Krakatoa in media and popular culture

Krakatoa volcano has inspired several books and films - usually in popular culture of the United States of America

About the volcano

Books

* Tom Simkin and Richard Fiskes' book about Krakatoa was written close to the centenary of the event and provides source material that had previously been unavailable in English, as well as to that point the most thoroughly researched book on the subject, and it has not been surpassed.

* Simon Winchester explores the eruption of Krakatoa in his book "Krakatoa: The Day the World Exploded, 27 August 1883." The book examines the history of the region, the early spice trade, the growth of colonial governments, explains the geology of volcanos and describes in detail the series of eruptions and tsunamis and their effects around the globe.

Film

* "Krakatoa", a short 1933 movie about the volcano that won the Academy Award for Best Short Subject, Novelty for its producer Joe Rock. This movie was notable for overwhelming the sound systems of the cinemas of the time. In Australia, the distributors insisted on a power output of 10 watts RMS as a minimum for cinemas wishing to show the movie. This was then considered a large system, and forced many cinemas to upgrade.
* The eruption is the subject of a 1969 Hollywood film starring Maximilian Schell, which was titled "Krakatoa, East of Java" — even though Krakatoa is in fact "west" of Java. This blatant error is perhaps the most remembered thing about the film. (Tambora, on Sumbawa, is the violent volcano "east" of Java). There was a novelization with the same title by Michael Avallone.

Television

* "" has been aired on Discovery Channel, as part of the "Moments in Time" series.
* The 1883 eruption is reconstructed in the BBC drama 'Krakatoa - The Last Days', first broadcast in May 2006. It was broadcast in the U.S. as "" on the Discovery Channel

Inspired by or featuring the volcano

This volcano was featured in some books and films.

In print

* The novel "Krakatit" by Czech writer Karel Čapek, was inspired by the name of the volcano. "Krakatit" deals with the invention of a substance known as krakatit -- although perhaps in English this should be more accurately rendered as "krakatite" -- so named because it is so highly explosive that it rivals the energy output of the Krakatoa explosion.Fact|date=February 2007
*The Twenty-One Balloons by William Pene du Bois tells of a scientist from San Francisco who takes a worldwide trip on a hot air balloon in 1883. Birds cut open his balloon and he falls into the waters off Krakatoa. When he swims ashore, he notices a village of 80 people. They are a secret society that make their living from diamond mines in the volcano. When the volcano erupts on August 27, 1883, all 81 people pile into a platform lifted by 20 balloons and fly across the world, where they drop off with parachutes. This book won the Newbery Medal in 1948.
* In the novel "Songs of Distant Earth" a giant Volcano named "Krakan" erupts. "Child of Krakan", a smaller volcano, also features in the novel.
* In Chapter 3b of Don Rosa's Life and Times of Scrooge McDuck, Scrooge McDuck rides out the tsunami from the eruption of Krakatoa.
* The volcanic explosion on the island was probably the inspiration for the Victoria Holt novel "Mask of the Enchantress".Fact|date=February 2007
* Krakoa, a living island, features in Giant-Size X-Men #1.
* Fantasy author Graham Edwards' Stone trilogy begins with the eruption of Krakatoa.
* In the poem "This Day in History" by Bert Almon.
* In "Pudd'nhead Wilson" (published 1894), Mark Twain compares the changes in Tom Driscoll's moral landscape when his mother Roxy informs him that he was born a "nigger", with the changes in Krakatoa's landscape after the explosion.

In music

* Swedish-born guitar virtuoso Yngwie J. Malmsteen recorded an instrumental song entitled "Krakatau," released on his 1988 album Odyssey.
* Krakatoa is mentioned by the New Wave band The B-52's in their song entitled "Lava," which is featured on their 1979 self-titled debut album.
* "Krakatoa" is a mostly-spoken-word song by the band Styx from the album "The Serpent Is Rising", and served as the inspiration from which filmmaker George Lucas created the THX audio logo, Deep Note.
*Krakatau is a gamelan-influenced jazz band from Bandung, West Java.
* Krakatoa is an Italian DJ set formed by two of the members of the electronic band Motel connection

Television

* In the "Doctor Who" serial "Inferno", the Third Doctor implied that he may have heard the sound of the eruption. In the episode "Rose", a sketch dated 1883 was said to have washed ashore following the eruption; it showed the Ninth Doctor in front of the volcano.
* In the SpongeBob Squarepants episode "Mermaid Man and Barnacle Boy V," Squidward becomes "Captain Magma". He says "Krakatoa" before lava spews out of his volcano-shaped helmet.
* In the sitcom "Seinfeld", Jerry was audited for claiming a donation to a fraudulent organization helping "Those brave Krakatoans".
* Krakatoa was the setting for a Mighty Mouse cartoon that featured the song "Krakatoa Katie."
* In "Fawlty Towers", a guest is disgruntled over the view from her window, which is in reality a rather picturesque view of Torquay. She declares she has decided to stay, but expects a reduction in the price of her room. Basil Fawlty sarcastically questions her, "why, because Krakatoa's not erupting at the moment?!"
* In "Drop the Dead Donkey", reporter Henry Davenport threatens a rage that would make "Krakatoa sound like an earwig's fart"
* In "Time Tunnel" episode #6, "Crack of Doom", Tony and Doug try to convince a scientist that the volcano will soon erupt violently.
* In an episode of the children's series TUGS, a naval tramp steamer by the name of Krakatoa was being loaded with fuel and munitions. A dockside fire of gigantic proportions, caused by carelessness from the tugboat, Bluenose, led to the ship being blown apart.
* Krakatoa has been suggested as a possible location for the Island in the ABC television series Lost (TV Series). This theory has gained in popularity as the Lost viral marketing website find815.com adds more credence to the location of the Island being somewhere in the vicinity of the Sunda Trench.

Video games

* In the 1996 SNES game "", the lost world of that game is a volcanic island by the name of "Krematoa". It is named as such because the enemies inhabiting the island are known as "Kremlings".