Ever since the Titanic’s 1912 sinking, fascination with the historic disaster and a desire to make sense of it has only intensified. In recent years, as deep-sea tourism became more popular, expeditions 12,500 feet down to the ship’s wreck site have catered to thrill-seekers. But on June 18, 2023, the line between fantasy and reality was crossed—with deadly results. As with all great dramas, the truth—and the ultimate meaning—is revealed in the details of the lives and deaths, the sights and sounds, the fleeting luxuries, the lasting trauma, the world that celebrated the Titanic and the world that mourned its unimaginable loss.
THE TITANIC THE TRUTH ABOUT THE TRAGEDY
THE MYSTERY DEEPENS • A CENTURY LATER, THE TITANIC HAS CLAIMED FIVE MORE LIVES. HOW DID THE SHIP OF DREAMS END UP SUCH A NIGHTMARE?
1 LAUNCHING & LOSING A LEGEND • The Titanic’s creators wanted the biggest and the best—a truly epic ocean liner. Plus, travel through the final day and night on board.
THE SHIP AND THE ICEBERG • THE ORIGINS OF THE SUPPOSEDLY UNSINKABLE TITANIC AND THE 15,000-YEAR-OLD CHUNK OF GREENLAND ICE THAT SANK IT.
BLUEPRINT OF A BEHEMOTH • THE INTRICATE ANATOMY OF THE TITANIC, FROM STEM TO STERN.
TOUR THE TITANIC • STROLL THE DECKS OF THE MOST OPULENT OCEAN LINER OF ITS DAY, AND PEEK INTO SOME OF ITS SECRET SPACES AND INNER WORKINGS.
A DATE WITH DISASTER • THE LAST DAY OF THE TITANIC’S VOYAGE OFFERED WARNINGS OF ITS FATE, BUT FEW WERE HEEDED. INSTEAD, THE UNTHINKABLE DRAMA UNFOLDED HOUR BY HOUR—UNTIL THE SEA SWALLOWED UP THE SHIP.
“A Slight Shock” • In first class, the iceberg’s impact felt subtle, while the devastation was obvious on lower decks.
LIFEBOAT CHRONICLES • FOR MANY PASSENGERS, A BOBBING CRAFT ON THE OPEN SEA WAS MORE TERRIFYING THAN A SINKING SHIP.
UNTOLD STORIES • HUNDREDS OF SCENES OF TRAGEDY AND HEROISM PLAYED OUT ON THE GREAT SHIP, LEAVING HONOR—OR DISREPUTE—IN ITS WAKE. READ ON FOR SOME OF THE MOST TELLING DRAMAS OF THAT NIGHT, AND THEIR AFTERMATH.
2 MAKING A BLOCKBUSTER • Titanic changed movies—and 25 years later, it still resonates.
‘THE BIGGEST INDEPENDENT FILM EVER MADE’ • TITANIC IS RIGHTLY REMEMBERED AS A BOX-OFFICE SMASH AND A CULTURAL PHENOMENON. BUT FOR THE DIRECTOR, CAST AND CREW, THE VOYAGE WAS A STRANGE AND DIFFICULT TRIP.
A ROSE (OR JACK) BY ANY OTHER NAME • THE MOMENT TITANIC HIT THEATERS, LEONARDO DiCAPRIO’S JACK DAWSON AND KATE WINSLET’S ROSE DEWITT BUKATER BECAME AN INSTANT-CLASSIC ON-SCREEN COUPLE. BUT WHILE THE PAIRING MAY SEEM LIKE IT WAS DESTINED TO BE, IT WASN’T: A NUMBER OF HOLLYWOOD STARS WERE CONSIDERED FOR EACH ROLE. HERE ARE A FEW OF THEM.
A TIGHT SHIP • GET TO KNOW THE GIFTED ACTORS WHO BROUGHT THE UNFORGETTABLE CHARACTERS TO LIFE.
LEO & KATE’S ONSCREEN REUNION • THE TWO STARRED IN 2008’S REVOLUTIONARY ROAD.
TITANIC’S CAPTAIN • JAMES CAMERON IS IN A CLASS ALL HIS OWN AS DIRECTOR OF TWO OF THE HIGHEST-GROSSING FILMS OF ALL TIME.
PICTURE PERFECT • JAMES CAMERON’S INNOVATIVE CREW EXPERIMENTED WITH NEW TECHNOLOGY SUCH AS MOTION CAPTURE AND COMPUTER IMAGERY.
PERIOD PIECES • THE ACADEMY AWARD-WINNING FASHION IS RICH IN HISTORICAL ACCURACY FROM THE EARLY 1900S.
SOUND BITES • EVERYONE RECALLS JACK’S EBULLIENT “I’M THE KING OF THE WORLD!” BUT TITANIC’S SCRIPT IS FULL OF MEMORABLE SAYINGS.
BY THE NUMBERS • THE SHIP WASN’T THE ONLY THING THAT WAS HUGE! THESE STATS HELP TELL THE TALE OF ONE OF THE BIGGEST MOVIES OF ALL TIME.
TITANIC AT THE MOVIES • ADDITIONAL FILMS ABOUT THE OCEAN LINER RANGE FROM THE NOTEWORTHY TO THE NOTORIOUS.
Big-Screen Bloopers
3 THE LONG SHADOW OF THE TITANIC • In the sinking’s aftermath, blame, myths and trauma followed survivors for decades—and changed...