Since a submersible visiting the wreckage of the RMS Titanic went missing on Sunday, people’s thoughts have inevitably drifted towards James Cameron. Not only did he make the 1997 blockbuster Titanic, but he’s also, successfully, done 33 similar trips himself, as well as one to the even-deeper Mariana trench. (He’s also warned in the past about not taking such expeditions lightly.) But there’s also a freaky connection between the possible tragedy unfolding and the sinking of the actual Titanic.
As per The New York Times, one of the missing passengers is Stockton Rush, the chief executive of OceanGate, the company that offered the tour, as well as the submersible’s pilot. As it happens, his wife, Wendy Rush, is a descendant of two of the most famous people who died aboard the doomed vessel over 110 years ago: retailing magnate Isidro Strauss and his wife, Ida.
The Strausses were among the wealthiest passengers on the Titanic. However, they refused a seat on one of the lifeboats, seeing how many women and children were still hoping to flee to safety. The two were seen standing on the deck of the ship as it sank. Isidor’s remains were found at sea roughly two weeks later. Ida has never been located.
The pair were fictionalized in Cameron’s Titanic, shown cradling each other in bed as their cabin filled up with water.
Rush is descended from one of the Strauss’ daughters. According to her LinkedIn page, she has made three OceanGate expeditions to the Titanic remains. She is also the company’s communication director and a longtime board member of its charitable foundation.
(Via NYT)