When I was eleven years old, I saw the 1953 movie Titanic on television. The film had a profound impact on me and led to a life-long fascination with the story of the ill-fated White Star liner. In 1975, I joined the Titanic Historical Society and I've contributed to their excellent magazine, The Commutator.

I incorporated my Titanic interest into my classroom by teaching Walter Lord's classic account of the disaster, A Night to Remember. It filled a literary gap by providing students with an opportunity to read a book-length non-fiction narrative. It was a story that students found compelling and I began to use the 1958 British film, A Night to Remember, a documentary-like adaptation of Lord's book which remains the most accurate and comprehensive film version of the disaster.

My friends always thought that my interest in the disaster was quaint and amusing though I tried to avoid becoming one of the tiresome 'rivet counters' who obsesses over every detail of the ship. When I heard that James Cameron was going to direct a new Titanic film, I was naturally excited and followed the story throughout the length of production. Whatever my trepidations about Cameron's ability to do justice to the story, I knew that, for the first time, the special effects would be spectacular and convincing. Because of my involvement in the Titanic Historical Society, I even received an invitation to become an extra in the film though logistics prevented me from taking advantage of this opportunity.

No one in the Titanic community was prepared for the world-wide reaction to Cameron's Titanic when the film opened on December 19, 1997. We were in the rare position of seeing a personal hobby catapulted into the forefront of global media attention. The movie and the ship became a popular culture phenomenon unrivalled since the Star Wars phenomenon of two decades ago. There are mixed consequences of this phenomenon. We're delighted that the general public finally shares our enthusiasm for this compelling and fascinating story. On the other hand, we naturally abhor the tacky commercial exploitation that follows in the wake of any huge popular culture event.

The opportunities for classroom use of Cameron's movie are boundless, and we hope that teachers will find something here that will be of value to them.
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