The Sinking of the Lusitania

←

The Sinking of the Lusitania (1918)
by Winsor McCay

→

related portals: Cartoons, Films with historical settings, Propaganda film, Silent film, War film
sister projects: Wikipedia article, Commons category, Wikidata item

an American silent animated short film, the longest work of animation at that time. Selected for preservation by The National Film Registry.

Key (info)
	Dialogue
	In scene
	Storyline

Cast and Crew
Cast
Role	Actor
	Winsor McCay
Crew
Director	Winsor McCay (d. 1934)
Producer	Winsor McCay
Screenwriter	Winsor McCay
Based on available information, the latest crew member that is relevant to international copyright laws died in 1934, meaning that this film may be in the public domain in countries and jurisdictions with 89 years p.m.a. or less, as well as in the United States.

The following is a transcription of a film. The contents below represent text or spoken dialogue that are transcribed directly from the video of the film provided above. On certain screen sizes, each line is represented by a timestamp next to it which shows when the text appears on the video. For more information, see Help:Film.

3454539The Sinking of the Lusitania1918Winsor McCay

SPECIAL FEATURE.

THE SINKING OF
THE "LUSITANIA."
An amazing moving pen picture by
WINSOR McCAY.

THE TRANSATLANTIC FILM C^O L^TD

JOHN D. TIPPETT. MANAGING DIRECTOR.

Winsor McCay, originator and inventor of Animated Cartoons, decides to draw a historical record of the crime that shocked Humanity.

Mr. Beach giving Winsor McCay the details of the sinking—necessary for the work to follow.

Twenty-five thousand drawings had to be made and photographed one at a time.

The first work done was the moving sea.

From here on you are looking at the first record on the sinking of the Lusitania.

The Lusitania carrying more than 2000 passengers of whom 200 were Americans, sailed for Liverpool, England, May 1st, 1915.

Warnings had been published in the New York newspapers by the German embassy, but they were regarded lightly, and all on board felt safe.

Germany, which had already benumbed the world with its wholesale killing, then sent its instrument of crime to perform a more treacherous and cowardly offense.

At noon, May 7th, the Lusitania sighted the coast of Ireland, nearing the end of her journey.

Two hours later, while steaming at 18 knots, the Lusitania was struck almost directly under the Captain's bridge by the first of two torpedoes fired by the German Submarine U-39.

After the first torpedo which struck there were scenes of pitiful partings. 1150 persons perished—114 being Americans. Among these were men of world wide prominence, including—

Elbert Hubbard,
MODERN PHILOSOPHER AND AUTHOR.

Charles Klein,
THE DISTINGUISHED AMERICAN PLAYRIGHT.

Alfred G. Vanderbilt
THE MULTIMILLIONAIRE AMERICAN SPORTSMAN

Charles Frohman,
THE WORLD'S FOREMOST THEATRICAL MANAGER.
WHO FACED DEATH SMILING AND UTTERED TO THOSE ABOUT HIM JUST BEFORE THE END CAME, HIS IMMORTAL OBSERVATION THAT "Death is but a beautiful adventure of Life."

Germany, once a great and powerful nation, had done a dastardly deed in a dastardly way.

While the life boats were being lowered a second torpedo crashed into the engine rooms. This was the death blow.

The vessel righted herself after the shock and began to sink by the bow.

No warning was given—no mercy was shown.

The babe that clung to his mother's breast cried out to the world—TO AVENGE the most violent cruelty that was ever perpetrated upon an unsuspecting and innocent people.

Fifteen minutes after the first torpedo struck, the Lusitania had disappeared beneath the waves.

The man who fired the shot was decorated for it by the Kaiser!—AND YET THEY TELL US NOT TO HATE THE HUN.

This work is in the public domain in the United States because it was published before January 1, 1929.

The longest-living author of this work died in 1934, so this work is in the public domain in countries and areas where the copyright term is the author's life plus 89 years or less. This work may be in the public domain in countries and areas with longer native copyright terms that apply the rule of the shorter term to foreign works.

Public domainPublic domainfalsefalse