JAMES CAMERON'S#TITANIC

Were Jack and Rose based on real people?
Kate Winslet titanic movie Leonardo DiCaprio

No. Jack Dawson and Rose DeWitt Bukater, portrayed in the movie by Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet, are almost entirely fictional characters (James Cameron modeled the character of Rose after American artist Beatrice Wood, who had no connection to Titanic history). The movie's love story is also fiction. It was created by Titanic screenwriter and director James Cameron. In addition to Rose and Jack, a handful of other characters associated with them are fictional as well. They include Rose's fiancé Caledon 'Cal' Hockley (Billy Zane), her mother Ruth (Frances Fisher), Cal's valet Spicer Lovejoy (David Warner), and the third class passengers, who include Jack's friends Fabrizio (Danny Nucci) and Tommy (Jason Barry). Some of the third class passengers were

I heard there was a J. Dawson on board the Titanic, is that true?

Joseph Dawson graveYes. A man who signed his name J. Dawson did board the Titanic. However, the J. stood for Joseph, not Jack. Born in Dublin, Joseph Dawson was a member of the Titanic crew. He worked as a coal trimmer (it was his job to even out the piles of coal that were shoveled into the ship's furnaces). James Cameron said that he was not aware of Joseph Dawson until after finishing his Titanic screenplay. Still, lovestruck fans of the 1997 movie ventured to J. Dawson's grave in Halifax, Nova Scotia, where they left cinema stubs, personal photos, and pictures of Leonardo DiCaprio (the exact burial location is Grave 227 in Fairview Lawn Cemetery, Halifax, Nova Scotia). Another coincidental character created by James Cameron was Jack's Irish friend Tommy Ryan (Jason Barry). The ship's manifest lists a Thomas Ryan, a 27-year-old steward from third class whose body, if recovered, was never identified.

Were the movie's underwater shots of the Titanic wreckage real?

Yes. Most of the underwater shots of the Titanic wreckage are real. In 1995, James Cameron hired the Russian vessel Akademik Mstislav Keldysh and its two submersibles. He made a total of twelve dives to film the underwater close-ups at a depth of 12,500 feet below the North Atlantic. Special cameras and housings were designed to withstand the 6,000 pounds per square inch of water pressure. Each dive lasted approximately fifteen hours, but the cameras could only store 500 feet of film, which meant that only twelve minutes of footage could be shot per dive. As a result, a few of the underwater shots had to be faked.
Were the third class passengers really locked below as the movie Titanic suggests?
Yes, but not exactly in the way that the film implies. Titanic history tells us that gates did exist which barred the third class passengers from the other passengers. However, these gates weren't in place to stop a third class passenger from taking a first class passenger's seat on a lifeboat. Instead, the gates were in place as a regulatory measure to prevent the "less cleanly" third class passengers from transmitting diseases and infections to the others. This would save time when the ship arrived in New York, as only the third class passengers would need a health happiness.

At the time of the sinking, some stewards kept gates locked waiting for instructions, while others allowed women and children to the upper decks. As a result of poor communication from the upper decks, the dire reality of the situation was never conveyed. The crew failed to search for passengers in the cabins and common areas, and the fact that some third class passengers did not speak English, also presented a problem. As a result, many of the third class passengers were left to fend for themselves. Only 25 percent of the third class passengers survived the disaster.

Did the Titanic's lights continue to burn until just before the ship went under?
Yes. Dr. Washington Dodge, a Titanic survivor who observed the ship's final moments from a lifeboat, said the following in an April 20, 1912 San Francisco Bulletin article, "We saw the sinking of the vessel. The lights continued burning all along its starboard side until the moment of its downward plunge. After that a series of terrific explosions occurred, I suppose either from the boilers or weakened bulkheads." This account is nearly identical to what is shown in the movie.

Did the Titanic really break apart as it sunk?
Yes. For years, whether the Titanic broke apart as it went under was a highly debated element of Titanic history. Some survivors testified that the ship did break apart as it sunk, while others said that it went under intact. Much of the uncertainty surrounding this was put to rest in 1985 when the wreck of the Titanic was discovered in two separate portions on the sea bottom. It is very likely that the ship broke apart much like the movie's depiction.
Was the Heart of the Ocean (Coeur de la Mer) a real diamond?
HopeNo. The Heart of the Ocean diamond is a fictional device that James Cameron added to the plot in order to give Brock Lovett (Bill Paxton) a reason to hear Rose's story. The Heart of the Ocean is based on the famous Hope Diamond that King Louis XVI of France gave to Marie Antoinette to add to her jewelry collection. The Hope Diamond is currently on display at the Smithsonian Natural History Museum in Washington, D.C. It holds no place in Titanic history. As a result of moviegoer fantasies surrounding the fictional Heart of the Ocean, the Asprey & Garrard jewelry company decided to make a real Heart of the Ocean diamond necklace. The 170-carat sapphire, surrounded by sixty-five 30-carat diamonds, was worn by Celine Dion during her performance of "My Heart Will Go On" at the 1998 Academy Awards Ceremony. The necklace later sold at a benefit auction for $2.2 million.

Can I visit the Titanic movie set?
Yes. The set, located at Fox's Baja Studios in Rosarito Beach, Mexico, still exists. The nearly full-scale Titanic replica created for the film was badly damaged when the filmmakers submerged it underwater to recreate the sinking. It was dismantled after filming wrapped. However, several of the Titanic interiors are still there, including Rose's 1st class stateroom, Jack's 3rd class stateroom, the purser's office (where Jack was handcuffed to the pipe), the outside deck, and the Palm Court (dining) room. Tours are available to the public.

Like the original ship, the replica (when it existed) was 60 feet from the boat deck to the water. Certain repetitive lengthwise sections of the ship were omitted, which made it shorter than the original 882.5 foot ship. The movie ship had only been completed on one side. As a result, there are several scenes in which the ship is reversed, such as in the "I'm the king of the world" scene where the crew galley skylight gives the reversal away. Very few of the ship's interiors were built into the replica's framework itself. Most were built on neighboring sound stages. The set designs, costumes and the ship itself were meticulously recreated. grand staircase
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