Unsinkable: The Titanic Podcast

Latest Episodes:

Titanic in Fiction: The Sequel, with Chelsea Pinkard Apr 25, 2023

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Chelsea Pinkard is back to discuss trends in historical fiction, HOW historical fiction can illuminate or box in the Titanic narrative, and why we can't quite ever get to that "Jack and Rose" moment in ship lit. We co-read the novel Titanic Girls by researcher Julie Cook (who has also published in the non-fiction realm about Titanic widows and orphans in Southampton). We break down the feminist themes in it and why they're so important. Crucial! We also find a little time to debrief about the 25th anniversary of the Cameron film. I wish Chelsea had time to be my co-host, she's incredible, but alas she'd BUSY researching maritime history in Australia. Though she's promised to come back once a year to update us!
Find her on social here: https://www.instagram.com/chelseapinkardships/
And buy a copy of Cook's novel via my Bookshop link! https://bookshop.org/p/books/the-titanic-girls-julie-cook/18961713?aid=80949&ean=9798215456668&listref=the-unsinkable-book-club

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April 14th, 1912/April 14th, 2023 Apr 14, 2023

Show notes

This is a short episode, as life is insane right now, but I wanted to share a few thoughts today, the 111th anniversary of Titanic's striking an iceberg in the North Atlantic. I am grateful for every listener. I am grateful to do this podcast. I remember today, and every day, each soul that boarded that ship in 1912.
All my love, LA

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Board the Ship of Dreams with Alexandra Boyd & Nelson Aspen (from Titanic Talk) Apr 12, 2023

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I am thrilled to bring you my first ever interview with a cast member from Titanic (1997)--Alexandra Boyd--and, just as exciting, a peek into her film Ship of Dreams: Titanic Movie Diaries and new podcast Titanic Talk. We're joined by her podcasting partner Nelson Aspen, who is an award-winning journalist who has traveled the world interviewing every celebrity under the sun and is a true Titaniac from way back. This interview was an absolute blast. We touch on everything from the set of the 1997 movie to possible Titanic reincarnations (I kid you not) to all the hope and the passion that Titanic obsessives around the world share.
Find the film streaming as of April 15th here: https://www.shipofdreamsfilm.com
Find the new podcast here: https://www.youtube.com/@TitanicTalkPodcast/videos
(and wherever you streams pods!)
Find more about Alexandra here: https://www.alexandraboyd.co.uk
And more about Nelson here: http://www.nelsonaspen.com

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The "Real" J. Dawson: Joseph, Not Jack Apr 05, 2023

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Join me as I uncover a LOT (truly, more than I anticipated!) about the man so commonly referred to as "the real Jack Dawson." He was J. Dawson, Titanic crew member, but he wasn't even named Jack. And his real story is human and beautiful and complex on its own. We should be grateful that the film's popularity eventually trickled down into research and illuminated so much about him, though, and culturally it's astounding what an impact the 1997 film had on Dawson's legacy.
To watch the Discovery Channel documentary I reference throughout this episode: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-YVfjVIlxBw&t=1139s
And to buy Senan Moloney's book, The Irish on Titanic is difficult....it's out of print, sadly. But here's a link to the Goodreads page for reference and a check through used bookstore websites mind yield a treasure?! https://www.goodreads.com/en/book/show/1955213
For the virtual film fest, register here! (scroll down on events page) https://titanicpigeonforge.com/titanic-pigeon-forge-events/

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Titanic's "Just Missed It" Club, featuring The Reference Desk Pod Mar 22, 2023

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Join me in a collaborative cross-post with The Reference Desk Podcast as we explore the lives of several members of Titanic's "just missed it club"--in other words, people who were supposed to be on the ship but for whatever reason barely missed the fated sailing. We discuss everyone from beer-gulping crew to the founder of the Hershey empire to several Vanderbilts and their sunken luggage. Hailee and Katie are a DELIGHT and you need to go subscribe to their podcast right now:
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-reference-desk/id1554081172
Find them on Insta here: https://www.instagram.com/thereferencedeskpod

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The Rise and Fall of the House of Lucile, Lady Duff Gordon Mar 14, 2023

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Join me as I examine the life of a powerhouse of a woman, born Lucy Christiana Sutherland but re-branded through her own force as Lucy, Lady Duff Gordon, owner and designer of the greatest and grandest fashion house of the Edwardian era. She is not without controversy, but neither are our famous male figures from this era. She built an empire and we still live with the influence of her design, her flair, and her business practices today. Why doesn't she get more credit? Let's dissect it!
My direct academic-leaning sources for this episode:
-Gareth Russell, The Ship of Dreams
-Randy Bryan Bigham, Lucile – Her Life by Design
-Hugh Brewster, Gilded Lives, Fatal Voyage
-Melanie Abrahms, “Fashion’s Forgotten Grande Dame,” in the Telegraph: https://www.google.com/search?client=safari&rls=en&q=lucile+duff+gordon+telgraph&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8
Duff Gordon's autobiography, Discretions and Indiscretions, and some of her other writings are easily findable on Amazon and other online booksellers.
*new Patreon tier! Simply Support--just $1/month--no perks, just support the show. See link below!

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The Year of the Child, Featuring Emily from the Titanic Museum Attraction Mar 06, 2023

Show notes

Join me as Emily Densky and I discuss a few of the children who boarded Titanic in 1912, highlighting both gorgeous and heartbreaking human moments the night of the sinking as well as how the events affected their lives moving forward. This year, 2023, the Titanic Museum Attractions celebrate a "Year of the Child" with new artifacts, galleries and events that showcase the hope, resiliency and memory of all the children on the ship.
As always, find info about the museums here: https://titanicpigeonforge.com
The Laroche/Navratil photo can be found here: http://aftitanic.free.fr/titanic/passagers/laroche_l_navratil_m_et_dean_m_h.jpg
Find the story of the Caldwell family via Bookshop: https://bookshop.org/p/books/a-rare-titanic-family-the-caldwells-story-of-survival-julie-hedgepeth-williams/18644775?aid=80949&ean=9781588382825&listref=episodes-miscellany

Here is the link for the Florida meetup group started by listener Collin: https://www.meetup.com/florida-titanic-fans-meetup

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Unlocked Bonus Episode: Titanic's Ghosts? Mar 01, 2023

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See you next week for TWO brand new episodes!

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A Brief But Inclusive History of Modern Fan-fiction Feb 24, 2023

Show notes

Join me for a look at the history of modern fan-fiction, its wild and wonderful strangeness, its relationship to sexuality and sexual liberation, just a little bit of everything. Titanic fan-fiction was a part of my childhood and remains a part of my life now; guys, there are GREAT stories on Fanfiction.net and Archive of Our Own (though truly you have to wade through some crap to get to them sometimes.).
For info about my upcoming events: https://www.unsinkablepod.com/events
A few articles about fan-fiction and its long history:
https://bookriot.com/history-of-fanfiction/
https://www.vice.com/en/article/jgqv7b/people-are-reading-so-much-fanfiction-its-crashing-the-biggest-fanfic-website
https://www.theatlantic.com/culture/archive/2020/02/surprising-18th-century-origins-fan-fiction/606532/

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The Wonderful Absurdity of Titanique Feb 17, 2023

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*Correction! I realize I said that the co-creator's name is Maria Mendelle, but it is Marla Mindelle, my apologies* Join me for a fun little peek in Off-Broadway's absolute sensation Titanique, a wild musical romp that marries a parody of the 1997 film with Celine Dion songs as well as with endless pop culture references. I want to go! Titanique folks, email me!
Find tickets here if you're lucky to be in the New York City area: https://titaniquemusical.com

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