Simon Katanga

CHARACTER
Simon Katanga
Gender	Male
Profession(s)	Smuggler Captain
Allegiance(s)	Crew of the Bantu Wind Sallah Mohammed Faisel el-Kahir Indiana Jones

"Their captain, Katanga, is an honorable man—regardless of his more doubtful enterprises."

―Sallah

Simon Katanga was the captain of the smuggling freighter the Bantu Wind.

Biography

Katanga's father was an engineer aboard a Liberian ship, the Golden Sun, where Simon was introduced to the ways of the sea as a cabin steward. He eventually worked his way up to First Mate of the Bantu Wind, and took over control of the vessel when the previous captain was mortally wounded in a gunfight during a smuggling run. Katanga used to be a pirate and participated in several not so legal activities by smuggling products.

Katanga in 1936.

In 1936, Katanga was contacted by Sallah Mohammed Faisel el-Kahir, who was seeking secret passage for his friends, Indiana Jones and Marion Ravenwood, and their cargo — the Ark of the Covenant, stolen from the Nazis. Katanga agreed to provide passage from Egypt to England across the Mediterranean Sea, and loaded the cargo and passengers at night and set out, even giving up his quarters to Jones and Ravenwood.

The next morning, somewhere between Egypt and Sicily, the Bantu Wind was ordered to stop by a surfaced German U-Boat. On the bridge, Katanga told an alerted Jones to hide. When his ship was boarded by René Emile Belloq and his Nazi companions, Katanga surrendered to protect his ship and crew from the well-armed soldiers, and gave up the Ark. As a captured Ravenwood attempted to strike Colonel Herman Dietrich, Katanga grabbed her and appealed to the Nazis to take the Ark but leave Marion with his crew, claiming that she had value where they were headed while Jones was dead and thrown overboard. Dietrich refused and seized Ravenwood, but Belloq took custody of her instead. Acting without defiance, Katanga allowed Ravenwood and the Ark to be turned over to the Nazis, even after being labeled a savage by Dietrich. As soon as the Nazis were back on their submarine, Katanga ordered his men to find Jones, still hidden on the ship. While watching the Germans depart, Katanga stood on the side of his ship when one of the pirates reported to him that Jones could not be found. Ordering his man to search again, the pirate looked across to the German U-Boat and pointed out Jones to Katanga, who saluted the archaeologist as all his crew celebrated.

Later that year, Katanga was reunited with Indy at the Panama City jail, where Katanga was being held on rum smuggling charges. Indy arranged for bail and chartered the Bantu Wind for an expedition to the Aleutian Islands, where Indy suspected to find an ancient Chinese temple, predating the Eskimos. At the temple, Katanga and Indy were confronted by a crew of pirates led by Emerelda Vasquez. Emerelda commandeered the Bantu Wind, stole the Chinese treasure and demolished the temple, leaving Indy, Katanga and the ship's crew for dead. Katanga and Indy both managed to escape the island, to which eventually, Katanga's team was able to sneak aboard and assume control of Emerelda's submarine. At the end of the naval battle that ensued, Vasquez was dead and Katanga was once again captain of the Bantu Wind.

Note: The following section is ambiguously canon.
It contains information that originates in a source that has not been deemed definitively canon.

After the ordeal, Katanga took the opportunity to reach out to Sallah by letter to apologize for not being able to keep Marion safe (and his incarceration slowing his reply). However, the Egyptian was sympathetic to the crew's circumstances, although he couldn't reassure his associate with the Bantu Wind always on the move.

Around that time, the ship's captain began looking into the Cross of Coronado's whereabouts on behalf of Indiana Jones. Asking around Belize City's docks, Katanga discovered hearsay from the workers there that the crucifix's owner was no longer based there and had moved operations eastward. He informed Jones in writing but it got redirected to the archaeologist's father in error.

Ambiguously canon information ends here.

Personality and traits

Simon Katanga was fond of smoking cigars and kept a stash of alcohol in his cabin aboard the Bantu Wind. He was well-liked and respected by his crew, as it was only his order that prevented them from resisting the Nazis when they boarded the ship. He also kept a cool head and did not rise to insults, even when Herman Dietrich racially abused him. He became a good friend of Indiana Jones, as demonstrated when he protected Jones from the Nazis by stating that he had killed the archaeologist because of him being of no value to him and making up a lie in a futile attempt to prevent the Nazis from taking Marion Ravenwood hostage. As noted by his old friend Sallah Mohammed Faisel el-Kahir, Katanga was a man involved in some doubtful enterprises, but an honorable one in spite of that.

Behind the scenes

Captain Katanga was portrayed by George Harris in Raiders of the Lost Ark.

In the film, Katanga wears the hat of a Yugoslav People's Navy officer. This is anachronistic to the 1936 setting, however, as the Yugoslav Navy was not formed until 1945.

In Raiders, though easy to miss, Katanga is able to be seen with a holster strapped onto his waist suggesting that he carries a personal firearm (pistol) though the specific weapon is unknown.

Appearances

• Raiders of the Lost Ark (First appearance)
• Raiders of the Lost Ark novel
• Raiders of the Lost Ark comic
• Raiders of the Lost Ark storybook
•  The Further Adventures of Indiana Jones – "The Sea Butchers: Island of Peril!"
•  The Further Adventures of Indiana Jones – "The Sea Butchers: Death on Dark Waters"
• Disney Magic Kingdoms (Ambiguously canonical source) (Mentioned only)

Non-canonical appearances

• LEGO Indiana Jones: The Original Adventures
• LEGO Indiana Jones 2: The Adventure Continues

Sources

• Raiders of the Lost Ark Sourcebook
• Indiana Jones and the Wrath of Hecate
• Indiana Jones: The Ultimate Guide
• "Indy's Top 10 Funniest Moments" - Indiana Jones: The Official Magazine 6
• Indiana Jones Cryptic
• Something Wild! Indiana Jones