Titanic Facts vs. Titanic Fiction
91Titanic Cast
Many characters in the Titanic movie were based on real characters and depicted as such. Some of the passengers on the Titanic were incredibly famous figures in history and included some of the major players in the construction of the vessel. Here is a quick comparison between the characters as they were portrayed in the film and the real versions. Here is a list of facts about the Titanic as and how they differ from the blockbuster film.
Captain Edward J. Smith
Captain Edward Smith
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In the movie:
Bernard Hil
In real life:
Captain Edward John Smith
Captain of the Titanic, Edward John Smith was in charge of its course and maneuvers during the night of April 14, 1912. Some believe that he could have taken measures to avoid the collision with the iceberg by maintaining lower speeds throughout the north Atlantic.
Margaret "Molly" Brown
In the movie:
Kathy Bates
In real life:
Margaret "Molly" Brown
Also known as Unsinkable Molly, she was a philanthropist, socialite, and activist aboard the RMS Titanic during its sinking. Known for bringing lifeboat 6 back to rescue other survivors.
John Jacob Astor
In the movie:
Eric Braeden
In real life:
John Jacob Astor
The first multi-millionaire in the United States and responsible for the first trust within the country. Making his fortune off of fur trading, opium, and real estate. When he died it was estimated that he was worth over $20 million which equates to $110 billion in 2006 dollars making him the 4th richest man in American history.
Thomas Andrews
In the movie:
Victor Garber
In real life:
Thomas Andrews
Builder of the Titanic he was an was an Irish-born businessman and shipbuilder; managing director and head of the draughting department for the shipbuilding company Harland and Wolff in Belfast, Ireland.
Bruce Ismay
In the movie:
Jonathan Hyde
In real life:
Bruce Ismay
English businessman and director of the White Star line. One of the survivors of the Titanic, many remember him as a coward who saved himself from the sinking ship, while others believe that he was a scapegoat for the disaster with many influential enemies.
Were Jack Dawson and Rose DeWitt Bukater Real?
The characters in the Titanic film played by Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslett were not based on real characters and the love story itself was created for dramatic effect. A few other characters associated with Jack and Rose were also fictional including Rose's fiancé Caledon 'Cal' Hockley, his valet Spicer Lovejoy, Rose's mom, and Jack's friends Tommy and Fabrizio. Some of the third class passengers who played small roles in the film were modeled after real passengers on the Titanic. There was a J. Dawson aboard the Titanic during the night of April 14, 1912, but his real name was actually Joseph Dawson. He was a member of the Titanic crew and his job was to even out the piles of coal that were to be shoveled into the Titanic's furnaces.
J. Dawson is buried at the Fairview Lawn Cemetery in Halifax, Nova Scotia. The ship's manifest also lists a Thomas Ryan (same name as Jack Dawson's friend) who worked as a steward in third class. His body was never recovered, and if it had been, it remained unidentified.
Were the Titanic Wreck Pictures Real?
Most of the pictures in the movie concerned the Titanic wreck were in fact real footage of the fallen vessel. Director James Cameron hired a Russian vessel and two of its submersibles for close of footage of the Titanic shipwreck. The dive lasted fifteen hours and pictures were taken using a special camera at 1,500 feet. Due to the great preparation and plenty of footage of the Titanic's watery grave, few of the underwater shots had to be fudged, and most were 100% genuine.
Did the Titanic Band Reall Keep Playing?
33-year-old Wallace Henry Hartley was a violinist and the leader of the Titanic band. As soon as the impact from the iceberg landed, Hartley assembled the eight-piece band who ended up on the boat deck near the entrance to the grand staircase. They began playing ragtime waltzes including "Alexander's Ragtime Band" and "In the Shadows". Nobody knows for sure what the last song played was, but newspapers reported it was "Nearer, My God, To Thee", and survivors say it was "Song d'Automne". All of the band members died in the sinking of the Titanic
Did the Real Isador and Ida Strauss Choose to Go Down With the Ship?
Nearing the end of the Titanic film, there is an old couple embracing in bed as the ship is in the latter stages of sinking into the Atlantic. This is based on the real characters Ida and Isador Strauss, who was the co-owner of Macy's department store. Both were offered a place on the lifeboat but Isador refused to go as long as there were still women aboard. His faithful wife refused to leave his side. The couple wasn't actually in bed when the ship went down, but rather on a pair of deck chairs.
Is the Heart of the Ocean Real?
The Heart of the Ocean in the Titanic film is based on the Hope Diamond and added it to the plot in order to give Bill Paxton a reason to hear Rose's story. The actual diamond which is currently in the Smithsonian Natural History Museum in D.C. and has nothing to do with the history of the Titanic. Many Heart of the Ocean necklaces have been created to emulate the piece of jewelry from the film.
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Wow - this is great - it is a very interesting story - I loved the movie!
Thanks, I'm also thinking about starting a hub about the making of the movie, which is epic in itself.
Thanks so much for this. The facts are almost as curious as the fiction!
Love the article, and love the movie. It`s one of those movies I can see a hundred times, and it never gets old.
I don`t know if anyone knows this but James Cameron spend more time "on" the Titanic shooting the footage than the living passengers. Just my two cents :)
Tons of typos and facts that were confusing could be better
Loved it. Very nice article. Looking forward to seeing more of these on your future post.
FAMOUS HISTROy...
Wow! this article is great, it really helped me with my language arts project!
Thank you all for the feedback. This hub was a lot of fun to write! I recently heard that the wreckage is at risk for being eaten by aquatic insects. Maybe I'll write a hub about it. Has anyone heard of this?
How can I contact you privately i have a question about one of your pictures!
Ok, lets start with the problems with the ship and who was responsible for the sinking. Thomas Andrews built the ship, yes. But the plans were supposed to be the ship was supposed to be made of steel with steel rivets but, the ship was made around the sides and the stern of the ship and the bow was made with iron, the rivets were iron not steel.
The ship was supposed to have 70-80 lifeboats but, Bruce Ismay shortened the boats to 30-40, there were not enough boats to save everyone.
Now Captain Edward Smith, was on the 1st ship and didn't go down with the ship, but he did with the titanic.
As for the titanic being a real wreckage, yes, its real. Its horrible that scientist who are too smart for their own good, wanted to raise the ship from here her watery grave, that would be bad. She is now a gravesite for hers and the people who died with the ship
Really interesting facts, just watched the documentary about titanic I'm fascinated.
Thats so dumb i thought it was a real love story
I been crying all the times i saw this movie because of rose nd jack not the sinking
Why did u guys did this movie its just about ppl dieing just the sinking about the ship now i dont like this movie ppl r stupid for saying that this is there fav movie its just a boat sinking
Why do ppl say this is there fav movie if its just a ship sinking
The love part was fack ppl just cried when he died wow
Now that i know that i hate this movie they mad such a drama
It was based on a real love story but not them 2
#alejandra that comment is heartless and unfair. in the titanic film some of the events maybe untrue but the main point of the film was to let people understand a bit more about the titanic it self. yeah people maybe upset that jack and rose werent real passengers hence the reason why they are now making the series on ivt1 to show real passengers and their storys
Wow, can't believe someone wrote that because Rose and Jack weren't real people that this movie was stupid. That it's just a stupid ship that sank and isn't important because those two people are fictional. Are you serious? Over 1,500 people died, you insensitive moron! Rose and Jack were meant to add a human element to the cold hard facts. Something we can relate to as human beings. Not that I expect you to understand. Anyone who would write "it's just about a stupid ship" obviously has no empathy for the human race. Do you honestly believe that out of over 2,200 people no one had a love story worth caring about? How about all the children who were never able to grow up enough to begin there own love stories? I really hope your inhuman reaction to this film is in the minority, otherwise we are doomed. By the way, your ignorance level was really obvious in your kindergarden spelling and complete lack of punctuation. Please get educated. And learn some empathy for others.
Opps! Just read though my comment after I posted it and realized that after bringing up Alejandra's childish spelling that I miss spelled Kindergarten. Well, at least I noticed.
Ha Ha! Now I misspelled, misspelled! Jeez, I really need to read over my comments before posting! Sorry, I'm done now. Lol
Lol Heather ;-p Thanks for stopping by!
You have done great research to produce an awesome informative article about facts and fiction related to the Titanic. It was great to read it. My full thumbs for the hard work put in by you!
Just saw the movie in 3d....not really the point but it is still a great movie...very emotional. Almost 100 years.......
Just saw it in 3D. Awesome! The wife and I enjoy it every April, for the anniverary. The 3D big screen version made it even more special! Not sure, if I'll ever get tired of the Titanic story.
#heather you have a better way with words than me. that was the point i was trying to get across aha
I can't believe that some people thought jack and rose were real .. everyone knows they're fictional .. whoever wrote that comment hasn't a clue
Very nice info
YEA WHATEVER,IT WOULD HAVE BEEN BETTER IF THE MAYFLOWER SANK.BIG DEAL TITANIC SINKS
It said they were newlyweds were on the ship, the bride survived the husband didn't he went down with the ship maybe it was based on that fact.
I am a huge fan of the Titanic... But I feel really bad for everything that would of happened tonight.
It is exactly 100 years since the ship went down in about twenty minutes.
Light a candle for the victims.
well it might have bored the general public if you made the movie a documentary. I or one like to see and read the truth. Don't forget these were real people.
The lady playing the grand daughter of Rose met James Cameron on the set, and are now married.
In a documentary , they say that Joseph Dawson was madly in love with a third class women...
The definitive Titanic movie is "A Night To Remember". Actual survivors worked on that film to ensure accuracy was met. The special effects may not be as good as James Cameron's 1997 film, but it is a better film all round. Please see it if you can.
i love it thee titanic is so cool i just love it:)
Perfect.thnx for the information...I am actually very curious to know about Titanic that sank...What was real?why did it sink?I "ll accumulate all it's history and "ll actually go to see it's wreck down in the ocean,inshaAllah...for this film has really made me it's fan... (FRM PAKISTAN)
Boring I just remembered how sad. (:-
Historical drama, when well done like this, is a great tool for bringing history to life and making it interesting when we don't know the details of what really happened. Thanks for the article.
I think Cameron did a great job of casting excellent actors that resemble the photos for several roles, like Molly Brown (she looked a LOT more like Kathy Bates than Debbie Reynolds) and Thomas Andrews.
I have always been fascinated by the Titanic, ever since I saw "A Night to Remember" and "Titanic" when I was young.
I THINK TITANIC IS THE BEST THERE WAS THE BEST THERE WILL EVER BE BUT KINDA SPOOKY
christine almaraz 2 years ago
Very well written and informative.