The Titanic and the Chinese Exclusion Act

[Randy W]

There were eight Chinamen aboard the Titanic when it sank - six of them survived, one by clinging to a floating door long enough to be able to be picked up by a lifeboat that returned to the site.

The six survivors were met at New York's Ellis island by the Chinese Exclusion Act, and immediately deported the next day. "Out of several hundred people, they were the only ones who never told their stories."

Their story from the Sixth Tone, and a new documentary, "The Six"

Titanic’s Chinese Survivors Resurface From Depths of History

Six Chinese passengers survived the sinking of the Titanic. All were deported upon arrival in New York.

 

 

 

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More than a century after the Titanic sank in April 1912, few new stories surface from the wreck. When documentary filmmaker Arthur Jones and his team started work on “The Six” ― their film about the ship’s six Chinese survivors ― in 2012, they kept expecting to find that someone else had already told the story.

Edited April 1, 2021 by Randy W (see edit history)

[Randy W]

This one's worth a bump - if you haven't read it yet, take a look!

[amberjack1234]

I read it, Randy. Seems like a shame to me but of course, the law is the law unless you are a multimillionaire and politically connected and then things get a little muddy. I am sure that you have heard about the new movie out now. That's as far as I will go.

[Randy W]

James Cameron takes his time - from Variety

True Story of China’s Titanic Survivors, Executive Produced by James Cameron, Heads to Cinemas

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The 97-minute feature will debut in Chinese theaters on April 16, around the 109th anniversary of the “Titanic” sinking, with the release handled by local distributor QC Media. A 60-minute version has been prepared for TV. London-based specialist factual distributor TVF International is handling the global rights.

Despite events taking place over 100 years ago, the anti-Asian fall-out of 1912 has close parallels with the racism and antagonisms of the past year. 

 

 

[Randy W]

 . . . and the Sixth Tone

‘The Six’ Recounts Tragic Tale of China’s Titanic Survivors
The story of how the survivors received a racist response in the U.S. is prompting viewers to reflect on China’s rise.

A promotional poster for “The Six.” From Douban

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SHANGHAI — During the editing of “Titanic,” the 1997 blockbuster about the ship’s fated maiden voyage in April 1912, a scene of a Chinese man laying on a door, floating in the ocean and awaiting rescue, was left on the cutting room floor.

But a new documentary, “The Six,” is finally telling the story of R.M.S. Titanic’s half-dozen Chinese survivors. Directed by Arthur Jones, a British man who currently resides in Shanghai, in collaboration with executive producer James Cameron, the director of “Titanic,” it premiered Friday in China, close to the 109th anniversary of the tragedy.

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Documentaries are a niche market in China and usually aren’t allotted many screenings. As of Saturday, “The Six” had taken in a relatively modest 1.59 million yuan ($244,000).

But the tale of Chinese men hoping to move to the U.S. against all odds — at a time when the Chinese Exclusion Act forbade all immigration into the country from China — has attracted outsize interest for a documentary. “The Six” has a solid 8.4 out of 10 rating on culture site Douban.