Saved From the Titanic in Fort Lee?

As we approach the April 15 centennial of one of the most famous passenger liner tragedies in world history, it is important to note that one of our "Reel Jersey Girls" from Fort Lee was not only saved from the Titanic, but she also was rushed to Fort Lee right off the docks in New York to shoot a film of the very same title for Éclair Studio.

Less than a month after the tragedy, Éclair Studio had prints out to movie theaters; the movie poster they printed to advertise this first of all the films about the Titanic read:

Extra, Tuesday, May 14, Saved From The Titanic, Éclair’s World Sensation, MISS DOROTHY GIBSON, a survivor of the sea’s greatest disaster, tells the story of the shipwreck, supported by an all-star cast, on the film marvel of the age. ÉCLAIR FILM CO. Fort Lee, NJ.

Saved From The Titanic was the reality TV show of its day. Millions of people across the world watch this Éclair film, in no small part due to the connection of its star Dorothy Gibson to the actual sinking.

As March comes to an end, we need to give a nod—this being Women’s History Month—to Dorothy Gibson. The exhibit continues through July 1, and one of the "Reel Jersey Girls" is actually a real Jersey girl; Dorothy Gibson was born on May 17, 1889 in Hoboken. Her birth name was Dorothy Winifred Brown, but her father died when she was a child. And her mother married John Gibson. 

Between 1906 and 1911, Dorothy worked as a singer and dancer, and she became a regular chorus member in the Shubert’s shows at the Hippodrome Theatre. Dorothy began posing for commercial artist Harrison Fisher in 1909, and she quickly became his favorite model. Her image appeared on various products, books and magazine covers of the day, and she became known as “The Original Harrison Fisher Girl.”

Dorothy started her film career in 1911, but it would only last through the end of 1912, for a total of about 16 films. She started with the Independent Moving Pictures Company (IMP). Soon she would be employed by the new U.S. branch of the Paris-based Éclair Studios. Gibson was one of the first actresses to be promoted as a star. All of her Éclair films were produced at the Éclair Studio on Linwood Avenue in Fort Lee, the present day site of .

Gibson’s films were well received, but she is primarily remembered today for Saved From The Titanic. Following a vacation in Italy with her mother, Dorothy returned to the U.S. on the Titanic, en route to Fort Lee to make a new series of films for Éclair. 

While playing bridge with friends in the ship’s lounge, the Titanic ran into the iceberg that sunk the "unsinkable" vessel. Dorothy escaped in Lifeboat #7, the first lifeboat launched. She returned to New York on the rescue ship Carpathia.  Dorothy was met by producer and movie mogul Jules Brulatour at the dock, where she was whisked to Éclair’s Fort Lee movie studio to immediately begin work on the film about the shipwreck. 

Brulatour, who was also Dorothy’s boyfriend at the time, was a shrewd businessman who was responsible for bringing many of the studios to Fort Lee. He was a co-founder of Universal Studios in 1912, and he also was head of distribution for Eastman Kodak.

Jules knew a great business opportunity when he saw it, and to have one of his stars survive the Titanic was like winning a powerball lottery – lightning struck, and Brulatour capitalized on his luck. Dorothy wrote the scenario for the one-reel film. She wore the same clothing in the film that she had on when the Titanic went down, a white silk evening dress, a cardigan and polo coat.

The film was a huge success in America and Europe, but the only known prints of the film were destroyed in the 1914 fire at Éclair Studios in Fort Lee. Film historians consider the loss one of greatest of any film from the silent era. When you stroll through Constitution Park on Linwood Avenue in Fort Lee, stroll over to the Linwood Avenue side, and see the Fort Lee Film Commission's historic marker dedicated to Eclair Studio, which stood on that very site. You can also see a photo of Dorothy Gibson as part of our tribute to not only a Fort Lee studio, but also a great Fort Lee-based actress.

Dorothy Gibson retired from the screen shortly after she filmed Saved From the Titanic. She eventually married Brulatour in 1917, but the marriage was dissolved just two years later. Gibson spent the rest of her life in Europe, mostly in Paris. She became something of a double agent during World War II and was arrested as an anti-Fascist agitator and jailed in a Milan prison from which she ultimately escaped. 

She died in France in 1946 at the age of 56 and is buried at Saint Germain-en-Laye Cemetery. The life of this "Reel Jersey Girl," the unsinkable Dorothy Gibson, would make a great film—one of course with a Fort Lee connection.