The Titanic had many famous personalities onboard, and one of them was Dorothy Gibson, an American silent film actress. As it turns out, Gibson was one of the lucky survivors, and after arriving in New York she immediately started filming “Saved From the Titanic”, a film she both wrote and starred in.
Released in May 1912, only a month after the Titanic disaster, the film depicted the events of the night when it sank. Gibson wore the same clothes and shoes in the film as she did during the actual event. Sadly, in what was described as a great loss to the silent film era, the only known print of the film was destroyed in a fire in 1914.
Henry Clay Frick Was Saved by a Sprained Ankle
The maiden voyage of the Titanic had many opulent personalities onboard its first-class accommodations and Henry Clay Frick, an American industrialist, who financed the construction of the Pennsylvania railroad, had full intentions of taking that fateful trip.
The American steel tycoon had to cancel his plans with his wife just a few days before the schedule after the latter accidentally sprained her ankle. Realizing she wouldn’t enjoy their vacation with an injury, he called off their plans for her to rest.
Guglielmo Marconi’s Personal Paperwork Kept Him Alive
Guglielmo Marconi was an Italian inventor known for his work on radio transmission. He is also credited for the invention of the radio, and a radio telegraph system that won him the Nobel Prize he shared with Karl Ferdinand Braun. He was an important man, and his invention was a great help to shipping communications, and he was given a free pass to ride the Titanic.
Instead of grabbing the opportunity, Guglielmo Marconi chose to sail via the Lusitania. His daughter said that he made that decision because he had important paperwork to do, and he preferred that ship’s telegraph operator over the Titanic’s.
Over 700 Third-class Passengers and Only Two Bathtubs
It was a known fact that, even though conditions were far better on the Titanic than on an average ship, third-class passengers still had it rough. In total, there were between 700 and 1,000 passengers in third class, and only two bathtubs!
Despite the fact that passengers could clean up in their cabins by using a washbin, it wasn't ideal for such a long trip, and having hundreds of people sharing two bathtubs was incredibly chaotic, to say the least.
The Musician That Was Only Declared Dead 88 Years Later
One of the biggest mysteries of the Titanic was the story of Roger Bricoux, the 21-year-old French cello player that was part of the eight-piece Titanic orchestra. Even though Bricoux died alongside his fellow musicians on the night of the crash on April 15th, 1912, he wasn't actually declared dead until the year 2000.
Thinking he had survived the disaster, the French Army even considered him a deserter when he didn't appear to serve in WWI. The French Association of the Titanic tried to fix what appeared to be a terrible bureaucratic mishap and worked incessantly to clear Bricoux's name and put him to rest, but they were only able to do this 88 years after the disaster when he was finally declared dead.