Unsinkable: The Titanic Podcast

Join me as I revive my Titanic on Film series for this 70s time capsule of a TV movie--SOS Titanic. I ran from watching this one for years. A horrid Margaret Brown take, lots of 70s bangs and anachronistic hair, it just never appealed to me. But I finally ran into it head on and I examine its production, actors, themes a bit as well as highlight a few of the featured passengers. It's not on s...

Welcome back to Unsinkable, I've missed you all! Join me in this tale of young love, forbidden romance, and a search for historical accuracy as I investigate the tale of Mary Mullin and Denis Lennon, two third class passengers from Ireland who boarded at Cobh, then Queenstown; their story is lean in facts but rich in mythology. Part of this story takes us to the 1990s, when a medical journali...

*Just a quick note to say I know the audio on this episode is a bit spotty and breathy; I had to use a Cloud recording because we had a few connection glitches on the day, my apologies!* Join me for this, an update on the media involving + important work being done around the shipwreck of the Clotilda, which I featured in an Unsinkable side series episode this past spring. In this episode I speak...

A very special crosspost: my appearance on the new podcast Titanic Talkline. I was honored to be in the first bath of guests, and Alexia's interviews are refreshing and fun. Make sure to search "Titanic Talkline" in whatever pod player you use and subscribe! Find info here as well: https://www.facebook.com/TitanicTalkline/ Support the show Support Unsinkable on Patreon for as little...

Thank you for being part of Unsinkable during my first season. It's been an experiment, it's been joyful, I've met and spoken with so many people who have warmed my heart and challenged me to think more deeply. I love the Titanic community and I can't wait to bring you more content in the fall. For now, here's my love letter to Kate Winslet, to 1997 forever. A very special...

Dr. Biel and I discuss everything from the legacy of the various Titanic films to his surreal experiences aboard a ship in the North Atlantic as part of the group that accompanied the 1998 expedition to the wreck. He was there when the "Big Piece" saw the sunshine for the first time in 86 years. I was moved by our conversation and reminded of the importance of the passion of those in the...

I've been circling this episode all season and am excited, finally, to bring you the story of Ted Smith (as he was known to those closest to him), the quiet but genial captain of the RMS Titanic. We live with his ghost(s) in so many ways. Thank you to GJ Cooper for his intense Captain Smith research; you can buy his book here and support the pod: https://bookshop.org/books/titanic-captain-the...

Lusitania's legacy is also absolutely unsinkable. To buy Larson's book or any books I have featured, visit my Bookshop affiliate page: https://bookshop.org/shop/unsinkablepod For a general look at World War One, see the modern classic by John Keegan, The First World War or David Stevenson's 1914-1918: The History of the First World War Listener Dan (thank you, Dan!) recommends, in t...

I began researching this episode uneasy about what I might find, nervous; and while it is an incredibly somber and sobering part of the Titanic story, I was also shocked at how exhilarated I felt uncovering it, shedding light on the stories of the bodies found, what we can learn from them. Join me as I look at the story of the recovery ship the Mackay Bennett and the process of bringing some Titan...

Join me as I knock down with gusto some of the long-standing myths about Denver socialite/activist/philanthropist Margaret Brown (decidedly not Molly!), one of Titanic's most famed passengers. Her real life bears very little resemblance to the whiskey-driven rabble-rousing of the musical that bore her name. To help me uncover some truths about this absolute FEMINIST of a woman I'm joined...

This is a special episode in honor of the 110th anniversary of the night Titanic sank; I hesitate, always, to use the word "anniversary" here because it seems a bit crass, but we must commemorate every person aboard that ship, every person lost on that ship, every person who lost someone on that ship, every way in which human lives were affected by the unimaginable loss. And because we a...

This is a companion to my episode on the Clotilda; join me as I discuss Ben Raines' stunning The Last Slave Ship , which recounts the ship's entire history as well as how he himself found it under just 20 feet of water at Twelve Mile Island, near Mobile, Alabama. I discuss all the ways in which the issues and debates surrounding Clotilda are insanely relevant to our everyday lives, Ameri...

Join me in this, my very first side project episode, a look at the overwhelmingly important historical, cultural, and political impact of Clotilda, the last known American ship to bring slaves from Africa as part of the Atlantic slave trade. The shipwreck was located just a few years ago and its future raises some important questions. Clotilda is an American story, a global story, that you absolut...

While I'm traveling/on a pod break for just a few weeks, I thought I'd offer a sneak peek into the Patreon bonus episodes. This was the first one I ever did, so forgive any sound issues or rambling. I only scratched the surface, but in it I explore a few stories of Titanic's chefs and cooks. The stories of crew are rich and complex, and I wish we knew even more. If you're on th...

I'm excited to bring you an interview with Jim Myers, who is the Education Executive for both Titanic Museum Attractions (Branson, Missouri, and Pigeon Forge, Tennessee). We speak about the museum's goals of memorializing both the survivors and the victims of Titanic, its role as an interactive attraction, its efforts to broaden educational programs around the ship, and also just some of...

Join me as I chat with author Hazel Gaynor, who has SUCH a refreshing take on Titanic's legacy; her book, The Girl Who Came Home, is a peek into some of the smaller, gorgeously human moments aboard the ship, and specifically those of the Irish immigrants she focuses on. This book is a fictionalization of  the ship's real Irish passengers know as the Addergoole 14, who we talk a bit about...

This episode is dedicated to every man/woman/child suffering and in fear in Ukraine right now. To help, donate: To UNICEF, which helps children in urgent need of help, and right now you can flag your donation for Ukraine: https://www.unicefusa.org To World Central Kitchen, which works to FEED people in conflict zones, disaster zones, and they're in Ukraine and on the borders right now: https:...

*(Quick note: I had some minor sound issues for this episode and I'm aware the audio quality is not quite up to standard--don't worry, this will be sorted out by next episode!) Join me as I detail of the life of Joseph Laroche, the sole black man on the Titanic, whose story is so much more  than that factoid of a label would lead one to believe; his life intersected with crucial moments...

In this last episode for my series on the 1997 movie, I go off script and recount the Titanic cultural phenomena but also the very personal feelings I have about it and how it relates to our understanding of the ship, film history, memory, grief. I also go over the many/pervasive pop culture references from the past 25 years, including some that listeners wrote in about. This is a grab bag. This i...

In some ways I think I've been waiting to record this episode for 25 years, but I wouldn't have been ready until this moment. I cover the ways in which the Titanic disaster has been viewed along gender lines and how the cultural history of it has been shaped by gender. I examine how the character of Rose, from 1997's Titanic, fits into the historical fabric of 1912 but also how she...

Author Gareth Russell and I have a wonderfully in-depth conversation about the complexities of the lives of several of Titanic’s first-class passengers. If you follow the pod, you know I talk a lot about the Titanic mythologies, these long-held visions of some of the storied passengers, and we address many of them in a blunt way. It’s quite refreshing. We also talk importantly about the creation o...

This second installment  turns partly into an exploration of some of the real passengers aboard the ship and their portrayals in James Cameron's film--Thomas Andrews, Margaret Brown, Archibald Gracie. I also discuss, with quite a bit of detail, how Cameron and his crew seamlessly constructed the ship and the sinking from a combination of practical, digital, and hybrid shots. Toss in a little...

This is part one of a truly surgical look at the making of James Cameron's Titanic , arguably one of the most popular/successful/beloved/fill-in-any-blank film of all time. Even if you're not a true Titanic-movie person, this will be of interest to you, for the painstaking links Cameron goes to in order to re-build the ship and the world of 1912. For a list of my source material, see my...

The Six is available online for a week starting tomorrow, January 22, 2022! Get your ticket for The Six here: https://watch.eventive.org/fhff/play/61c5f6235a819200d56d0547 Here's the film's description, courtesy Friday Harbor Film Fest's website: When RMS Titanic sank on a cold night in 1912, barely 700 people escaped with their lives. Among them were six Chinese men. Arriving in Ne...

Hi guys, I'm jumping on the feed to re-release my episode on James Cameron's 2003 documentary Ghosts of the Abyss, which details the expedition he took BACK to Titanic in 2001...with...Bill Paxton! This is one of my favorite episodes to date, and I think it's a nice companion piece to the main Cameron episode I just posted. Welcome, also, to new listeners from all over the world!! T...