Tropical cyclones in popular culture explained

The appearances of tropical cyclones in popular culture spans many genres of media and encompasses many different plot uses.

It includes both fictional tropical cyclones, and real ones used as the basis for a fictional work, and has proven to be of enough interest for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration ("NOAA") to maintain a webpage on the topic.[1]

Purpose in fiction and literature

Although many forms of natural disaster appear in fiction and literature, tropical cyclones serve a number of useful literary functions because they are both extraordinarily powerful and, to those who have some experience with them, their occurrence can be portended several days in advance. The NOAA page notes that:

The strength of the tropical cyclone has made it a device by which authors explain the upending of characters' lives, and even transformations of the personalities of those who live through such an event. Their somewhat hazy predictability also makes them a useful MacGuffin, an impetus for characters to set to action. In some instances, the storm provides cover for characters to engage in covert behavior.

Early history of tropical cyclones in literature

One of the earliest uses of a tropical cyclone as a plot device occurs in a William Shakespeare play, The Tempest, first performed in 1611 or 1612. There, a storm (raised by the sorcerer Prospero) blows key characters to the island to which Prospero had been exiled many years before. The theme is said to have been inspired by Shakespeare's knowledge of a real-life hurricane which had caused the shipwreck of the Sea Venture in 1609 on the islands of Bermuda, while sailing toward Virginia.[1]

Edgar Allan Poe, in his 1841 story, "A Descent into the Maelström", has the main character describe how "the most terrible hurricane that ever came out of the heavens" forced the boat crewed by himself and his brothers into a gigantic whirlpool.[2] The trauma of surviving the storm and the whirlpool (and seeing the death of his brothers) is asserted to have a profound effect on the character, causing his hair to turn white. However, since the story is asserted to occur off the coast of Norway, it is unlikely that the event described could have fallen within the formal definition of a hurricane, as such storms form almost exclusively in the Maritime Tropical air masses of tropical regions of the globe.

Joseph Conrad, in his acclaimed 1903 book Typhoon, uses a tropical cyclone as a more direct element of the story, centering the plot on a ship captain's stubborn insistence on going into the heart of such a storm.[1]

Fictional tropical cyclones

Works predominantly focused on the occurrence of a fictional tropical cyclone

Books and plays

Television

Music

Works in which a fictional tropical cyclone is a key event

Books and plays

Television

Theatrical films

Video games

Fictional accounts of real tropical cyclones

Works predominantly focused on the occurrence of a tropical cyclone

Books

Carl Hiaasen's Stormy Weather gives a madcap tale of the aftermath of Andrew's visit to South Florida in 1992, lambasting shoddy builders and corrupt inspectors, and providing happy endings for most of those who deserve it, and biblical punishments for those that don't.[99]

Robin White's Hunters in the Sea opens with a Los Angeles class submarine searching for a Hurricane Hunter aircraft which had been downed investigating Hurricane Vince.[100]

Television

Theatrical films

Music

Works in which a tropical cyclone is a key event

Theatrical films

In John M. Stahl's 1939 film When Tomorrow Comes, based on James M. Cain's idea for The Root of His Evil (called The Modern Cinderella, a name that was also used in some publicity material for Stahl's film) two lovers are trapped by a hurricane that causes major damage to the Northeast. The storm forces the two to stay the night together in a church, simultaneously ending a strike that Irene Dunne's character organized, bringing the lovers closer together, and prompting major conflicts with other characters. Although the storm is not named, the film was released in 1939, and the major hurricane that struck New England the year before would have been the storm most closely associated with it.

See also

Notes and References

  1. Web site: NOAA FAQ: What fictional books, plays, and movies have been written involving tropical cyclones?. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. August 28, 2012.
  2. [Wikisource: A Descent into the Maelström]
  3. Book: Hughes, Richard. Richard Hughes (writer). A High Wind in Jamaica. The Modern Library. 1932. 60.
  4. Web site: In Hazard by Richard Hughes. New York Review Books. September 15, 2012.
  5. Web site: In Hazard by Richard Hughes. 18 February 2009 . bibliographing.com. September 15, 2012.
  6. "Hurricane at Sea", The Saturday Review, October 8, 1938. William Maxwell.
  7. "Fiction", The North American Review, December 1938.
  8. Web site: The mystery of the double double cross / Mary Blount Christian; cover and frontispiece by Marie De John. Miami University Libraries. August 28, 2012.
  9. Book: Mary Blount Christian. The Mystery of the Double Double Cross. 1982. A. Whitman. 978-0-8075-5374-9.
  10. Book: Bill. Evans. Marianna. Jameson. Category 7: The Biggest Storm in History. Tor Books. 2007. 5.
  11. Book: Bill. Evans. Marianna. Jameson. Category 7: The Biggest Storm in History. Tor Books. 2007. 978-0-7653-5671-0.
  12. Hilbert Schenck. Hilbert. Schenck. Hurricane Claude. Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction. 64. 4. April 1983.
  13. Book: Marlow, Max. Her Name Will Be Faith. New English Library. 1988. 415.
  14. Book: Marlow, Max. Her Name Will Be Faith. New English Library. 1988. 123.
  15. Book: Marlow, Max. Her Name Will Be Faith. New English Library. 1988. 59.
  16. Book: Marlow, Max. Her Name Will Be Faith. New English Library. 1988. 76.
  17. Book: Marlow, Max. Her Name Will Be Faith. New English Library. 1988. 95.
  18. Book: Marlow, Max. Her Name Will Be Faith. New English Library. 1988. 99.
  19. Book: Marlow, Max. Her Name Will Be Faith. New English Library. 1988. 0-450-50101-9.
  20. Book: Bagley, Desmond. Desmond Bagley. Wyatt's Hurricane. Fontana. 1980. 19.
  21. Book: Bagley, Desmond. Desmond Bagley. Wyatt's Hurricane. Fontana. 1980. 0-00-615398-4.
  22. Book: Stewart, George R.. George R. Stewart. Storm. 1983 . University of Nebraska Press . 0-8032-9135-3.
  23. Ben Bova. Ben. Bova. The Weathermakers. Analog. 88. 4. December 1966.
  24. Web site: The Golden Girls - Season 7, Episode 8:The Monkey Show (1). tv.com. September 15, 2012.
  25. Web site: The Golden Girls - Season 7, Episode 9:The Monkey Show (2). tv.com. September 15, 2012.
  26. Web site: Empty Nest - Season 4, Episode 8:Windy. tv.com. September 15, 2012.
  27. Web site: Nurses (1991) - Season 1, Episode 9:Begone with the Wind. tv.com. September 15, 2012.
  28. Ray Broadus Browne, Pat Browne, The guide to United States popular culture (2001), p. 365.
  29. Web site: Storm Watch: NBC's character crossovers -- Stars from Empty Nest, Golden Girls, and Nurses will appear on each other's shows during a Miami hurricane. https://web.archive.org/web/20070525111315/http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,316029,00.html. dead. May 25, 2007. Entertainment Weekly. Alan Carter. September 15, 2012.
  30. Web site: Hurricane (TV, 1974). Internet Movie Database. August 28, 2012.
  31. Web site: Perfect Disaster - Season 1, Episode 3:Super Typhoon. TV.com. August 28, 2012.
  32. Web site: Hong Kong - typhoons in the past and future. Michelle. Tang. emptyswings.blogspot.com.au. October 24, 2010. August 28, 2012.
  33. Web site: Far Side of the World - Lyrics. https://web.archive.org/web/20070512210409/http://www.margaritaville.com/lyrics_fsotw.php. Jimmy Buffett's MARGARITAVILLE.com. 12 May 2007. September 15, 2012.
  34. Web site: A1A - Lyrics. https://web.archive.org/web/20070606035833/http://margaritaville.com/lyrics_a1a.php. Jimmy Buffett's MARGARITAVILLE.com. 6 June 2007. September 15, 2012.
  35. Web site: Floridays - Lyrics. https://web.archive.org/web/20070411014809/http://www.margaritaville.com/lyrics_floridays.php. Jimmy Buffett's MARGARITAVILLE.com. 11 April 2007. September 15, 2012.
  36. Web site: Christmas Island - Lyrics. https://web.archive.org/web/20070411050945/http://www.margaritaville.com/lyrics_christmas.php. Jimmy Buffett's MARGARITAVILLE.com. 11 April 2007. September 15, 2012.
  37. Web site: Don't Stop the Carnival - Lyrics. https://web.archive.org/web/20070411005632/http://www.margaritaville.com/lyrics_dstc.php. Jimmy Buffett's MARGARITAVILLE.com. 11 April 2007. September 15, 2012.
  38. Book: Taylor, Theodore. Theodore Taylor (author). The Cay. 1969. Random House Children's Books . 0-440-41663-9.
  39. Book: Jenkins, Geoffrey. Geoffrey Jenkins. Hunter-Killer. Fontana. 1989. 0-00-616199-5.
  40. Book: Reeman, Douglas. Douglas Reeman. Path of the Storm. Arrow Books. 1984. 0-09-907070-7.
  41. Book: Gerritsen, Tess. Tess Gerritsen. Gravity. registration. Pocket Books. 1999. 0-671-01677-6.
  42. Book: Clancy, Tom. Tom Clancy. Clear and Present Danger. Fontana. 1989. 795.
  43. Book: Clancy, Tom. Tom Clancy. Clear and Present Danger. Fontana. 1989. 0-00-617730-1.
  44. Book: Trew, Anthony. The Moonraker Mutiny. Fontana. 1972. 0-00-615008-X.
  45. Book: Cussler, Clive. Clive Cussler. Raise the Titanic!. Sphere. 1980. 0-7221-2750-2.
  46. Web site: Un-Official Raise The Titanic! Novel-Concordance Page. https://web.archive.org/web/20080310225652/http://www.raisethetitanic.com/novel/concordance.html. 10 March 2008. August 28, 2012.
  47. Book: Cade, Steven. Slade's Marauder. Fontana Books. 1980. 0-00-616056-5.
  48. Book: Hague, G M. Ghost Beyond Earth. Pan. 1993. 1-86515-633-7. registration.
  49. Lee. Correy. Shuttle Down (Pt 4). Analog Magazine. 101. 3. March 1981.
  50. Book: Correy, Lee. G. Harry Stine. Shuttle Down. Del Rey Books. 1981. 0-345-29262-6.
  51. Book: Chamberlain, Diane. The Lies We Told. Mira Books. 2010. 978-192168574-3.
  52. Book: Harper, Karen. Hurricane. registration. Mira Books. 2006. 1-741-16338-2.
  53. Book: Watson, John. The Iron Man. Warner Books. 1998. 180.
  54. Book: Watson, John. The Iron Man. Warner Books. 1998. 0-7515-2147-7.
  55. Book: Terman, Douglas. Douglas Terman. Star Shot. Collins. 1990. 0-00-223563-3.
  56. Lemony Snicket. The Wide Window.
  57. Book: Baxter, John. John Baxter (author). The Hermes Fall. Granada (Panther). 1978. 232.
  58. Book: Baxter, John. John Baxter (author). The Hermes Fall. Granada (Panther). 1978. 0-586-04610-0. registration.
  59. Book: Casey, Kathryn. Kathryn Casey. The Killing Storm. Minotaur Books. 2010. 978-0-312-37952-0.
  60. Book: Cussler, Clive. Clive Cussler. Cyclops. Sphere. 1987. 131.
  61. Book: Cussler, Clive. Clive Cussler. Cyclops. Sphere. 1987. 0-7221-2756-1.
  62. Book: Smith, Wilbur. Wilbur Smith. Hungry As The Sea. Pan Books. 1978. 0-330-25798-6.
  63. Book: Barlay, Stephen. Stephen Barlay. Tsunami. Hamish Hamilton. 1986. 0-241-11721-6.
  64. Book: Francis, Dick. Dick Francis. Second Wind. registration. Michael Joseph. 1999. 43. 9780718144258 .
  65. Book: Francis, Dick. Dick Francis. Second Wind. registration. Michael Joseph. 1999. 248. 9780718144258 .
  66. Book: Francis, Dick. Dick Francis. Second Wind. registration. Michael Joseph. 1999. 0-7181-4408-2.
  67. Book: Messman, John. Killers At Sea. Cutting Edge Books. 2022. B09YDFR81J.
  68. Book: Kelman, Judith. Summer of Storms. Jove. 2001. 1.
  69. Book: Kelman, Judith. Summer of Storms. Jove. 2001. 2.
  70. Book: Kelman, Judith. Summer of Storms. Jove. 2001. 0-515-13290-X.
  71. Book: Davis. 1979. 321.
  72. Book: Davis, John Gordon. Typhoon. Corgi Books. 1979. 0-552-11185-6.
  73. Book: Nance, John J.. John J. Nance. Medusa's Child. Pan. 1998. 0-330-35428-0.
  74. [Jonathon King]
  75. Book: Follett, James. James Follett. Ice. Mandarin. 1989. 0-7493-0110-4.
  76. Web site: The Evidence Locker - Book Review: Hurricane Punch . https://archive.today/20121225141215/http://j-leigh-nelson.livejournal.com/47848.html . dead . December 25, 2012 . J. Leigh . Nelson . The Evidence Locker Blog . May 22, 2010 . September 15, 2012 .
  77. Web site: Hurricane Neddy – Episode Overview . Yahoo! TV . 2008-02-26 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20121107233430/http://tv.yahoo.com/the-simpsons/show/hurricane-neddy/episode/618 . November 7, 2012 .
  78. Web site: CSI: Miami Episodes – Episode Detail: Hurricane Anthony . https://web.archive.org/web/20090416200409/http://www.tvguide.com/detail/tv-show.aspx?tvobjectid=100101&more=ucepisodelist&episodeid=3962744 . dead . 2009-04-16 . TV Guide . 2008-02-25 .
  79. Web site: Storm (Video 1999). Internet Movie Database. August 28, 2012.
  80. Web site: Storm: Review. Million Monkey Theater. August 28, 2012.
  81. Web site: Nip/Tuck Episode Guide 2006 Season 4 - Conor McNamara, 2026, Episode 11. tvguide.com. September 15, 2012.
  82. Web site: Family Guy: One if by Clam, Two if by Sea – Summary . starpulse.com . 2008-02-26 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20090406060538/http://www.starpulse.com/movie/Family_Guy%3A_One_if_By_Clam%2C_Two_if_By_Sea/V299545/0/2/ . April 6, 2009 .
  83. http://www.seinfeldscripts.com/TheChecks.html Seinfeld scripts: The Checks
  84. Web site: The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air (1990) - Memorable Quotes. Internet Movie Database. September 15, 2012.
  85. Web site: Perfect Castaway. TV Squad. 2012-01-09. Ryan J Budke.
  86. Web site: The State Dinner-Season 1-The West Wing Episode Guide. The West Wing Episode Guide. August 28, 2012.
  87. Web site: Weather Bureau. Adult Swim. September 15, 2017.
  88. Web site: Key Largo(1948) - Memorable quotes. Internet Movie Database. September 15, 2012.
  89. Web site: Virus (1999). Internet Movie Database. September 15, 2012.
  90. News: Movie Review - Virus. Lawrence. Van Gelder. New York Times. 16 January 1999 . September 15, 2012.
  91. Web site: THEM Anime Reviews 4.0 - Pia Carrot: Sayaka's Love Story. themanime.org. September 15, 2012.
  92. Book: Caidin, Martin. Martin Caidin. Marooned. Bantam Books. 1969.
  93. Web site: The Lost World:Jurassic Park (1997) - Synopsis. Internet Movie Database. September 15, 2012.
  94. Web site: The Lost World - Unspecified Draft Screenplay. screenplayexplorer.com. September 15, 2012.
  95. Web site: The Day After Tomorrow (2004) - Trivia. Internet Movie Database. September 15, 2012.
  96. Web site: Now how does that happen? - Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Stories Message Board for PlayStation 2 - Game FAQs. gamefaqs.com. September 15, 2012.
  97. Book: Lehane, Dennis. Dennis Lehane. Shutter Island. Bantam Books. 2010. 978-0-553-82607-4. .
  98. Book: Junger, Sebastian. The Perfect Storm. W. W. Norton & Company. 2000. New York. 9780393040166.
  99. Web site: Guest Review - Stormy Weather by Carl Hiaasen. Jane. Little. Dear Author: A Romance review blog by readers for readers. August 3, 2008. September 15, 2012.
  100. Book: White, Robin. Hunters in the Sea. Orion. 2006. 978-1-4072-2621-7.
  101. Web site: Cyclone Tracy (TV mini-series 1986). Internet Movie Database. August 28, 2012.
  102. Web site: K-Ville (TV Series 2007). Internet Movie Database. August 28, 2012.
  103. Web site: The Perfect Storm (2000). Internet Movie Database. August 28, 2012.
  104. News: Santa never made it, but song to help Darwin. 7 July 2011. The Age. 1 January 1975. 3.
  105. Web site: Santa Never Made it into Darwin . https://web.archive.org/web/20110706113436/http://members.westnet.com.au/anugraha/music/files/santa.txt . Bill Cate. 6 July 2011. 29 August 2012.
  106. Web site: June 2000 . Faulkner . Dave . Pop and punishment . juliat . 2012-08-29 . https://web.archive.org/web/20070808085453/http://www-personal.umich.edu/~juliat/hg/popandpunishment.html . 2007-08-08 . dead .
  107. Web site: Take the weather with you - Lyrics. https://web.archive.org/web/20070606035711/http://margaritaville.com/lyrics_weather.php. Jimmy Buffett's MARGARITAVILLE.com. 6 June 2007. September 15, 2012.
  108. News: U2 to join forces with Green Day. BBC News. 9 September 2006 . August 28, 2012.
  109. David Savran, Taking It Like a Man: White Masculinity, Masochism, and Contemporary American Culture (1998), p. 302.