16 April 2012

Titanic: It's Only a Movie

So, last night Matt and I were watching the documentary "Smash His Camera" about celebrity photog and pariah Ron Galella. Toward the end, they had some young woman walking through an exhibit of his celeb photographs saying "I don't know who that is," and "He looks familiar, but I can't think of his name," and "Nope, no idea who that is." The people she could not identify were President John Kennedy, Paul Newman, Elizabeth Taylor and (surprise!) John Belushi.

I made a comment about the state of the American school system and Matt said: "There are some people who don't know the Titanic really happened."

Sure is a good thing I wasn't drinking any liquid because it would have been a spit take all over the coffee table.

So today, a little research and yes, it's true: people watching the current re-release of the 1997 "Titanic" were questioning whether it was based on a real event. Okeh, really? I'm sure Edmund Burke (1729-1797) is spinning in his grave -- he who originally said "Those who don't know history are destined to repeat it."

Are these people merely exceptions or indicative of what we can come to expect? I have a sickening fear one of these people is right this moment sitting at his/her computer sketching out an idea for the biggest ship in the world, one that is absolutely unsinkable.

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