The Titanic And The Poseidon Adventure – Coincidence?
Most Titanic buffs are familiar with at least one remarkable coincidence related to that great tragedy – the fact that, fourteen years before that fateful day, author Morgan Robertson penned a novella entitled “Futility”, about the largest, grandest, most luxurious ocean liner ever to set sail. This ocean liner was considered to be the safest, most unsinkable ship around due to it’s new, water tight compartments. Coicidentlly, the ship in that story also sank after hitting an iceberg. And an even bigger coincidence? The name of the ship in the story was “The Titan”!
But, are you also aware of the fact that, at the very moment the Titanic struck the iceberg, on that fateful night of April 14, 1912, the film The Poseidon Adventure was being shown aboard ship!
The film industry was still in it’s infancy in 1912 and had only recently graduated to projecting movies onto screens for entire audiences to enjoy. Movies of the day were short, no more than a reel, and of course, filmed in black and white with no sound. Nevertheless, this new entertainment industry had captured the imagination of the people and the Titanic carried it’s own movie projector and library of movies.
However, the film industry still had a somewhat unsavory image due to it’s Nickleodeon days. The First Class passengers aboard the Titanic were offended by this new form of entertainment. So the films were shown at 11 PM, after the First Class Passengers retired, and only in the Second Class dining room.
In the Second Class dining room, the audience of well over 200 Second Class passengers was so enthralled with the tale of “The Poseidon Adventure” that they either didn’t fell the Titanic shudder as it hit the iceberg or they shrugged it off. There were, in fact, so entertained by the movie that they watched it over again!
The Poseidon Adventure was an unusually long movie for it’s time, and with 2 back to back showings of 53 mnutes each, it was well after 1AM when these Second and Third Class passengers finally returned to the deck. By that time, the few lifeboats that there were had already been launched, most at only partial capacity and occupied by First Class Passengers.
This grim coincidence could explain why barely one third of the Titanic’s Second Class Passengers survived while nearly two thirds of the First Class passengers and crew made it to safety.
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