SS Poseidon (fiction)

The SS Poseidon is a fictional ocean liner that first appeared in the 1969 novel The Poseidon Adventure by Paul Gallico.

In the novel, the ship is traveling across the Atlantic on a month long tour of African and South American ports, after being converted from an ocean liner into a cruise ship. On December 26th, the ship is capsized when a landslide occurs on the mid Atlantic ridge. In the original 1972 film, the ship is in the Mediterranean on its final cruise, which will take it to the breaker's yards in Greece, but an undersea earthquake produces a rogue wave that capsizes the ship just after midnight on New Year's Eve. The film uses the RMS Queen Mary as a stand-in for the Poseidon, using both model shots and STOCK footage of the actual liner, now in Long Beach, California.

In the 2006 remake Poseidon, the ship sails the transatlantic route. This Poseidon too is struck by a rogue wave and capsizes, but is portrayed as a modern cruise ship, as it is shown using Azipod propulsion systems and uses petroleum fuels. It is registered in Southampton. As the old film used the Queen Mary as a stand-in for the SS Poseidon, the ship in this film was inspired by the RMS Queen Mary 2.

In the 2005 remake The Poseidon Adventure for television, the Poseidon is a cruise ship, sailing from Cape Town, South Africa, on a cruise through The INDIAN Ocean. The events that lead to the capsize of the ship vary greatly from the original book, wherein a partly foiled [...] plot to sink the ship using explosives below the water line leads to the Poseidon rolling over. This Poseidon also uses Azipod propulsion, making it an MS.

In the bulk of each story, a group of survivors try to make their way to the overturned top of the capsized ship, which will lead them out towards rescue.

Portrayals

The Poseidon has been portrayed in:

• The Poseidon Adventure (1972)
• Beyond the Poseidon Adventure (1979)
• The Poseidon Adventure (2005)
• Poseidon (2006)

pt:SS Poseidon