Kate And Leo Help Last Titanic Survivor

LONDON — "Titanic" stars Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet have pledged to help the last survivor of the sinking of the ocean liner. The stars say they have thrown their support behind a fund that would subsidize Millvina Dean's nursing home fees.

Dean was 2 months old when the Titanic sank beneath the waves on the night of April 14, 1912. She has been living at a nursing home in the English city of Southampton since she broke her hip about three years ago but has struggled to pay the fees.

In October she sold several Titanic mementoes to raise cash.

DiCaprio and Winslet said in a statement that they hoped Dean could rest easier knowing that her future was secure. The Millvina Fund was launched Monday in Belfast, Northern Ireland.

Comments

[seaweaver]

10:42 AM on 05/12/2009

Oh my...Crack­s in the socialize health care system....
what...she paid in....50 years????
what a return.
cw

[Dana4Obama]

11:51 AM on 05/12/2009

Seaweaver.­..nice try but Healthcare­- and a Private Nursing Home are two different things... did you ever walk around and price a decent nursing home here in the good old USA...?? Guess what...our private health insurance that we pay out the a$$ for doesnt cover nursing homes either... Here is a hint, if you save 300,000 for retirement­- you could blow through that in 5 years at a good nursing home!! And its much less to live in a nursing home in Europe...d­ont be so ignorant and research something before you blabber Fox News ignorance.­..thanks!

[mi]

07:00 AM on 05/12/2009

Thanks Kate and Leo for showing a true example of kindness.

[brooklyncitizen]

11:05 PM on 05/11/2009

It's great but they responded to a public appeal in the papers by a photograph­er who has been on his personal campaign to help this woman. He photograph­ed her hands and was selling the prints as limited edition prints...h­e publicly challenged DiCaprio, Winslet and Cameron to match what he was raising dollar for dollar.

[swift goat pet for truth]

02:20 AM on 05/12/2009

It's great they responded.

[unfiltered]

11:13 AM on 05/12/2009

I'm happy for her. Regardless of the source of inspiratio­n, they responded to someone they've never met because she was on a ship they were in a movie about.

On the other hand, the producer, director and actors for Slumdog Millionair­e refuse to help a fellow co-star. They promise far away funding that does nothing to help her situation now. By 18, this little girl will have been exposed to countless disease because of the slums, will have been indoctrina­ted with myopic views of money and apathetic views toward civility, and will have become a completely different person than who she would be if in better surroundin­gs. And she played a critical role for more than a third of the $200 million dollar bonanza.

No one should be demanded to help a stranger, but to ignore the plight of those who have influenced one's life when it requires such a small investment is sinful.

[Patricia84]

10:17 PM on 05/11/2009

That's sweet.

[packleader80]

10:15 PM on 05/11/2009

Glad to see they are using their celebrity for a good cause (nothing new for Leo). Why can't James Cameron donate some of his millions? Then she'd be set for life.

[NHBill]

02:40 PM on 05/12/2009

How do you know he didn't? Why should he tell you?

[kinnycut]

09:36 PM on 05/11/2009

What an awesome pair these stars are. This is a gift straight from the heart.

[ObamaNation0812]

08:50 PM on 05/11/2009

In all seriousnes­s now: it's just that time to help heal this country and abroad... there is such good energy in people's hearts these days-- it's all about helping one another.

Thank you DiCaprio & Winslet for the good show of kindness, well done.

[Agentlady007]

08:49 PM on 05/11/2009

Things are as they should be. Life imitates art. It's just a matter of when.

[RickyPoo]

08:40 PM on 05/11/2009

Boy, if they are ever casting about for a remake of "Cat on a Hot Tin Roof", I just had a flashback to a publicity pic I saw of Paul Newman and Elizabeth Taylor for that flick years ago.

Kate would make a great Maggie and Leo would kill as Brick.

Get Anthony Hopkins to play Big Daddy and call it a day.

In the meantime, the actions that they take are as lovely as they look.

[NHBill]

02:41 PM on 05/12/2009

Great Idea. I would pay to see it!

[osusana]

08:21 PM on 05/11/2009

Truly classy people. I like that.

[mmgbizgirl]

07:39 PM on 05/11/2009

Wonderful!­!!

[JerryMerry]

07:05 PM on 05/11/2009

It's time for Change and Yes You Can! How can anyone make a disparagin­g comment about this act of goodness. Even if Leo and Kate don't know anything about it and just let their pics be used, it was a nice thing to do.

[Legof Eel]

06:07 PM on 05/11/2009

This should help their image. How much money did these publicity-­seeking cheapskate­s actually give to the poor woman? Probably not much. THE SHAME!

ps. They are both overrated as actors, IMO.

[jaymcb]

06:31 PM on 05/11/2009

Really? You are criticizin­g them for helping her out?

They didn't have to do anything and neither of them are fame whores like so many actors these days.

[Legof Eel]

06:58 PM on 05/11/2009

What did they actually do?
Their PR managers issued a PR lending their names to a nice cause. Whoopie. I would be surprised if they actors even knew about it, let alone really cared about that poor woman.

I can't believe how gullible many of you are! At least when Branjelina give they say how many MILLIONS of dollars it is.

[swift goat pet for truth]

02:22 AM on 05/12/2009

By comparison­, you did what?

[Treehuggindirtworshiper]

06:00 PM on 05/11/2009

Don't they have universal health care? I was under the impression the government paid for that.

[verticallychallenged]

09:08 PM on 05/11/2009

That's what I was wondering, too.

[Patricia84]

10:20 PM on 05/11/2009

A nursing home isn't an hospital. It's not so much about health care but care.

[Treehuggindirtworshiper]

05:13 PM on 05/12/2009

If your health prevents you from taking care of yourself what do you call it?

[LucieLee]

05:26 PM on 05/11/2009

Two wonderful people!!!