy theories about 773 00:39:53,719 --> 00:39:57,440 Speaker 1: the Titanic. It's pretty fascinating. So there's a restaurant near 774 00:39:57,520 --> 00:40:01,280 Speaker 1: Halifax Harbor. It's the seafood plants called Five Fishermen Restaurant, 775 00:40:01,600 --> 00:40:04,400 Speaker 1: and it's supposedly a fantastic restaurant, but it's got a 776 00:40:04,440 --> 00:40:08,000 Speaker 1: strange claim to fame. It was actually an old mortuary, 777 00:40:08,120 --> 00:40:10,200 Speaker 1: the city's oldest. In fact, it was called Snow and 778 00:40:10,239 --> 00:40:13,879 Speaker 1: Company undertakers, and it received the bodies of not just one, 779 00:40:14,000 --> 00:40:17,040 Speaker 1: but two major tragedies in the early nine hundreds. It 780 00:40:17,040 --> 00:40:19,360 Speaker 1: turns out that Halifax was the base of many of 781 00:40:19,360 --> 00:40:21,799 Speaker 1: the rescue operations, and many of the bodies from the 782 00:40:21,800 --> 00:40:24,960 Speaker 1: Titanic disaster were brought to Snow's funeral home. And then 783 00:40:25,000 --> 00:40:27,960 Speaker 1: five years later, when the Halifax explosion took place, it 784 00:40:28,040 --> 00:40:30,279 Speaker 1: was the largest human made explosion in history at the time, 785 00:40:30,440 --> 00:40:32,640 Speaker 1: many of the bodies were once again brought to Snow 786 00:40:32,640 --> 00:40:36,879 Speaker 1: and Company. Wow, such a weird coincidence. And you said 787 00:40:36,880 --> 00:40:40,480 Speaker 1: it's a seafood place. Now it is, And well, well, 788 00:40:40,520 --> 00:40:43,000 Speaker 1: I do like that fact. I think you're ping pong 789 00:40:43,280 --> 00:40:46,640 Speaker 1: ball ice cube fact lifting the Titanic is is probably 790 00:40:46,680 --> 00:40:49,200 Speaker 1: the happiest one of the slots. I think you deserve 791 00:40:49,280 --> 00:40:51,319 Speaker 1: the prize this week. Thanks so much, And hopefully one 792 00:40:51,360 --> 00:40:53,600 Speaker 1: day they will try all of those at one time. 793 00:40:54,160 --> 00:40:57,719 Speaker 1: These just great rising of the ship. But you know, 794 00:40:57,760 --> 00:40:59,680 Speaker 1: it's been interesting to dive into this one. I know 795 00:40:59,760 --> 00:41:02,080 Speaker 1: there are facts out there that we certainly left out. 796 00:41:02,160 --> 00:41:04,360 Speaker 1: We always love hearing those from you. You can email 797 00:41:04,440 --> 00:41:06,959 Speaker 1: us those anytime part Time Genius at how stuff Works 798 00:41:07,000 --> 00:41:09,400 Speaker 1: dot com or hit us up on Facebook or Twitter. 799 00:41:09,680 --> 00:41:12,080 Speaker 1: But from Gabe, Tristan, Mango and me, thanks so much 800 00:41:12,080 --> 00:41:27,680 Speaker 1: for listening. Thanks again for listening. Part Time Genius is 801 00:41:27,719 --> 00:41:29,960 Speaker 1: a production of How Stuff Works and wouldn't be possible 802 00:41:29,960 --> 00:41:32,640 Speaker 1: without several brilliant people who do the important things we 803 00:41:32,640 --> 00:41:36,080 Speaker 1: couldn't even begin to understand. Christa McNeil does the editing thing. 804 00:41:36,320 --> 00:41:38,280 Speaker 1: Noel Brown made the theme song and does the MIXI 805 00:41:38,320 --> 00:41:41,759 Speaker 1: mixy sound thing. Jerry Rowland does the exact producer thing. 806 00:41:42,000 --> 00:41:44,800 Speaker 1: Gabeluesier is our lead researcher, with support from the research 807 00:41:44,880 --> 00:41:47,960 Speaker 1: Army including Austin Thompson, Nolan Brown and Lucas Adams and 808 00:41:47,960 --> 00:41:50,640 Speaker 1: Eve Jeff Cook gets the show to your ears. 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