Lou Falter, who played Isadore Strauss, the founder of the American Macy's department store chain who perished in the shipwreck with his wife Ida, has died at the age of 94 after a battle with lung cancer.
Lou Felter in Titanic, photo: PR
Felter died at his home in Los Angeles on May 21, but his daughter has only confirmed his death now, more than a month after his death.
Felter was born in 1928 in New York City and began his career in the entertainment industry on stage, before moving to the small screen in 1967 with Run for Your Life. Over the years, he took part in dozens of other series including "Charlie's Angels", "Crew to the Point", "The Brady Family", "Steve Austin: The Man Worth Millions" and more.
Lou Felter in Titanic, photo: PR
Aside from a successful acting career, Felter also enlisted and served in the army, qualified as a Doctor of Philosophy, and served as a faculty member and esteemed lecturer at the California Institute of the Arts for more than four decades.
During his long career, he also took part in directing and producing on stage and in film such as "The Steagle", "First Monday In October" and "Titanic", where he played Isidor Strauss.
Lou Felter in Titanic, photo: PR
In Strauss's character, he refused to board the lifeboats when the ship began to sink before all the women and children were evacuated, and sank into the depths with his wife Ida, when, according to the stories and documentation in the now-iconic film, the two lay hugged in bed after refusing to part ways.
Titanic: 25 Years - Trailer Re-release. Photo: PR
With almost chilling timing, the sinking of Oceangate's submarine Titan last week, which was on its way to the depths to view the wreckage of the famous shipwreck, is also indirectly related to the increased interest surrounding Falter's death, since Wendy Rush, the widow of Stockton Rush, the CEO and founder of Oceangate, is the five (great-granddaughter) of Isidor and Ida Strauss, who were the inspiration for the characters in the blockbuster film.
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