…and I saw a huge rogue wave breaking toward my ship, I would turn the ship away (“full steam ahead, left hard rudder!”) so that the crest of the wave would smash into the stern. Yes, the ship would be momentarily engulfed and might even be submerged for a few seconds but would then pop through like a cork and be pushed along by the sheer force of energy. It would then basically surf atop the whitewater like a boogie board. That way Gene Hackman, Shelley Winters, Ernest Borgnine, Carol Lynley and Red Buttons might live to see another day. The one thing you never want to let happen is to allow the tidal wave to hit you from the side — that invites capsizing.

The legend is that right after yelling “cut!”, director Irwin Allen would always ask “is everyone okay?”