Credit where credit is due: I first became interested in the Titanic after watching James Cameron's 1997 film. I was never much taken by the Jack'n'Rose part of the story. My subsequent explorations of the subject made me even less delighted by it. To sum my thoughts up: Great ship, crap story.
Next came several fascinating discussions with Connie Willis about film and reality at a convention in Manchester (I am usually not in the habit of throwing myself in the path of famous people but on this occasion I did). Spurred on by this, I started to read up on the historical Titanic while on vacation in the USA. I was reading the first books about the Titanic sitting in our rented RV (Harvey the RV) following the trail of Wyatt Earp and Doc Holliday. The first time I read about Lightoller's famous balancing act was probably somewhere between Monmouth, Illinois, Wyatt Earp's birthplace, and Pella, Iowa, Wyatt Earp's childhood home.
The man responsible for my interest to focus on the Titanic's officers was no other than Charles H. Lightoller himself. The chapters of his memoirs reprinted in The Story of the Titanic as told by its Survivors made me want to find out more about him and his colleagues. Why nobody ever thought of re-publishing his memoirs entirely is something I have been wondered about since I first read them. Surely, the Marconi company is not still threatening to sue?
I owe many thanks to Inger Sheil, herself a veteran Titanic enthusiast and expert on all things related to the Titanic's officers, who not only helped me finding my way into maritime research but with whom I spent endless hours (on e-mail and later in person) discussing all things related to the Titanic disaster and the ship's officers. I cannot remember how many times we watched A Night to Remember together or Titanic yelling at the TV that this bit was a lie or, in my case, that it's the Titanic not just Titanic. Captain Kirk was Captain of the Enterprise after all, not of Enterprise, right?
Other people who I like to thank include Ilya McVey, Pat Cook, Jürgen Schneider, who sent me various films on the subject to watch and study, Susanne Störmer, among other things for sending me her notes on Herrn Petersen, and many, many more.
As usual, many thanks also to my friends, Alex Service, Michael Gaunt and Kirsty Hartsiotis, who taught me that obsessions are perfectly reasonable, who have listened to my lecturing on this subject for hours and joined with enthusiasm in all the various Titanic parties, always ready to dress up, experiment with food and drink, dance madly and just have fun.
Further thanks to my 'other' friends, the Maltesers aka The Usual Suspects, Beate & Markus Greif, Maria Hau, Norbert Prack and Sabine Walentowski, again for listening to me holding forth about the Titanic. Maria especially for watching various Titanic films with me over and over again and for not taking it amiss when I occasionally yell at her. Lastly also for reading through this webpage and pointing out some rather gross mistakes.
My sincerest thanks also to Phil Hind, the Encyclopedia Titanica and everybody participating in the discussions there.
My thanks also to all the people who wrote books of non-fiction and fiction about the Titanic, especially those who included fictional officers in their stories.
Finally, I ought to thank Michael Kleeberg whose novel Der König von Korsika was so awful that in comparison Operation Titanic. A Nancy Drew and Hardy Boys Super Mystery was a delight to read. (Der König von Korsika was so bad I preferred to enjoy the 'view' from the underground train rather then read.) Rereading the 'Super Mystery' made me reread other novels and was one of the reasons that reawakened my interest in the Titanic and made me decided to resurrect and improve my old webpage again.
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