Movie star hosts special events on the SD waterfront
Academy award winning ship HMS Surprise is a hit for tourism!
SD Waterfront venue meets Hollywood
Peter Weir was scouting for a warship to portray a British frigate in the film “Master and Commander” when he saw the ship that would become his star. It was a three-masted replica of HMS Rose, used to bombard American defenses during the Revolutionary War.
“That’s my ship,” he thought, and made arrangements for Fox Studios to purchase the vessel. Re-rigged and re-configured, she was re-named HMS Surprise, to be commanded by Russell Crowe, who played the fictional Capt. Jack Aubrey.
The film was a success, and now HMS Surprise is one of the stars of the San Diego Maritime Museum, along with the tall ships Star of India and Californian. (Other historic ships on exhibit include the 1904 steam yacht Medea, the 1898 ferry Berkeley, and the B-39 Russian Submarine.)
HMS Surprise is filled with artifacts from the film, thanks to the generosity of Fox Studios. These include authentic period costumes from the early 1800s, replica hand weapons such as cutlasses and pistols, cannons, and exquisite crystal and china on the large captain’s table, lit by windows stretching across the stern gallery.
For private events, such as cocktail parties and corporate functions, HMS Surprise can be configured into a pirate theme, including music and costumed entertainers, fun for all ages. The ship is almost two hundred feet long, fully capable of hosting small or large groups for a special event location and where you too can be a movie star.
HMS Surprise can also be toured by individuals any day between 9 AM and 8 PM, along with the other historical ships on display at the Maritime Museum of San Diego.
Ed Jones, SD Writer 2006
