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- Six Chinese passengers survived the Titanic, inspiring a new show, "Unsinkable."
- Fang Lang, Steven Fong's grandfather, used a door to stay afloat.
- PAC NYC's show features contributions from Lang's family, highlighting their remarkable story.
NEW YORK CITY — A little-known story of six Chinese passengers who survived the sinking of the Titanic is adding to the legend of the famous shipwreck.
While the famous movie depicts Kate Winslet's character, Rose, surviving the tragedy by clinging to floating debris, it was actually Steven Fong's grandfather, Fang Lang, who used a door to stay afloat in the icy water.
"With my grandfather's story, he actually went down with the ship, and to everyone's amazement, he found his way onto a door," Fong said. "In the theatrical movie, James Cameron does reveal that my grandfather was the inspiration for the Jack and Rose end scene."
Fong said Lang never talked to his family about the Titanic, so there's a lot of mystery behind his story.
Researchers uncover story of surviving passengers
A team of researchers led by maritime historian and author Steven Schwankert uncovered the story of the surviving Chinese passengers. They were able to piece together their tale in the book and documentary "The Six."
Researchers found that eight Chinese passengers were making the transatlantic trip, and ultimately six survived.
"Fang Lang was plucked from the water, one of only four passengers rescued from the water," Schwankert said.
When Carpathia, the ship with the Titanic survivors on it, arrived in New York, the six Chinese men were forced to stay on board overnight due to the Chinese Exclusion Act. The ban on Chinese laborers entering the United States caused the men to set sail for Cuba.
Lang eventually found his way back to America, opened a bake shop and had two sons.
PAC NYC produces show based on legend
The remarkable story is continuing as the Perelman Performing Arts Center is producing a show called "Unsinkable," based on their saga.
Artistic Director Bill Rausch said Lang's family is helping contribute to the show
"We have his grandson and his son who support this production, who read the play, who gave us more details about their father and grandfather's life," he said.
"It's such a surreal feeling, you know, being part of, like, this legacy, this big story that everybody knows about. We're just so humbled by the opportunity to kind of add that to the story," Fong said.
