Miami Herald: Murder Mystery Cruises Aboard Royal Caribbean Ships Changed
A common element of each disappearance and in other cruise ship crimes and safety incidents is the lack of good evidence and/or successful investigations. Few if any crimes have been prosecuted. While on a cruise vacation, American citizens have a right to have an independent law enforcement person on each ship that they can immediately report crimes and safety problems. It has been suggested that cruise ships are small floating cities. They should have law enforcement available just the same. Is Royal Caribbean and Carnival profiting from George Smith's murder and other disappearances?
How insensitive can they be? They let amateurs investigate a fake crime scene for 168 hours (7-day cruise). They only gave Dr. Henry Lee 4 hours to investigate a real murder. Maybe they should have bought him a ticket for the Murder theme cruise. The theme cruises would not be in such bad taste if it wasn't for the fact that real deaths and disappearances are not investigated properly and the families cannot know whether the cruise line did everything humanly possible to save their loved ones and they may never know exactly what happened. Mysteries may be good for books, movies, and television shows but they offer no comfort or closure to those who have lost loved ones. We offer our support and prayers to all families as they struggle to resolve the tragedies of the past.
Posted on Sun, Jan. 29, 2006 CRUISE LINES
Tragedy changes game plan
Murder mystery cruises aboard Royal Caribbean ships were replaced in the wake of the honeymooner George Smith's disappearance.
BY AMY MARTINEZ aemartinez@MiamiHerald.com
The advertisement promised a cruise adventure ''to die for'' -- until the case of missing cruise-ship passenger George Smith. Now, the advertisement promotes a ''hilarious pirate'' mystery on the high seas. Whodunit Productions of Santa Clarita, Calif., recently pulled its ''murder mystery'' cruises with Royal Caribbean amid publicity surrounding the Smith case. Miami-based Royal Caribbean says it didn't ask for the switch -- it merely asked Whodunit ''to be as sensitive as possible'' given the case, according to spokeswoman Lynn Martenstein. Smith, 26, of Connecticut, was on his honeymoon aboard Royal Caribbean's Brilliance of the Seas in July when he disappeared in the Aegean Sea. His disappearance has become daily fodder for TV talk shows, from MSNBC's Rita Cosby Live & Direct to the Oprah Winfrey Show. The Smith family believes he was murdered and his body thrown overboard; the FBI is investigating. Whodunit Productions for the past several years has staged murder mysteries aboard Royal Caribbean ships for passengers who pay extra to play a game much like ''Clue,'' only with hired actors and elaborate props, including "notes slid under your cabin door, and secret phone calls made to your cabin." In the new ''pirate'' mysteries, there is no "murder mayhem.'' Instead, passengers search for the lost map of the Brethren of the Main on their way to discovering "all the riches of the legendary Santa Margarita!'' A voice mail message at Whodunit's California offices said the staff was away on a cruise and unavailable for comment.
How insensitive can they be? They let amateurs investigate a fake crime scene for 168 hours (7-day cruise). They only gave Dr. Henry Lee 4 hours to investigate a real murder. Maybe they should have bought him a ticket for the Murder theme cruise. The theme cruises would not be in such bad taste if it wasn't for the fact that real deaths and disappearances are not investigated properly and the families cannot know whether the cruise line did everything humanly possible to save their loved ones and they may never know exactly what happened. Mysteries may be good for books, movies, and television shows but they offer no comfort or closure to those who have lost loved ones. We offer our support and prayers to all families as they struggle to resolve the tragedies of the past.
Posted on Sun, Jan. 29, 2006 CRUISE LINES
Tragedy changes game plan
Murder mystery cruises aboard Royal Caribbean ships were replaced in the wake of the honeymooner George Smith's disappearance.
BY AMY MARTINEZ aemartinez@MiamiHerald.com
The advertisement promised a cruise adventure ''to die for'' -- until the case of missing cruise-ship passenger George Smith. Now, the advertisement promotes a ''hilarious pirate'' mystery on the high seas. Whodunit Productions of Santa Clarita, Calif., recently pulled its ''murder mystery'' cruises with Royal Caribbean amid publicity surrounding the Smith case. Miami-based Royal Caribbean says it didn't ask for the switch -- it merely asked Whodunit ''to be as sensitive as possible'' given the case, according to spokeswoman Lynn Martenstein. Smith, 26, of Connecticut, was on his honeymoon aboard Royal Caribbean's Brilliance of the Seas in July when he disappeared in the Aegean Sea. His disappearance has become daily fodder for TV talk shows, from MSNBC's Rita Cosby Live & Direct to the Oprah Winfrey Show. The Smith family believes he was murdered and his body thrown overboard; the FBI is investigating. Whodunit Productions for the past several years has staged murder mysteries aboard Royal Caribbean ships for passengers who pay extra to play a game much like ''Clue,'' only with hired actors and elaborate props, including "notes slid under your cabin door, and secret phone calls made to your cabin." In the new ''pirate'' mysteries, there is no "murder mayhem.'' Instead, passengers search for the lost map of the Brethren of the Main on their way to discovering "all the riches of the legendary Santa Margarita!'' A voice mail message at Whodunit's California offices said the staff was away on a cruise and unavailable for comment.
posted by Timalantoo | 1/29/2006 09:32:00 AM
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