When The Dancing Stopped

The Real Story of the Morro Castle Disaster and Its Deadly Wake

By: Brian Hicks

Narrated by: Dick Hill

In the best-selling tradition of The Devil in the White City, award-winning author Brian Hicks tells the explosive story of the Morro Castle, the elegant luxury ocean liner that burned off the coast of New Jersey on September 7, 1934.

The captain of the luxurious Ward Line flagship died under mysterious circumstances seven hours before his ship caught. Much of the crew abandoned ship, leaving passengers to burn or jump into the sea as a hurricane approached and literally fanned the flames. The ship was incinerated, and 134 people perished.

Using hundreds of previously classified FBI reports, first-person survivor interviews, and countless documents, Brian Hicks has written and solved a murder mystery that mesmerized the nation more than 70 years ago. Told with authentic period detail and true-crime excitement, Hicks determines that the ominous weather was not the cause for the ship's burning. From Hick's deeply researched epic, we can only conclude that the disaster was the work of a madman among the crew.

Hicks creates a finely drawn portrait of Depression-era America. Perfect for history buffs and adventure enthusiasts, When the Dancing Stopped is nonfiction narrative at its best.

©2006 Brian Hicks (P)2006 Tantor Media, Inc.

Critic reviews

"A suspenseful, highly satisfying listen." (Kirkus)
"The book is a riveting account of this tragedy and the man who apparently caused it." (Booklist)
"Hicks has done a lot of research, but it never weighs down the narrative, which draws the listener in from the get-go." (Publishers Weekly)

Far Beyond a Shipwreck

If you ever wonder how these awful terrible people end up in power, just read this book. Keeps me awake at night.

Gripping account of a needless disaster.

This book caught my eye because I'd heard of the Morro Castle but knew just the basic outlines of the tragedy. I knew a lot of people died when the ship caught fire off the NJ coast, that's about all. I'm about halfway through it now and it's one of those selections that makes me look forward to my commute. The writer carefully paints a vivid picture of the events leading to the tragedy, and from many points of view. We are assured the author based the narrative on testimony, letters and other solid evidence. Trusting that's so, we see yet again that truth truly is stranger than fiction. Who would have thought a captain would choose to never have a fire drill because he didn't want to inconvenience the passengers. Even though it was routine throughout the industry and the passengers actually found the experience rather fun, an exciting little adventure, a comfort to know everyone was prepared in the unlikely event of fire. And who would think it so important that all the woodwork throughout the ship be polished to a high gloss that they regularly soaked all the wood surfaces in an inflammable concoction. And the constellation of events that conspired to leave the ship in the hands of a rookie who didn't think to send out an SOS at the first sign of trouble or turn the vessel out of a 20 knot headwind that was fanning the flames. If this were a movie of a fictional account, I'd have walked out by now. But this is all historical fact. I recommend this one to history buffs.

Excellent historical account

I was amazed how the book read like a novel, but was still true to fact. A great read!

the narrator is overly emphatic

From the very beginning and through out the Narrator over emphasizes every word. When emphasis is actually appropriate he shouts. I will not purchase another book read by this person.

I was, however, able to tolerate the reading and thus give it two stars.

Mystery & Murder Cruise

I found this book a very interesting piece of history combined with a murder mystery. The author does a fine job of research and manages to bring all the pieces together in a murder mystery that also captures the period well. The narration is nicely done. I would rate this a 4 star if not for a couple of technical details that probably only bother me. While I wouldn't recommend this as a first choice, I still recommend it if nothing else tickles your fancy.

Real life murder mystery!

Would you listen to When The Dancing Stopped again? Why?

If I run out of books, which I doubt, I would listen again. There is a lot of information in this book and I'm sure I missed some important things.

What did you like best about this story?

I liked the stories of the people whose lives were changed because of this tragedy. The young purser, the high school girl on her first trip and the men in the radio room.

The fire and death of the Captain were extremely interesting and the author goes to great lengths to explain them without much speculation. That is why I like true crime books.

What about Dick Hill’s performance did you like?

He is a good narrator for true stories that make them sound like potboilers and film noir. I enjoyed his work.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

I was very angry that the person most likely responsible for the crime was never prosecuted for it but happy that he is dead and gone now. However, had he been caught, several people he hurt later would have been much better off.

Not at all what I expected!

This is not an adventure book. It is detailed true history that follows the lives of a few characters. The construction details, the employees, the accident, the politics, J. Edgar Hoover, and trials. As I review the book in my mind, it indeed covers a lot from start to finish and the main characters are well developed making it more interesting as a documentary.

Very interesting story about a fairly unknown disaster

I really enjoyed the way of the story unfolded. I thought the characters were compelling and the way the author framed each of their storylines interesting. I thought the narrator did fine with the narration but that his voice characterizations all sounded a bit like Skipper from the Penguins of Madagascar.

Horrible Narration

This book is perhaps 60% a ship tragedy story, and the rest is a biography of the possible arsonist employed on the vessel. The vast information is not always well-organized; regardless, even if perfectly related, the narrator is awful to listen to. He is grating, melo dramatic, with an awful voice that sounds exactly like the deceased actor, Kevin McCarthy.

Gripping but forgotten story

Where does When The Dancing Stopped rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

Some audio books come and go. The portrayal of the tragedy of the Morro Castle is suspenseful enough that it is worth listening to again.