1912 marks one of the biggest tragedies ever – a tragedy we know as the Titanic! It is heartbreaking to even recall all that we’ve read about it or seen in James Cameron’s brilliant adaptation of the same. But, here are 21 facts about the Titanic you probably never knew before.

1. Kate Winslet refused to wear a wetsuit while filming the iconic water scene from the film. But staying in water for such prolonged periods of time made her fall sick with pneumonia.

2. According to a recent theory, the sinking of the Titanic could have taken place because of a full moon that occurred months before the disaster happened. It is said that it created strong tides and changed the position of some icebergs that may have come in the way of the ship. It is also believed that it was no common full moon. Earth hadn’t seen such a full moon since 796 A.D. and wouldn’t ever, until 2257.

3. There was a ship called Californian in the vicinity of Titanic that could have saved its passengers. But, Californian’s wireless operator went off to sleep early that night, while the Titanic sent out distress signals, one after the other, hoping they would get a response. It is said that even when the crew of Californian tried to wake the wireless operator up, he did not issue any orders to help Titanic. But thankfully, another ship called Carpathia came to the rescue and saved as many people as it could.

4. Leonardo DiCaprio used to carry his pet lizard to the sets of the film. It once got ran over by a truck but Leonardo gave it a new life by taking good care of it.

5. Milton Hershey, the founder of Hersheys chocolates was supposed to be on board in Titanic. But fortunately, he cancelled his reservation at the end moment!

6. A film based on the sinking of Titanic called ‘Saved From The Titanic’ was released just 29 days after the disaster. It featured Dorothy Gibson, one of the survivors. She wore the same dress on the sets of the film that she did on that unfateful day the Titanic sank. Reliving those moments affected Dorothy’s health so adversely, she had a mental breakdown.

7. The movie had a scene showing the musicians on the ship still playing as it sank and people drowned. That actually happened when the real Titanic sank. Those musicians played for hours and none of them survived.

8. When Titanic sank, the first draft of the London Daily mail wrongly reported the incident claiming that no lives were lost! It was later updated.

9. Robert De Niro was approached for the role of Captain Smith but he declined the offer because he was suffering from a gastrointestinal infection.

10. The chief baker of the Titanic had consumed a lot of alcohol the same night the ship sank. As a result, his body was warm enough to keep him alive in the cold for 2 hours till he was rescued.

11. Matthew McConaughey was the production studio’s first choice to play the lead but director James Cameron insisted that they sign Leonardo DiCaprio instead. The rest, as they say, is history!

12. Of the 1514 people who died, only 336 bodies were found.

13. Gloria Stuart, the 87 year old woman who played the old Rose, was the only person in the movie, who was alive in 1912, when Titanic actually sank. She also became the oldest person ever to be nominated for an Oscar with this film.

14. While the film was being shot, someone on the sets spiked the cast and crews food with PCP (also called angel dust). It was reported that most of them had hallucinations that day and about 80 people were hospitalized.

15. James Cameron didn’t even know a passenger called J.Dawsom had actually died in the Titanic disaster in 1912 when he wrote Leonardo Di Caprio’s character.

16. Titanic, the ship, was actually constructed for $7.5 million, which would approximately be equivalent to $150 million in 1997. The film, Titanic, shot in 1997, cost more than $200 million!

17. The scene where the Grand Staircase room gets flooded had to be shot in a single go because the sets would be destroyed.

18. The sketches that Jack makes in the film were actually made by James Cameron himself! The hands shown sketching in the movie were not Leo’s but James Cameron’s. What a man!

19. Director James Cameron and the Studios considered a lot of actresses like Nicole Kidman, Cameron Diaz, Sharon Stone to play Rose, before they zeroed in on Kate Winslet.

20. The scene where Leonardo sketches a nude Kate Winslet was one of the most beautiful scenes in the film and the director and the actors wanted it to be perfect. Just to make the scene a little less awkward, Kate Winslet flashed Leonardo DiCaprio the first time they met on the sets.

21. The film was originally going to be called ‘Planet Ice’.