The ruined "Lafayette" after the fire can be seen briefly in the film "Saboteur" (1942). The ship is not identified in the film, but the antagonist smiles when he sees it, suggesting that he was responsible. The film's director, Alfred Hitchcock, later said that "the Navy raised hell" about the implication that their security was so poor. The eastern seaboard of the U.S. was being attacked by German U-boats at the time of the film's release, but information was suppressed by the Navy.