Titanic's Officers - Titanic Captain Found in Lifeboat

Edward John Smith

Date of birth: 27 January 1850
Place of birth: Hanley, Staffordshire, England
Marital status: Married
Spouse: Sarah Eleanor Pennington
Children: Helen Melville Smith (1898–1973)
Address: Woodhead, Winn Road, Portswood Southampton Hampshire England
Crew position: Titanic's Captain
Date of death: 15 April, 1912
Cause of death: Unconfirmed; body never recovered

Fake news: Titanic Captain Found in Lifeboat

In perhaps a more innocent time when "fake news" was for light entertainment, a popular article published in the Weekly World News in Canada of September 10th, 1991 ran with the headline "Titanic Captain Found in Lifeboat" with subheadings including "He thinks it's April 15, 1912 - and his pipe is still lit!" as well as "Navy ship picks up Englishman in fresh 1900s officer's uniform."

The article is clearly fake and intended to be funny - indeed the Weekly World News was a satirical tabloid that published mostly fictional "news" stories in the United States from 1979 to 2007. The reemergence of many prominent figures believed to be deceased was a common theme - with Marilyn Monroe, John F. Kennedy, Adolf Hitler and Elvis Presley all featured.

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