Archive for November, 2008
It happened! I spoke for the elite group of explorers at the Explorer’s Club of Manhattan on November 15. And…I didn’t have to wear a mermaid’s outfit to get their attention! My talk, “Surviving the Andrea Doria Shipwreck: An Up-close and Personal Account” was well-received. Upon uttering my last words, the audience actually clapped heartily. Then, I heard someone blurt out, “phenomenal”…followed by more clapping. Whew!
An audience of about 100 came to hear me and some very distinguished scientists tell their “Sea Stories”, also the name of the program. Topics explored the world of dolphins, saving the bluefish tuna, traveling from the Antarctic to New Guinea, and investigating Mayan caves.
During my talk, I felt comfort, yet even more accountability knowing that I had my own special ‘entourage’: nine divers of the Andrea Doria (three are close friends), the Italian Consul General of Italy, Andrea Doria survivor and legendary songwriter Mike Stoller, and my dear friend Vince Lionti, who plays viola in the MET.
The Explorer’s Club offered more bonuses for me: a historical building of their own filled with mementos from great expeditions, my own book signing, and an invitation to return in the future. This message from the co-chairman of “Sea Stories”, Will Roseman, warmed my heart:
I started reading your book this weekend and could not put it down! I finished it before the weekend was over. Rarely do I hear people talking about a lecture with such excitement as I heard people talking about yours. It made me very proud to have met you. Please know that you always have a home and many, many fans at the Explorers Club.”
When I return, I hope to meet some of the great explorers and past speakers: astronaut Buzz Aldrin, aviator Chuck Yeager (the first man to break the sound barrier), and Col. Matthew Bogdanos, who led the recovery of looted antiquities in Baghdad, among a few legends in our lifetime.
You may want to check out their fascinating website: www.explorers.org.
Filed under: Andrea Doria, Serving Our Seas, Survivor Stories | exploration, Explorers Club, sea stories|No Comments
During a Lake Superior gale on November 10, 1975, the Edmund Fitzgerald sank suddenly, without sending any distress signals sank in 530 feet of Canadian waters at the entrance to Whitefish Bay. All 29 hands in the crew perished, presumably by drowning. The incident is the most famous disaster in the history of Great Lakes shipping.
I didn’t hear or read much about the tragedy yesterday, on its anniversary. But it became personal to me when a friend told me that her friends’ grandfather never returned from the Edmund Fitzgerald’s last voyage. I would like to do my part to remember him, and the other 28 men who never returned to their families. Fortunately, an enduring legacy has been left in a beautiful song by Gordon Lightfoot as well as in a piano concerto, “The Edmund Fitzgerald”. Also, the ship’s bell was recovered from the wreck on July 4, 1995, and is now in the Great Lakes Shipwreck Museum in Whitefish Point near Paradise, Michigan.
In my research, I tried to find similarities to the Andrea Doria shipwreck; due to the muddy waters in which the Fitzgerald rests, there aren’t many definite conclusions—unlike with the Doria disaster. However, one plausible similarity that strikes me is the way both vessels met the ocean floor: given the ships’ length vs. the depth of the water, the stern was probably above water when the bow hit bottom. The main difference is that on the Andrea Doria, all passengers that went under had already been killed by the impact from the Stockholm. The percentage was small:46 casualties out of 1706 people on board. With the Fitzgerald, none of the 29 on board were saved. I only hope that the men did not have much time to realize their fate.
I send my thoughts and prayers to the victims’ families.
Filed under: Andrea Doria, Serving Our Seas, Survivor Stories | Edmund Fitzgerald, Great Lakes shipwrecks, Museo dell'Emigrazione, Museum of Immigration, Frossasco, Torino, Piemontesi Protagonisti, shipwreck, Whitefish Point Shipwreck Museum|No Comments
November 1, 2008
Okay. I’m rolling up my sleeves for the first official blog entry. You undoubtedly want to know how I’m currently serving our seas—in addition to being an author of a shipwreck. (my book is called Alive on the Andrea Doria! The Greatest Sea Rescue in History)
On November 15, I’m doing an awesome event in Manhattan. I’ve been invited to present the Andrea Doria story to the Explorers Club for a conference called “Sea Stories”. Having been told that its members are an elite group of the explorers, I researched them and found this impressive description.
Founded in New York City in 1904, The Explorers Club promotes the scientific exploration of land, sea, air, and space by supporting research and education in the physical, natural and biological sciences. The Club’s members have been responsible for an illustrious series of famous firsts: First to the North Pole, first to the South Pole, first to the summit of Mount Everest, first to the deepest point in the ocean, first to the surface of the moon—all accomplished by our members. (read more: http://www.explorers.org/about/about_the_club.php)
I’ve concluded that the only reason I was invited to speak is because I explored, unwillingly, the foggy Atlantic Ocean on July 25 – 26, 1956. Seriously though, perhaps they did consider the fact that I am the first shipwreck survivor to write a definitive and complete account of one’s shipwreck. Nevertheless, I’m a little concerned that I might be upstaged by camels, Emperor penguins, or elephants! This humorous article will explain why: http://outside.away.com/outside/culture/200608/richard-wiese-explorers-club-1.html
What does one wear to describe one’s shipwreck experience—especially to a group that is not easily astounded by anything? Hmmm…I wonder where I can find a mermaid outfit!
Filed under: Uncategorized | Explorers Club, famous firsts, sea exploration, shipwrecks|No Comments
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