When the Dancing Stopped: The Real Story of the Morro Castle Disaster and Its Deadly Wake

by Brian Hicks

In the bestselling tradition of The Devil in the White City, award-winning author Hicks tells the explosive story of the Morro Castle, the elegant luxury liner that burned off the coast of New Jersey in 1934.

Genres: Nonfiction, History, True Crime, Audiobook, Maritime, Tragedy, Historical

368 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2006

Reviews

[BAM doesn’t answer to her real name · Rating 4 out of 5]

Maybe closer to 3.5
Cruising on the Morro Castle during the early 1930s was an escape from the drudgery of life during the depression. Sailing from New York to Havana, the trip took middle class families and young single females on a whirlwind break from reality.
But in September, 1934, one of the worst maritime disasters in American history occurred leaving more than half of its passengers dead or lost at sea.
This book begins with the exploration of this final cruise and its possible catalyst. However, the investigation evolves to include crimes committed by the man believed to be the arsonist. This leading storytelling makes this an original true crime narrative. The author does an excellent job of research and interviewing without blatantly presenting the information as such. At the time of drafting the book, there was one remaining surviving crew member and a handful of scattered voyagers. No one escaped unscathed from this tragic incident, but was it an accident?

[Diana · Rating 2 out of 5]

I had wanted to read this book for quite a while. I hadn't read much about the Morro Castle disaster before this. I was enjoying the book for a bit, but the author started going on about various conspiracy theories, and how this person was poisoned, this person left passengers to die on purpose, etc. It got old about halfway through, and I gave up at 90%. Hopefully, I can find another book about this disaster to read.

[Bon · Rating 3 out of 5]

A wild and fascinating chunk of maritime history, delivered by one of the worst audiobook narrators I've ever heard. His volume had no moderation, the Jersey and old-timey transatlantic attempts were just jarring and shrill... Ahhhh. This sure sent me down a wiki rabbit hole, though.

[GoldGato · Rating 5 out of 5]

There are usually three types of crime layouts for books:

1. The author decides he/she knows what was in a criminal's head and spends the entire book spinning the spin.

2. The author writes a thesis but neglects to keep the reader involved due to the fact that it's really just a thesis.

3. The author throws everything at the reader from the beginning, so the rest of the book is a letdown.

Thankfully, this book is none of the above. Brian Hicks crafts a tale that leads the reader into a just-one-more-page-even-though-it's-2AM spellbinding journey to discover the cause behind one of the greatest maritime disasters of the 20th century. Hicks has done his research homework, to the point where he even throws off newspaper facts from the 19th century, all to support his findings on the psychopath who is really the center of the story.

We don't know this, of course, because we think we're going to read a book about a ship, but it's so much more than that. I love authors who do their homework and don't just guess, and that's why this book merits the highest marks. Engrossing and gruesome.

Book Season = Autumn (because that's when the nuts thrive)

[Donna · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this! For me it was especially interesting since I’m familiar with a few of the towns.
I have reproduction postcards of this ship and other local historical images of Southern Jersey, but didn’t know the history behind the image. This was a real eye-opener. The writing, the story, the characters and familiar towns involved kept me on the edge of my seat. As the drama intensified, I could not put this book down. I’m still amazed and keep googling images of the ship.

How Rogers got away with all he did for so long is a testament to his genius. Too bad his super powers went astray. I wonder how his wife stayed with him or what she thought was going on. An interview with her would have been a plus.

All in all…it reminds me there’s always more going on behind the scenes than what folks tell you.

[Sue King · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a solid 3.5 rating. (Also note that I paused reading on vacation, taking ‘beach reads’ with me, leaving this at home)
It took me a while to get into this book, which is the true story of a disaster at sea, in the vein of The Devil and the White City. But once things started moving, so to speak, the action was swift. The disaster is complete by the halfway point in the book, and then you start the job of figuring out who should be implicated in the disaster. My attention was not held quite at the Erik Larson level, but if you enjoy those type of books, you should try this.
On another note, I am amazed that the Morro Castle disaster is not more well-known. I’ve lived in New England for most of my life, and this happened a short distance away off the coast of New Jersey. Until I was loaned this book from a friend, I had never heard of it.

[Tim · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Morro Castle tragedy is a terrible but fascinating story. I enjoyed the book from beginning to end save one caveat: I would have preferred a bit more focus versus spreading out the unfolding events among a bigger number of people/survivors.

When The Dancing Stopped is really 3 stories: part 1. Shipbuilding(50hours one way from NYC to Havana!), society of the late 1920s/early 1930s(prohibition, Great Depression), the cruise line company and its working conditions(the pay was not.....great). part 2. The Morro Castle tragedy. part 3. George Rogers, the Morro Castle “hero”.

Once part 2 starts, the author uses his well researched material to put you right in the midst of the deadly chaos. Even knowing the outcome I felt an underlying tension as I turned each page. If you are interested in maritime disasters, Morro Castle is a must read.
For part 3 you’re introduced to the unfortunate reality of life. The takeaways are: people aren’t always what they seem, don’t believe everything you read in the newspapers, justice sometimes happens but it can take years and come in alternate forms.

[CJ · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Morro Castle was a luxury liner which sailed from New York City to Havana, Cuba during the early thirties. Although its primary function was to transport mail between the two cities, the ship also had a decent passenger business--despite the ever-worsening depression--taking tourists to "Gay Havana" which at the time was still a wild party town. On the Labor Day cruise in 1934, the ship mysteriously caught fire and sunk, killing more than half the passengers and crew aboard. This book tells that story, but also tells the story of George Rogers, a radio operator who was convicted of murdering two elderly neighbors as well as attempting to kill a friend with a bomb. The connection between those two stories is that George Rogers was the radio operator on the Morro Castle, and many believe he was responsible for setting the fire, and possibly also for murdering the ship's captain before the fire began.

The author of the book, Brian Hicks, has obviously done painstaking research, and although the book tends to be a novelization, it is comfortable with inserting facts (as well as their sources) into the story. The main voice we hear from during the parts of the story which take place on the Morro Castle is Tom, a young man who was working on the ship that summer. Hicks had a chance to interview Tom (who was roughly 84 at the time Hicks met him) and get a lot of details not just about the fire itself, but also about the way the ship ran and about the tensions and problems among the crew leading up to the disaster.

Hicks follows an extensive description of the disaster itself with coverage of the various trials held to attempt to get to the truth about the matter with regards to fault and blame. The aggregious errors made by the replacement captain and the crew are brought to light by the combined efforts of the U.S. District Attorney's office, the department which would soon become the FBI, and the board that dealt with issues of the sea. After that, Hicks continues on to follow George Rogers, and the case quietly being built against him as far as the Morro Castle was concerned.

This book is well-written and includes a lot of interesting, gripping details. It has a certain feeling of being a detective story without getting totally side-tracked, never forgetting what the story is REALLY about. The author ties his strings together well, and in general I found the book to be a fascinating read.

[Donna · Rating 4 out of 5]

The shipwrecks I read about are usually age-of-sail affairs that follow the survivors' struggle against their environment (and occasionally each other). But the wreck of the Morro Castle involves more than just the fire, the crew's response, and the rescue efforts. The author presents historical context, personal accounts, and a heaping pile of evidence against one arson suspect, all delivered in an organized, cohesive way.

The story itself is unnerving. There was unrest among the crew, and the captain died shortly before the ship burned. The fire started in one of the few areas that didn't have an automatic fire detection system. Orders to abandon ship or call for help were delayed by poor communication. Many of the lifeboats either burned or launched with only a few people aboard, leading those who couldn't reach them to jump into the ocean and hope they'd get picked up. One of the ship's design features helped to spread the fire, and rough weather made rescue difficult. But the author makes a credible case that the 135 deaths were ultimately the responsibility of radio operator George White Rodgers.

Right after the wreck, Rodgers was called a hero for getting the SOS out before the ship's equipment failed. The last third of the book explores his history of erratic behavior and later crimes, including an attempt to kill a coworker with a homemade bomb. Rodgers went to prison after being convicted of two murders, where he teased reporters about new information on the Morro Castle.

The book is primarily about the ship and the crew member who may have burned it, but it also brings to life a time when ship owners feared communist infiltration and New York tourists cruised to Havana. It was compelling and written well, but the author doesn't address any other theories about the cause of the fire, even to argue against them.

It was also more difficult to get through than it should have been, because somebody decided to get creative and set it in a tall, narrow typeface. I was interested in the story and am not even that prone to eyestrain, but I had to keep putting it down.

[Jennifer W · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fascinating story of a disaster I had never heard of. It started off a little slow, but after the 2nd death (the first being more of an anecdote), it took off and I couldn't stop reading. Like most large catastrophes, lots of small acts lead up to a big freaking disaster. An inexperienced leader, 2 huge storms in the Atlantic, a crew and passengers not properly trained in evacuating a ship, a floating pile of fuel and excellerants, and maybe, just maybe, a madman capable of setting it all ablaze. It doesn't end the night the ship ran aground, because someone that diabolical, that evil, doesn't just stop. He relished the attention and decimated anyone who got in his way. It's all circumstantial, mind you, but there's a hell of a lot of circumstances.

[K · Rating 4 out of 5]

In the summer of 1934, off the coast of New Jersey, the Morro Castle, a well-known luxury liner returning from a Labor Day cruise to Havana, caught fire during a tropical storm just hours after its captain was found dead in his cabin. The ship was incinerated, some 134 passengers died, and the rest forced to jump into the sea to survive. Based on recently declassified FBI files, thousands of pages of investigation notes, testimony, and new interviews, Hicks provides a fast-paced account exploring the mystery of what exactly happened on the Morro Castle seven decades ago.

[Jill · Rating 2 out of 5]

I thought the book was incredibly researched but I didn't find it as gripping as I thought I would. I had never heard of the Morro Castle disaster so I was intriqued. I did though find myself gasping here and there reading what all Rogers had done and gotten away with for so long. Too bad there was never any conclusive evidence against him for justice sake.

[Holly Ristau · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this historical true crime story. It was well-researched and talked about an historical event that I hadn't heard about before. My two favorite things: history and mystery! It was also well- indexed, which I appreciated. I wish there had been a list of characters and their jobs because so many people are referenced, I ended up making my own list as I read along.

[Susan Olesen · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved Hicks's Ghost Ship, and this lives up to that. I love a good true story that reads like a great novel.

The Morro Castle was a 30's ship that ran cruises and mail from New York to Havanna. On its last voyage, it ran into the perfect storm of disaster - a weakening hurricane running up the coast faster than they could outrun it, a Nor'easter bearing down on them from the north, a dead captain - probably poisoned, a crew that had never done a lifeboat or fire drill, wood polished with kerosene, a second in command who froze in the face of disaster, a fire that started mysteriously in a closet in a room that sat underneath 100 lbs of gunpowder used to fire a rope gun, lifeboats (there were plenty) that couldn't be launched because the pulleys had been painted solid, and a crew who had no idea what to do in case of fire, and never pulled the fire doors - as well as passing ships who ignored their SOS. The Morro Castle went up like a match, and more than 130 passengers died.

On board, of course, was a psychopath with a long history of questionable behavior. Radioman George Rogers had been kicked out of every school he attended for questionable behaviors, kicked out of the Navy, let go from jobs, was questioned for theft and arson that always seem to happen to places he worked, but had a silver tongue, a schmoozy personality, and no one was ever able to pin much on him. He was investigated by the FBI for the Morro Castle incident, but like a bad movie, they never brought forth their evidence, so Rogers went on to work in the Bayonne Police Dept, where he blew up a coworker whom he'd told how he started the fire on the Morro Castle. Years later, mad at his neighbor, he murdered the neighbor and daughter, which he was finally charged with and sentenced to life. Multiple psychiatrists branded him a psychopath, absolutely unable to undertand right from wrong.

No one had ever connected the dots, and, literally, hundreds of people died. A shipwreck you never heard of, and a story that should have been made into a thriller movie decades ago. This book is compelling and difficult to put down - you simply have to know the next page. Excellent.

[Steve C · Rating 5 out of 5]

If one reads The Devil in the white City, and you enjoyed it, I think that reader will also enjoy this book and perhaps more. In both there is a psychopath, but this one is punished to some degree after being allowed to continue his misdeeds.
As for the story line, being from New Jersey, I always heard of the Morro Castle, and saw pictures of it in and around Asbury Park, now on the verge of a rebirth, but never fully knew the whole story. This book is very good at explaining the voyage and pain associated with its being set on fire. The carnage and sufferings are unspeakable as well as the bravery by the few. I suggest reading the book and watching some of the historic video on Youtube in order to make the horror that much more meaningful. Highly recommended.

[Tim · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm a huge Titanic buff and consider myself an amateur Titanic historian, however the more I think about it the more fascinating I'm finding the story of the Morro Castle. "When then Dancing Stopped" felt like one of those non-fiction books that reads like fiction. I had a hard time putting it down. The Morro Castle was a real ship that caught fire off the New Jersey coast one night, and the ship ended up grounding in a NJ beach town. The book is split into four parts which I thought were well tied together: life on the ship during the final voyage, the fire, the initial investigations, and the remainder of the life of the main suspect.

[Tyler Wolanin · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a good combination of a nautical disaster story and a true-crime investigation. Hicks has his theory of what happened to the Morro Castle and who was responsible, so the book isn't necessarily a balanced look at the full topic. It does, however, make a convincing argument, and provides a good summary of the disaster itself with information from survivor accounts and other sources (the follow-up on the crime is similarly well-sourced original research).

Full blog post here: https://tylerwolanin.com/2021/6/14/wh...

[Becki D · Rating 5 out of 5]

5 Stars: I highly recommend reading. This book starts slowly as it explains the people and setting, but once it gets going, it's a book you can't put down. The writing is very engaging, and the story is dramatic and well told. This book is both a disaster and a true crime at once. The book is very engaging in both tales: the catastrophe on the Morro Castle and the actual crime element. I found myself blown away by the chain of events of the disaster. The Titanic was one of the worst disasters in which human factors caused a tragedy to be made worse than it should have been, but the fire aboard the Morro Castle is much, much, much worse. It makes the Titanic look like child's play.

[Nihilistic Librarian · Rating 5 out of 5]

The story of the Morro Castle covers everything and anything to do with disaster at sea; arson, sabotage, murder, corruption, and the horrifying reality of callous capitalism in the face of hundreds of deaths. Brian Hicks masterfully weaves politics, first-hand accounts, and looming conspiracies into decades of investigation and unanswered questions. Highly recommend for lovers of history, maritime disaster, and stories so unbelievable you have to read it.

[Tori · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was captivated the whole way through! When I wasn't listening to it, I was thinking about it and telling my friends/family about it. And the narrator is absolutely exquisite! It was as if I were listening to a play!

[Liz · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is smartly written and thoroughly researched. Normally I hate it when history books veer off onto a tangential issue, but we get a little bonus true crime story in the second half, which was fascinating!

[Aishuu · Rating 4 out of 5]

An interesting disaster story about an event i never heard about. Not sure if liked the angle the writer took... it really turned into two different stories. Hald the book was about the accident, the other was an indictment of a psychopath.

[Caleb J. · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is my 3rd non-fiction book by this Author. It covers the sinking by fire of the famous cruise ship the Morro Castle in September 1934 and the surrounding drama that follow including investigation and trials including the suspicions of Celebrity George Rodgers.
This was slow and methodical journey in parts and a very interesting period piece in others. A recommended worthy read.

[M DeGarmo · Rating 5 out of 5]

Yet another excellent book by Brian Hicks. He is able to retell the tragic story of the Morro Castle disaster and all the people involved. A must read.

[Molly Brais · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very interesting story about the Morro Castle sinking and the life of crime of one of it's radio operators. Definitely kept my interest and was a really amazing story. I recommend it!

[Tom Mahan · Rating 4 out of 5]

An interesting take on a nautical disaster. Not sure how the author got so much dialog from people long gone, but very entertaining in any event.

[Leigh · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this book years ago and didn't remember much about it except that I liked it. So I decided to revisit the story. The Morro Castle story combines two non fiction subjects I read the most. Grand ocean liners and true crime. What happened on that blustery terrifying night in September 1934 largely remains a mystery but this books makes a good case for solving it. Broken into four parts the first introduces the main characters. There are the two Georges, Alagna, an agitator, the type who complains about everything and Rogers a quiet seemingly hardworking man who looks creepy and frankly has quite a few skeletons in his closet bothare radio operators along with Charles Maki who gets littlemention exceptfor being Finnish. Tom Torreson Jr a teenaged boy who sails as a passenger on the Morro Castle and falls in love with the beautiful ship only to be hired as a purser for the summer. Captain Wilmott the British born captain who strongly resembles Titanic's Captain Smith a sociable man, but one who's incompetence probably led to more deaths since he refused lifeboat drills for passengers fearing it would upset them. Other officers are William Warms who is basically second in command to Wilmott, and Eben Abbott the second highest ranked officer and chief engineer. Among the passengers are young Doris Wacker along with her parents and friend Marjorie, the daughter of the Cuban vice president and a handful of families and singles heading out for one last summer vacation. The labour day cruise goes well on the surface, but underneath lurks unrest with the crew feeling overworked and underpaid, the captain fearing someone is out to get him and rumours that Alagna will be fired upon arrival in New York. Part one ends with the captain who had been sick most of the voyage found dead in his bathroom. Part two is the disaster itself. Sadly everything that could go wrong did on the night of September 7-8 1934. With the captain dead, Warms takes over command though again some dispute his right to command and even he has doubts. To add to this confusion the ship is literally sandwiched between a noreaster and a tropical storm. Eager to put distance between the ship and the storms they sail full steam ahead. At around 3 AM a passenger smells smoke. A fire is discovers and literally all hell breaks loose. What should've been a quickly contained fire tears through the ship cutting off exits and access to the lifeboats. Soon the officers are trapped at the bow and passengers at the stern. Any lifeboats that do launch have mostly crew and only a small handful of passengers including the daughter of the Cuban vice president and the chief engineer who bails the first chance he gets. Faced with the horrid choice of burning or drowning people jump into the choppy waters as the promised storm arrives right on cue. In a heartbreaking hard to put down section you feel the pain, suffering and fear of the people in the water wondering if they will make it out alive. Due to their closeness to shore some are able to swim to the nearby beach, rescue comes eventually and a few vessels from that shore also come to the rescue. The governor even arrived and pointed out survivors for the boats to pick up. Part two ends with the still burning Morro Castle beaching at Asbury Park. Part three details the many inquiries and investigations. George Alagna is thrown under the bus while Rogers is lauded as a hero. No one really served any time for the disaster but most felt justice was done. I still want to know what really happened to the other radioman Maki but I guess that'll stay a mystery. Part four details the crimes of George Rogers and outlines how he could be the one behind it all. Convicted first of attempted murder, then of double murder its believed that he even confessed to starting the fire with a pen bomb and he has a chilling pattern of both poisoning and causing fires. George Rogers is a very frightening evil man. If he did destroy the Morro Castle is still a mystery but this book provides plenty of evidence that says he probably had something to do with it. Overall the book was very gripping. I'm surprised the Morro Castle with all its drama and intrigue is relatively unknown today. I enjoyed it though and would recommend for anyone interested in ocean liners and or true crime stories.

[Stacey · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found this book looking for "Dead Wake" by Erik Larson, and it sounded intriguing, so I borrowed it from my library and I'm glad I did! (I seem to be obsessed with maritime disasters at the moment).
Well written account of a disaster that I had never heard of, but which changed the shipping industry in many ways. A ship the offered trips to Cuba during the Depression. Hicks relies on first person accounts, including an interview with one of the surviving crewman who brings the ship and its time to life. Hicks doesn't reveal the "villain" until the middle of the book, but the reader can sense who it might be and it is a little fun to try and guess. The person is truly evil. I learned more about the beginning of the cruise ship, the history of Cuba, and a disaster that dominated headlines at the time, but I had never heard of... it's a good read.

[Sheila · Rating 5 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book. I had never heard about the Morro Castle nor about the disaster. The book read like a novel. Occasionally the voice of the narrator was heard but for the most part the story and what people involved were living through was the focus. I liked the you were there feeling as the author described what was going on in the different parts of the ship and how people just wanted to get away from home during the Great Depression. As the story builds you find out about the engineering of the ship and the crew and their jobs and actions during the crisis. I liked the glimpse we had of Havana when Americans still could travel there. Little personal anecdotes were throughout the book which made the book alive for me. An amazing story. Amazing research. Good read.

[Trappercat · Rating 1 out of 5]

This was a horrible book that I kept reading because of all the high marks. It is by no means a 4 or 5 * book.

It was redundant through the book, rehashing the telling of the story, using the exact same words ad-nausea.The lying and discontent by the officers, the crew and passengers were marked mostly by a few "trials" to find out what happened. No grand discovery by the author. The only learned behavior was that from that forward cruise lines held regular lifeboat drills.

The erratic behavior of the radio man speaks to a clueless, untrained person, not to a person who had any care for life and limb. Having to hear about him during the rest of the book bored me to pieces.

I will never read anything by Brian Hicks again, especially a "quasi-fact" book.