What did Bodine mean about Cedar Rapids being dead? I have yet to figure that one out, and as far as I know, the city still exists. Am I just dense or is that a pretty supid line?

-- Jeff (JTrayner@pacbell.net), February 27, 1998

Answers

I think he meant it is a small town and nothing much goes on there. Now, before someone from Cedar Rapids wants to hang me from the nearest yardarm, let me say that nothing much goes on in Pocasset, MA either but I still love where I live and I like it that way!

Regards, Peter

-- Peter Nivling (pcnivling@capecod.net), February 28, 1998.

Peter, if you REALLY wanna see dead come visit me in Christiansburg, VA!! But you are right, we like it that way! I wonder if we have any Cedar Rapids readers here? Are they mad, or happy to get the free publicity?

-- Laura (lrc@usit.net), March 02, 1998.

Being from Wisconsin myself, I can say that sometimes we like being a bit overlooked -- it keeps things calmer. But it's nice to get attention once in a while; I saw Titanic for the first time at home, and when Jack started his monologue about ice fishing in Wisconsin the the whole theater burst into cheers. (When we came out my mom said, "Well, about time Wisconsin gets its due -- usually when people want to talk about cold they talk about Minnesota! Hey, we're just as cold as they are!")

-- Alison (akaufman@worldbank.org), March 03, 1998.

Response to Is Ceader Rapid dead?

I am from Iowa, and not very far from Ceader Rapids, and as most towns in Iowa it *would* seem sead to just about anyone. As someone told me once, Iowa is a great place for old people to sit back and listen to the grass grow. Yes, but for a person who is 18 years old, we would like something a little more interesting to do. (Like see Titanic 5 times) I think that Ceader Rapids was not offended by that remark> :)

-- Laura Pliner (pliner98@hotmail.com), March 04, 1998.

Keep in mind that Bodine is shown in the film as not the most tactful of souls. It would fit right in to his character as demonstrated that he would make a toss-off deprecating remark about someplace that he's probably never been to!!

ml

-- Mary Lynne Nielsen (m.nielsen@ieee.org), March 04, 1998.

I'm still wondering what took Rose to Cedar Rapids. I assume it's that her husband, who she presumably met in L.A., was from there and he longed to go home. Rose may have thought,"Hmmm, only about 5 hrs' drive from Chippewa Falls..why not."

-- Bob Gregorio (rgregori@none.com), March 15, 1998.

I've never been to Iowa, and I agree that Bodine was a sarcastic guy-who, you notice, by the end of Rose's story looked a LOT more humble-Yes! I enjoyed the portrayal of someone from Wisconsin in a heroic role-here in Denver, you know, the home of the BRONCOS, all you heard in the media all through Dec. and Jan. was mostly gratuitous and infantile insults of anything pertaining to Green Bay and Wisconsin.

-- John Elway (foo@bar.com), March 20, 1998.

I lived in CR for several years. I think it was just a very insulting remark that didn't mean anything.

-- Jerry R. Green (jerry@legions.com), March 04, 2003.

The scene in general, as you know, was to show why they take Old Rose seriously (as in "How does she know what the Heart of the Ocean is called?) The line about Cedar Rapids was inserted for artistic reasons, to underscore the word "dead" THREE times.

"Now Calvert's dead..." "and from what I hear, Cedar Rapids is dead." "And everyone who knows about the diamond is dead, or on this boat, but she knows."

-- cricket k (smaccie@hotmail.com), June 01, 2003.