You already knew it, the sinking of the Titanic really took place, and there really were survivors of the Titanic who were able to tell how this big tragedy unfolded. But did you know that several characters from the film titanic are inspired by the real passengers of the liner? Some even look like two drops of water to their model, so much so that it’s quite disturbing. There at the time when I write to you, I am troubled, the trouble is in me and I see trouble. Anyway, I’m showing you all this now with the real stories of the passengers who weren’t all as lucky as Rose.
1. Captain Edward Smith
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We all remember the Captain of the Titanic who died with dignity in his cabin. Well in real life it was the same Edward Smith, commodore of the White Star Line, the company of the Titanic. At 62, he was a super experienced captain and very popular with passengers. The saddest thing about his personal story is that he had decided that this trip would be his last before retiring. This trip was his last, but we can’t really say that he took advantage of the retirement behind.
Edward Smith in the movie:
Edward Smith in real life:
2. Margaret Brown
In the film, Margaret Brown is pretty much the only person in Rose’s midst who isn’t a big rot, even going so far as to lend Jack clothes. This is understandable when you read his real bio. She was recognized as an independent philanthropist who fought for women’s rights and cared for many soldiers during the First World War, which earned her the Legion of Honor. A good woman, what. For the juicy anecdote, it is said that Margaret Brown consulted a clairvoyant when she was in the United States and that this one warned her not to go to sea. t was by redoing the trip in the opposite direction with the Titanic that she had a small problem. Margaret eventually got away with the other survivors, but left all her clothes and jewelry, including a necklace worth $325,000, in her cabin. Like what she would have done better not to go to sea.
Margaret Brown in the movie:
Margaret Brown in real life:
3. Joseph Bruce Ismay
Joseph Bruce Ismay is THE guy who screwed up everything. He was the President of the White Star Line, and he wanted the Titanic to be the fastest ocean liner in the world. Suddenly, it was he who asked for the engines to be run at full speed, and it was he who had the number of lifeboats reduced from 48 to 16 to go even faster. Suddenly, the accident is his fault, and the low number of survivors is also his work. He survived the sinking, but the press publicly destroyed him showing everyone how cowardly he had been by deserting the ship before anyone else. A little deserved anyway.
Joseph Bruce Ismay in the movie:
Joseph Bruce Ismay in real life:
4.Thomas Andrews
We well remember the architect of the Titanic in the film: from the accident, he is the first to understand that the boat is going to sink. In the real story, it was the same. Thomas Andrews knew disaster was inexorable while the others tried to limit the damage. As a result, he convinced as many passengers as possible to board the lifeboats and encouraged everyone to wear life jackets. After doing everything he could to save people, he isolated himself in the smoking room of the Titanic waiting for death to come and take him. The guy assumed his role until the end.
Thomas Andrews in the movie:
Thomas Andrews in real life:
5. William Murdoch
William Murdoch is the second in the Titanic in the film, but in reality he had passed third just before the start which had a little disgusted. It was during her watch watch that the Titanic hit the iceberg, and Murdoch had the good instinct to close the ship’s watertight doors that were supposed to allow the building to stay afloat. Only, as we have seen, it was insufficient, and Murdoch was put in charge of distributing the passengers to the starboard lifeboats. He fulfilled his role until the end even if he was criticized for having let the first boat go with only 12 people in it, when there were still very few people on deck. Apart from that, the guy did his job well so the film is a little unfair to him.
William Murdoch in the movie:
William Murdoch in real life:
6.Frederick Fleet
Frederick Fleet was one of two sailors tasked with spotting icebergs, and it was he who first saw the one that caused the sinking of the Titanic. Too late, unfortunately. He managed to survive by getting into the same canoe as Margaret Brown and was interrogated once back on dry land. He explained that he and his colleague did not have binoculars to spot icebergs in the distance, which could have helped them avoid disaster. After this story, he continued to serve on the Olympic, Titanic’s sister ship.
Frederick Fleet in the movie:
Frederick Fleet in real life:
7. Charles Lightoller
Charles Lightoller was the second officer of the Titanic, just after William Murdoch in the hierarchy. Besides, when Murdoch took care of filling the lifeboats on the starboard side of the boat, Lightoller took care of the distribution in those on the port side. He eventually got into one of them, but the dinghy flipped over, forcing several survivors to take refuge on the back of the boat until another, less crowded dinghy arrived to rescue them. He’s come to end up in the bottom like the others.
Charles Lightoller in the movie:
Charles Lightoller in real life:
8. Archibald Gracie IV
Archibald Gracie, writer and historian who was in first class, helped Charles Lightoller get passengers into the port side lifeboats, and he ended up on the back of the same overturned lifeboat as Lightoller. On his return to New York, he began to collect a maximum of testimonies and documents on the shipwreck to write the book The Truth About The “Titanic”. But Archibald Gracie will never finish his book since he will die on December 4, 1912, only 7 and a half months after the sinking, which makes him the third survivor to die after the accident. It’s stupid.
Archibald Gracie IV in the movie:
Archibald Gracie IV in real life:
9. Jack Phillips
Jack Phillips was the chief radio operator aboard the Titanic. Its role was to transmit messages between the mainland and passengers against payment, but not so much to take care of security messages. So when they received messages warning of the position of icebergs in the area of the ship, Phillips and his colleagues did not pass them all on to the captain. After the collision, however, Phillips worked like a madman to the end trying to contact ships in the vicinity, and, after releasing his men from their duties, he remained alone in his office to continue sending messages. of distress. He died just 4 days after turning 25.
Jack Phillips in the movie:
Jack Phillips in real life:
10. Ida and Isidor Straus
Remember the elderly couple we see briefly, entwined in a bed, waiting for death to come and take them? Well it is inspired by a real couple, that of Ida and Isidor Straus. While the Titanic was sinking, the two spouses were allowed to get into a canoe, but Isidor refused because, according to him, he did not deserve it. As a result, Ida also refused, explaining to her husband: “We lived together, we will die together”. After that, they would have settled on two deckchairs while waiting for the liner to sink. Couldn’t be more romantic.
Ida and Isidor Straus in the film:
Ida and Isidor Straus in real life:
11. Wallace Hartley
Wallace Hartley was the conductor of the small orchestra of 8 musicians present on the Titanic. All testimonies agree on this: Hartley and his men played until the end to appease the passengers and avoid a general panic. We also found Hartley’s body a few weeks later with his violin in his arms, which shows how much the guy loved his instrument.
Wallace Hartley in the movie:
Wallace Hartley in real life: