- The wife of missing OceanGate CEO is a descendent of two famous Titanic victims, per the New York Times.
- Wendy Rush is the great-great-granddaughter of Isidor and Ida Straus, a wealthy couple who died in the 1912 sinking.
- Isidor, the co-owner of Macy's, and his wife inspired an iconic scene in James Cameron's "Titanic"'
The wife of the missing OceanGate CEO Stockton Rush is a descendent of two famous Titanic victims, the New York Times reported on Wednesday, citing archival records.
Wendy Rush is a great-great-granddaughter of Isidor and Ida Straus, a wealthy elderly couple who died when the ocean liner sank in 1912. Isidor was the co-owner of the department store Macy's.
Wendy is related to one of the Straus' daughters on her father's side, Joan Adler, the executive director of the Straus Historical Society, told the New York Times.
Wendy married Stockton in July 1986, per a New York Times wedding announcement.
She is the director of communications at OceanGate and an expedition team member, according to her Linkedin page. However, she is not named on the OceanGate Expeditions team page that Insider accessed using Wayback Machine.
Isidor and Ida Straus were first-class passengers on the Titanic and they chose to die together when the ship started sinking after hitting an iceberg, their great-grandson Paul A. Kurzman told the Today Show in December 2017.
While women and children were given priority to board the lifeboats, a ship's officer made an exception for Isidor on account of his age, and who he was, Kurzman said.
"And, my great-grandfather said, 'No. Until I see that every woman and child on board this ship is in a lifeboat, I will not enter into a lifeboat myself,'" he told the Today Show.
With that, Ida made the decision to stay behind with her husband, Kurzman added.
Ida's maid, Ellen Bird, survived the sinking and witnessed the elderly couple's last moments, Kurzman told Country Living Magazine in December 2017.
After Ida handed Bird her coat, saying that she had no further need for it, the elderly couple was swept away by the ocean, Kurzman said.
"Isidor wrapped his arms around her," Kurzman told Country Living Magazine. "Then, a great wave came over the port side of the ship and swept them both into the sea. That was the last time they were seen alive."
The Straus' tragic story inspired an iconic, heartbreaking scene in James Cameron's "Titanic" of an elderly man and woman embracing each other in bed as their room begins to flood.
Isidor's remains were recovered after two weeks, the New York Times reported in May 1912, but Ida's body was never found.
The missing Titan submersible has not been found and the oxygen supply on the vessel is dwindling. Based on estimates that the US Coast Guard gave on Monday afternoon, the oxygen on the submersible will likely last until Thursday afternoon E.T., Insider previously reported.
As the search goes on, OceanGate — the company behind the Titan submersible and the shipwreck expeditions — is under scrutiny for its safety standards, Insider previously reported.
Wendy Rush did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Insider sent outside of regular business hours.