This morning's Los Angeles Times had an interesting article in the first column about "Titanic." In summary, the author posed the question of why the movie is so popular (and emotionally powerful). As I read the article, I saw Thomas quoted in it!

"The movie asks the big question: How do you face a situation of certain death? Sure, there are special effects. Sure, Cameron spent umpteen millions of dollars. But what people actually go for is connection or catharsis. For something human." Well said.

It also made a reference to the hand (on the window) discussion on this site. The only grave disappointment was that the staff writer mistook the Renault for a Model T! Shame on her.

-- Jeff (JTrayner@pacbell.net), February 10, 1998

Answers

Jeff: I just read the artical and was impressed. Very well done and I emailed Ms Wallace and told her that and also corrected her on the car!

Regards, Peter

-- Peter Nivling (pcnivling@capecod.net), February 11, 1998.

Can anyone post the URL for that, if there is one? Thanks, if so.

-- Bob Gregorio (rgregori@pacbell.net), February 11, 1998.

The url is www.latimes.com but it won't do you much good as it was in yesterdays paper and would now be in the archives and you would have to "purchase" it. I did get a reply from Amy Wallace saying that she had heard fom several people (as I figured she must have) about the car mistake and said she would print a correction if she could verify the story. I told her that it is in Walter Lords book The Night Lives On and also gave her a little backround on Billy Carter, the owner of the Renault. Apparently, he was on the same food chain level as J. Bruce Ismay!

Regards, Peter

-- Peter Nivling (pcnivling@capecod.net), February 11, 1998.

I haven't yet seen the LA Times article, but I had a phone interview with Amy Wallace last week, and we talked the Titanic phenomenon for some time.

-- Thomas M. Terashima (titanicshack@yahoo.com), February 12, 1998.