International Legends of Diving
Dr Christian Lambertsen: Father of U.S. Combat Swimming & SCUBA
Christian J Lambertsen, born May 15, 1917 in Westfield, New Jersey played a pivotal rule in the history of diving. He has been called the "Father of American Scuba" and is considered by the US Navy to be the "Father of the Frogmen." He was credited for developing the US Navy Frogmen's rebreathers in the 1940's for use in underwater warfare. His concept first came to life in 1939 while working for the Office of Strategic Services (OSS). His equipment was the first to be called SCUBA, the wartime code
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Dr Christian Lambertsen
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Doug Fane: One of the Originators of UDT Demolitions
Doug Fane was born
in Aberdeen Scotland November 16th 1909. His father drowned when
he was young. He immigrated to the United States in 1911 and
became a Natural Citizen in 1934. Doug was involved with the
Merchant Marine at the young age of 16. He worked himself up to
a rating of Master in the US Merchant Marine from 1936 to 1940.
He joined the Naval Reserves and received a JG Commission in
1940. Fane served on various vessels and saw combat action in
various hot spots during the (More)
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Doug Fane
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René Bussoz: Founder of US Divers
René was the son of a famous French inventor of the slot machine at the end of the 19th century. His family had moved to Paris in search of employment and René was born in the "City of Lights" on March 15, 1906. René lived with his parents and older sister until he was 22 years old. A gifted student, he easily passed the entrance exam at the
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René Bussoz
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Andreas Rechnitzer: Legendary Trieste Proponent
Dr. Andreas "Andy" Rechnitzer was a visionary in diving with
many credits, including a record dive in 1960 of 35,800 feet
to the bottom of the Marianas Trench. Dr. Rechnitzer was an
advisor and held high positions in the U.S. Navy Department.
He and Conrad Limbaugh pioneered the use of scuba diving in
ocean science and in 1951 coauthored the very first
scientific diving manual. It was the first civilian scuba
training curriculum and safety rules. He died at the age of
80 as a friend and legend in diving. (More)
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Andy Rechnitzer
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Ted Eldred
: First Commercially Successful Single Hose Regulator
Ted Eldred was born in Melbourne, Australia on December 20, 1920. Having grown up by the sea, he spent much of his time as a young boy at the beach and swimming in the waters around his home of Sorrento on the Mornington Peninsula, south of Melbourne. Ted started snorkeling and spear fishing as soon as mask and fins became available, and this early
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Ted Eldred
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Conrad Limbaugh: One of the first to Dive with Research
Conrad Limbaugh
was born in Chicago, Illinois on June 28, 1924. The family moved
to Long Beach California in 1925. Limbaugh began skin diving
when he was a teenager along the coast of Laguna Beach, Corona
del Mar, and Palos Verdes. The face plate that he used was made
of a coffee can and a piece of glass. This is when George
MacGinitie of the Kerckhoff Marine Lab introduced Limbaugh to
the taxonomic classification of marine organisms. In 1942
Limbaugh was called up for military service and in (More)
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Conrad
Limbaugh
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Jim Stewart: Pioneer and Early Dive Expert
James Stewart was
born in 1927 and his diving career began before there was scuba.
In 1941 at the age of 14 in La Jolla Cove in San Diego,
California James first borrowed a friend's mask and put his head
under water and started free diving. This is when free diving
and spear fishing soon replaced swimming and surfing. He quickly
became a very accomplished free diving spear fisherman as a
junior in high school. The following year became a life guard.
James was drafted in the final year of World War II and went (More)
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Jim
Stewart
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Hugh Bradner: Inventor of the Wet Suit
Undersea divers
would still be shivering and facing a high risk for hypothermia
if it weren't for Hugh Bradner, inventor of the first wetsuit.
Bradner, a renowned physicist and professor emeritus at the
Scripps Institution of Oceanography died May 5, 2008, in San
Diego after a prolonged illness. He was 92. Bradner had a
lifelong passion for the ocean. He enjoyed diving and sailing
and was one of the first Americans to make a deep-water SCUBA
dive. In 1951, while working at University of California, (More)
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Hugh
Bradner
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Carl Brashear:
First Black Navy Diver, Master Diver & Master Chief
Carl Brashear came from humble beginnings which gave no hint of the significant course his life would later take. Carl was the sixth of eight children born to a share cropper in rural Tonieville, Kentucky on January 19, 1931. Despite the fact that their home did not have electricity or running water, Brashear remembered a very happy childhood. The children found
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Carl Brashear
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Ed Cargile: Research Diver With Full Background
Ed Cargile
successfully combined engineering, management, marketing and
communications to provide services as a company executive,
program manager, project engineer, deep submersible pilot, and
commercial and military diver. His communication skills include
being a writer, newsletter and magazine editor/publisher, still
photographer, video cameraman, video and film producer, and
lecturer. He has considerable experience in several different
areas --- ocean technology, electronics, computers, plastics, (More)
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Ed
Cargile
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Walt Deas
: Underwater Cameraman & Producer of Early Reef Documentaries
One of the most notable divers who would come to promote the Australian reefs actually haled from the much colder land of Scotland, at the time not noted for producing divers. Walter Deas was born in Monifieth, Scotland in 1933. He taught himself to swim at the age of 14, the same age he left school. His parents believed he was on school trips, but in reality young Walt was touring around Scotland
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Walt Deas
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Ricou Browning: Actor, Director, "The Gill Man"
Ricou Browning was
born February 16, 1930 in Jensen Beach, Fla. While attending
high school he worked for Newton Parry, operator of Wakulla
Springs, as a lifeguard, swimmer and diver in water shows. Newt
taught him, his brother, and others how to swim underwater using
an air hose. This was before scuba was available. The brothers
would go down to the bottom of the spring 80 feet and then would
swim up under the glass bottom boats. The captain of the boat
would ask for quarters to be thrown on the glass (More)
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Ricou
Browning
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Jordan Klein: Camera Housings, Movie Mogul
It was his love
affair with the ocean and his father leaving that caused
Jordan’s migration from his birth place of Cleveland, Ohio to
Miami Beach, Florida. The year was 1925 and Jordan Klein
relocated at the tender age of three. He attended school at
Miami Beach Elementary then went on to Lindsey Hopkins Tech High
in Miami. It was at this time he developed a fascination with
what made things work topside and underwater. Self-taught, he
gained all his engineering knowledge on his own. Klein became
very well (More)
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Jordan Klein
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Mel Fisher: Treasure Hunter and Dive Shop Owner
Every diver has heard the famous cry "Today's the day!" This
was the battle cry of the most famous treasure hunter in
diving. "We've found the Mother Lode!" These slogans became
a part of every diver's vocabulary. This can be attributed
largely to one man, Mel Fisher, who devoted his life to the
quest for gold, riches, and sunken Spanish Ships. He lived
every diver's dream. It is believed that Mel Fisher, who was
born in Hobart, Indiana in 1922, read Treasure Island as a
boy and it always served as inspiration (More)
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Mel Fisher
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Chuck Nicklin: Photographer and Dive Business Owner
An underwater film
pioneer and dive business entrepreneur made the best of his
first visit to the ocean, Chuck Nicklin went diving with a
borrowed mask. From there he has had a storied dive career in
underwater photography, filmmaking and the retail side of
diving. Nicklin has learned from some of the best over his 60
years. His training began with the earliest of dive legends Jim
Stewart, Connie Limbaugh, and Ron Church. And he has worked
alongside the legends of diving, Al Giddings, Jacques Cousteau,
Lloyd Bridges, (More)
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Chuck Nicklin
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Sam Davison Jr: Founder and President of DACOR
For those of us that grew up in the Midwest, the name DACOR
meant "family." it was a company of "divers for divers."
Throughout Sam Davison's life, his experience in Guam is
what drove him and his famous company DACOR. His
contributions to the sport are endless. Sam Davison Jr. was
a US Marine that spent considerable time in the South
Pacific during the Second World War. His time on the island
of Guam changed his life and gave him images that he would
never forget. He and his fellow Marines discovered a (More)
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Sam Davison Jr
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Chuck Blakeslee: Skin Diver Magazine Founder
I was born
October 29, 1925, in Manitou, Oklahoma, where I lived for my
first five years. I spent most of my growing up and school years
in southwestern Missouri near Joplin and Neosho, first attending
a one-room school house. Frog Pond, with approximately thirty
students from first through the eighth grade. My father was a
telegraph and station operator on an oil pipeline. We moved to
southern California when I was thirteen. I attended Lynwood, CA,
and Clearwater, CA, junior high schools, then Compton (More)
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Chuck Blakeslee
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Ellsworth Boyd: Shipwreck Researcher, Author
Ellsworth Boyd has been writing his Wreck Facts column for 27 years, informing,
researching and updating divers on shipwreck discoveries and issues
throughout the world. His column first appeared in Skin Diver Magazine
and later in Underwater USA, Clive Cussler's NUMA News, Sport Diver
Magazine, and now Northeast and Northwest Dive News. (More)
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Ellsworth Boyd
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Dr. R.W. Hamilton: Breathing Gases, Gas Tables and effects of Pressure
Dr. R.W. Hamilton, known affectionately as "Billy Bob" to his beloved wife and friends, was born in Midland, Texas on June 6, 1930. He was inquisitive as a child and pushed everything to the limit. This proved true with his education, as well. He studied at the University of Texas, earning a Liberal Arts degree. Hamilton then received a master's
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Dr. R.W. Hamilton
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Dick Rutkowski: Proponent of Hyperbaric Medicine & Mixed Breathing Gases
Dick Rutkowski helped change the course
of modern diving through his continued efforts to test and promote the
use of mixed gases, such as Nitrox & Trimix. His work eventually
helped develop tech diving and clinical hyperbaric medicine as we know
it today.
(More)
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Dick Rutkowski
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Al Tillman: Dive Pioneer, Instructor, Promoter, UNEXSO
Born in Los
Angeles, California, in 1928, Al Tillman took his first plunge
into the water off the Palos Verdes beach with only a pair of
goggles and the desire to see what was beneath the blue water.
He was only 10 years old and this love of the ocean led to 65
years of diving as a free diver and later as a scuba diver
leading the diving industry. After serving in World War II with
the Coast Guard, he went to work for L.A. County as Sports
Director. Al and his head lifeguard Bev Morgan were very much
interested in (More)
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Al
Tillman
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Bev Morgan: Inventor and Dive Helmet Manufacturer
Surf legend, Dale
Velzy, also known as "the Hawk," recalls Bev Morgan arriving
from L.A. in 1949 stating that he wanted to learn how to surf.
By surfing for days on end and observing others, Bev became a
great surfer. Bev learned about fiberglass by obtaining a job at
North American Aircraft and became Velzy's first glasser using a
sun cure resin. Bev Morgan invited Velzy to join him in his
pursue of the growing diving market, including the sale of
rubber wetsuits, however, Velzy declined the offer stating (More)
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Bev
Morgan
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Bill and Bob
Meistrell: Male
Instructor Number One
One would think
that the Legends of the wetsuit would have come from California.
This is not the case, though, as Bill and his twin brother, Bob
Meistrell, came from Booneville, MO. Bill, being the oldest, was
born before midnight, and Bob was born afterwards. Throughout
life, Bob would always call and kid his twin brother, Bill,
about being a day older. They started their diving in a pond
with a homemade five gallon vegetable oil can and a bicycle pump. They chewed the asphalt
from the street to make it soft so they (More)
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Bob Meistrell
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Mike Nelson (LLoyd Bridges): TV
Hero Among Divers, Defender of Good
Mike Nelson was
the idol of every child in the US and Canada in the early 60's.
Every kid wanted to be like Mike, don diving gear, and explore
the undersea world depicted on the beloved series Sea Hunt.
Played by Lloyd Bridges, Mike was bigger than life. He was an
ex-Frogman and military man with connections throughout the
world. His friends called him Bud. The series opened with that
eerie music and Mike putting on that familiar Johnny Mac Browne
surface air mask at Marineland. Mike was amazing. He could
rescue a (More)
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Mike Nelson
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Courtney Brown: Stunt man, Photographer, & DIVING OPERATIONS SUPERVISOR
Courtney Brown, known
to the diving community as a first rate stunt man and underwater photographer,
was born on June 22, 1931 in Buffalo, New York and grew up in the Brentwood area of California. His
introduction to diving came early through an older brother, as well
as a very good friend named Parry Bivens. Courtney borrowed Parry’s
dive gear and eventually was certified as a diver in the LA area. Parry
and Courtney became close friends and would remain so throughout their
lives. One summer night Parry met the girl of his dreams on a blind
date with two other couples (More)
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Courtney Brown
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Big John
McLaughlin: Movie Double, Stunt Diver, Engineering Test Diver
Deep Sea Diver, Stunt Diver,
Marine Engineer, Underwater Cinematographer, Marine Mammal
Trainer, Guardian of the Sea, Coast Guard Certified Master
Diver, Demolitions Instructor, Deep Water Salvage for the U.S.
Navy…the list goes on and on. It is impossible to categorize him
for the thing he is probably best known for: Hollywood
underwater stuntman. His business card says it best: “License to
Thrill.” Big John was born in Charleston, South Carolina on
January 27, 1927. At a young age he knew that he wanted (More)
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John McLaughlin
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Gustav Dalla
Valle: Co-Founder of SCUBAPRO
Gustav Dalla Valle
was born in the Northern part of Italy to royalty. His father
was a count who made a fortune in the silk business. In his
younger years Gustav was fascinated by the sea, and started to
free dive in the Mediterranean sea at a young age. He was a bon
vivant traveling Europe and became one of the first European
divers. Active in spear fishing and diving politics, Gustav knew
all the early diving equipment pioneers: Cressi, Beuchat, Forjot,
Cavalero, etc. Later, Gustav moved to Haiti and started perhaps (More)
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Gustav Dalla Valle
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Dick Bonin: Co-Founder of SCUBAPRO
Dick grew up in
Chicago excelling academically, graduating cum laude from both
high school and college. Well rounded, he thrived in the sports
world as well. While still in high school he was named City
Champion in swimming. He earned a college scholarship and was
the Boxing Champion and All Conference Football Champ. Dick
Bonin is one of the most famous Navy Frogman and equipment
manufacturers in diving. Bonin got his start as a Navy officer
assigned to some of the earliest dive teams. He was active in (More)
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Dick Bonin
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Dan Orr: CEO
of DAN - An Ohio Legend
Dan Orr was born
in Miami, FL and his Grandparents built one of the first homes
on stilts constructed in the Florida Keys. Being around all that
water and having the same basic homing instincts as all divers
at the age of 11 he and his best friend "borrowed" a set of
scuba equipment from his friends house and Dan made his first
dive in a canal. The visibility was dreadful as they walked
around the bottom and they knew they were surrounded by sharks
and were going to be eaten any minute "but it didn't stop them (More)
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Dan Orr
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David Trotter: Great Lakes Shipwreck Explorer
David Trotter’s
name is synonymous with Shipwreck Explorer, particularly in the
area of the Great Lakes in the Midwestern United States and
Canada. Born in Ottawa, Iowa on December 17, 1940, David began
his love affair with diving in 1963 at the age of 23. Trotter
recalls with amusement that his YMCA course required no open
water checkouts. In fact, after his fourth session(of six), the
assistant dive instructor declared that David looked good and
would he like to travel to Morrison Springs for a weekend of
diving? Trotter (More)
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David Trotter
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Neal Hess: Founder NAUI; One of the world’s leading experts on SCUBA dive training
Neal Earl Hess was born in Salt Lake City, Utah, November 3, 1926, the first son of Delbert Earl and Helen Sampson Hess. A second son, Roger E. Hess was born 1929 in Ogden, Utah. The Hess family moved to Los Angeles, California in 1933 where a third son, John P. Hess was born in 1936. It was the time of the Great Depression, and Earl had come to Los Angeles looking for work. (More)
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Neal Hess
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Joe Bodner: The Greatest Buddy Team in Diving: Dr. Joseph and Jean Bodner
Joe Bodner was born on July 24, 1931 in New Haven, Connecticut. His life partner and wife, Jean, entered the world and New Haven just a few years earlier, on March 18, 1929. Both graduates of New Haven High School, they didn’t meet until college, at one of Joe’s fencing demonstrations at the Branford
(More)
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Joe Bodner
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Roger Hess: Pioneer Scuba Instructor from LA County
Roger Hess,
pioneer Scuba instructor from LA County 4UICC in 1955 (which
included brother Neal and Dottie Frazier), and Southern
California charter boat owner/operator. Roger Hess was born in
Ogden Utah in 1929, and moved to California with brother Neal
and parents Earl and Helen in 1933 where another son John was
born in 1936. Roger’s dad worked as a meat cutter in the food
industry and later purchased a market in Inglewood. Roger went
to Washington High in Los Angeles then John Brown Military
Academy in San (More)
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Roger Hess
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Dottie Frazier: First Female Instructor in 1955
Dottie Frazier was
born in July, 1922 in Long Beach, California, a female who
should have been a male according to her dad. At that moment he
decided that he was going to teach her all the things he would
have taught a son. Swimming by age 3, rowing her own skiff at 5, Dottie knew the
ins and outs of fishing and had lived aboard boats more than on
land. By 10, she was using one of the masks her dad had made out
of pieces of a fire hose, glass, tape, glue, and straps from an
old inner tube. She became (More)
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Dottie Frazier
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Barbara Allen: Woman Instructor Two, Photographer
Barbara Allen grew
up in Los Angeles with active outgoing parents who had her
involved in camping, fishing, swimming and body surfing. She
lifeguarded for LAPD Camp Valcrest and City of LA in the summers
during high school (Washington) and college (LACC). She was
lifeguarding, teaching swimming and performing paddleboard
ballet when her boss, Jack Cheany, asked if she would like to
teach skin and scuba diving. Barbara had never been scuba
diving, just snorkeling local beaches and Catalina. She said
yes, (More)
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Barbara Allen
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Zale Parry: Record Setter, Actress,
Equipment Tester
Zale Parry is
arguably the most famous woman scuba diver in the world today. Zale was
a pioneer skin diver in the 1940s and an early underwater equipment
tester for Scientific Underwater Research Enterprises in 1953. Zale also
helped run the first civilian hyperbaric chamber for divers in
California. In 1954 she set a woman's depth record to 209 feet and
became the third female instructor to graduate from the L.A. County UICC
program. That same year, Zale made her screen debut in Kingdom of the (More)
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Zale Parry
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Harry Ruscigno: Founder of SeaTec
He was a very
active diver, a respected engineer who adapted his talents to
the diving world over forty years ago. Still a teenager Harry
Ruscigno was a founder and driving force in the pioneer diving
club the San Jose Barbs in California, one of the oldest clubs
in the world. After graduation from college he moved to San
Diego area where he became active in competitive spear fishing
competing in many local and regional spearfishing meets. He also
served a term as president of the San Diego council of (More)
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Harry Ruscigno
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Robert Croft: Father of American Free diving, Researcher
As a kid during
WWII Bob Croft played war games and could not wait to get into
the fray but was too young; this happened a bit later, during
the Korean War. Bob joined the Navy and was assigned to the
submarine service. He served on several submarines for 12 years,
having at lease one really close scrape, after which period he
was assigned to the U.S. Submarine School as an instructor in
the 118 foot deep escape training tank. Already a scuba diver,
here he learned "free" or breath-hold diving where his job (More)
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Robert Croft
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Harry Vetter: Dive Shop Manager, Early NAUI Instructor
Harry Vetter, 81,
was born in Long Beach California in 1928. He grew up in the
Redondo Beach area where his life was shaped by the Pacific
ocean coastline that surrounded him. Harry developed both a love
and respect for the ocean as he experienced it via body surfing,
tidal pool exploring, as well as skin diving during his
formative years. After graduating from Compton Jr. College in
1949, he purchased his first SCUBA regulator from Rene Bussoz's
Sporting Goods in Westwood, California, thereby teaching himself
to (More)
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Harry Vetter
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Robert Olson: The True Origins of Dacor Corporation
An underwater
demolition diver in World War II stationed in the Pacific
Theater, Robert Olson returned home to Evanston, Illinois at the
conclusion of the war and reconnected with his old neighbor Sam
Davison who had also returned from military service. Olson's
fascination with the water never left him, and he spent many a
day at the shores of Lake Michigan dreaming of once again
swimming deep underwater. He and Davison experimented with
inverted buckets on their heads and hoses pumping (More)
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Robert Olson
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Valerie van Heest: Great Lakes Shipwreck Hunter
An inductee in the
Women Divers Hall of fame, award-winning author, and regular
guest speaker, Valerie van Heest has explored and documented
shipwrecks for over twenty years and her efforts led to an award
from the Historical Society of Michigan for excellence in
preserving and promoting Michigan's maritime heritage. Not only
has her work been featured in many books, but she writes
articles, produces documentary films, designs museum exhibits,
and has appeared on an episode of History Channel (More)
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Valerie van Heest
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Nick Icorn: 'Keeper of the Flame'
Nick Icorn has
been called the "Keeper of the Flame" for preserving diving's
illustrious history through his collection of representative
samples of diving gear, from snorkels to rebreathers. But his
career in diving is also one of the most wide-ranging of anyone
in the diving world. It includes experience in military diving,
formulating instructional programs, and work as an engineer in
designing equipment for sport and commercial diving. His
experiences and contributions are too numerous to recount in one (More)
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Nick Icorn
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Glen H. Egstrom: UCLA Dive Physiology Researcher -
Teaching responsibilities at UCLA and during Diving Medical
courses in the past 50 years have included courses and graduate
seminars in applied anatomy, exercise physiology, underwater
physiology, environmental physiology, aquatic kinesiology,
biomechanical analysis and conditioning for optimal
performances. As campus Diving Officer between 1964 and 1992 he
also operated a major recreational and scientific scuba diving
training program and is currently a member of the UCLA Diving
Control Board. (More)
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Dr. Glen Egstrom
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Joe Liburdi: 58 Years Beneath the Sea
Joe Liburdi
started diving in 1952, when divers wore twin-hose regulators
and scuba lessons consisted of the words, "Blow and go!" In
1966, he founded the Liburdi Scuba School for servicemen in the
Philippines. That was also the year he took his first underwater
photograph with a Calypso camera. Expressing his impressions of
inner space has been his challenge and reward ever since. He has
explored the waters of Japan, Micronesia, Malaysia, Southeast
Asia, and Eastern Africa. He has dived the Caribbean, the Great
Barrier (More)
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Joe Liburdi
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Alec Peirce: Renowned Canadian Dive Historian
Alec Peirce attributes his
interest in the sport of scuba directly to his life-long hero, Lloyd
Bridges, and to the Sea Hunt show. Scuba 2000 is recognized as the
finest scuba training facility in Canada and one of the best in North
America. Scuba 2000 has been the subject of dozens of diving articles,
TV Shows and endless chat lines. Alec Peirce of Scuba 2000 has been one
of the featured legends for each of the Legends Festivals with his
memorabilia on Sea Hunt and Lloyd Bridges. Biography: It's 1958, (More)
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Alec Peirce
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Dr. Sam Miller: From 'Goggler' to Dive Historian
Dr. Samuel Miller
began his long diving career in 1943 as a result to a very serious eye
infection contracted while swimming in a local YMCA pool. In order to
continue swimming he was required to wear a pair of crude goggles for
eye protection. When he had graduated from high school in 1950 he had
managed to acquire a Sea Net mask and a pair of Churchill fins. He was a
"goggler" in a sport that had no name, no shops, no magazines, no
training programs, no organizations, no flag, and very few participants. (More)
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Dr.
Sam Miller
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Bill McBride: Early Ohio Instructor and Dive Evangelist
Born in Defiance, OH
in 1933, I took SCUBA lessons in Toledo at the YMCA from Instructor Don
Lee. I enrolled with my boss and a fellow salesman. This was in 1959,
about 16 years after Cousteau had “invented” the Aqua-Lung. My boss and
I, upon completion of our basic course, ordered “wet suit kits”, which
were comprised of a roll of foam neoprene, (unlined), a pattern, two
cans of glue, and five zippers. Thus, we made our own “custom fit”
suits. We also made our own lead weights, using a large soup ladle (More)
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Bill McBride
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Dr. Sam Miller IV: Authority on Hyperbaric Chamber
Dr. Sam Miller, IV
was born into a pioneer Orange County, California diving family. He
began his diving career as a toddler at a little over 2 years old in the
bath tub sucking on a modified regulator which was attached to a Scuba
tank on the bath room floor, by 4 in a shallow "Do-boy" pool at 5 into
the family pool and the Pacific Ocean. His initial open water dives were
not to deep or too far from the beach, but he was underwater and he was
a diver in his mind. He rapidly progressed in his diving skills and grew
in stature. (More)
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Dr.
Sam Miller IV
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Dr. José Jones: Founder of UAS and NABS
Dr. José Jones began his diving career while serving in
the military. After a tour of combat duty, he joined the Atlantic Skin
Diving Council (ASDC) where he served as vice president, training
officer, spearfishing chairman, and scuba rodeo director. While a senior
in college, he founded Underwater Adventure Seekers (UAS) of Washington,
DC, which predates most national certifying organizations. Dr. Jones has
made over 6,000 dives including research, scientific, training,
exploratory, and competitive (More)
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Dr. José Jones
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Miss Shirley Lee
: First Black Female Diver
Shirley M. Lee was born on September 26, 1935 in Alexandria, Virginia and recalls a happy childhood of playing marbles, jacks, and jumping rope. Gifted with artistic talent, she could look at an object and draw it accurately. Shirley was extremely active in high school, participating on the baseball and soccer teams, singing in the choir,
(More)
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Miss Shirley Lee
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Ella Jean Morgan: First Black Woman Dive Instructor
Born in Belize City, Belize on January
17, 1939 to missionary parents, Ella Jean Morgan certainly qualifies
as a truly International Legend of Diving. Certainly
the exotic location she was born and raised in, as well as the facts
that her mother was a native of the Cayman Islands and her father haled
from Jamaica, helped provide an international landscape that
fostered an openness in Ella Jean that would move her to break racial
and gender barriers in the dive industry.
(More)
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Ella Jean Morgan
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Bill Beard: Costa Rica Diving Pioneer
Bill and Nadine
Beard are PADI scuba diving instructors living and working in
Costa Rica. Bill is originally from North Carolina, and Nadine
was born in Oakland, California. They are owners of Bill Beard's
Costa Rica Scuba Diving & Adventure Travel Company. Bill went to
Costa Rica in 1970 and Nadine joined him in 1988. Bill Beard,
widely recognized as the true pioneer of scuba diving in Costa
Rica, was one of the key players in bringing the country from
virtually unknown as a tourist destination to the forefront (More)
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Bill Beard
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Jeremiah Sullivan: Founder of Neptunic Sharksuits
In the late 1970's, marine biologist Jeremiah Sullivan
developed a flexible suit of armor for divers to wear while working
around sharks. Often referred to as; Metal Mesh Shark Suit, Chain Mail
Anti-Shark Suit, Steel Mesh Shark Suit, etc. Its actual name is the
NEPTUNIC Sharksuit. The technology Sullivan developed and continues to
advance is now known and used throughout the world. Jeremiah's
pioneering work with anti-shark bite technology has become the world
standard among those who must work (More)
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Jeremiah Sullivan
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Joe Strykowski: Author of Books,
Understanding Oceans
Reunion, Madagascar - Quen Cultra has spent a good
portion of his life building a pair of oceangoing sailboats at his home
amid eastern Illinois' corn fields and piloting them around the world.
Now his relatives and U.S. Coast Guard officials say they're looking for
the 69-year-old Quen Cultra of Gilman and marine naturalist Joe
Strykowski of Crystal River, FL, who they say are missing in the Indian
Ocean after one of those crafts capsized in a storm off Madagascar.
Another member of the crew, 56-year-old Leo Sherman of Gilman, IL (More)
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Joe Strykowski
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Leon Lyons: Helmet Maritime Museum Owner
Leon Lyons has become the foremost authority on vintage
and late model diving helmets. Collectors throughout the world contact
him with questions on the authenticity of helmets. Leon G. Lyons was
born on January 17, 1942 in the Inwood section of New York City. He
attended elementary school at Holy Redeemer Convent in the downtown area
of Manhattan before moving to Edgewater, New Jersey at the age of 10.
There he finished the elementary grades at the Epiphany School in
Cliffside. He graduated from (More)
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Leon Lyons
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Victor G. Worst: UDT & Early Eastern Dive
Shop Owner
My diving career began in Carey, Ohio at the ripe old
age of twelve. The municipal swimming pool was located very near my home
and in the beginning of summer the pool would be filled for the season.
After eight months of the fill pipes rusting, the pool would have a
large amount of rust particles on the bottom. Three or four of us
younger kids would use weighted brooms to sweep the rust into the drains
at the deeper end of the pool. We would use a Desco pool mask when at
the deeper depths. Air was supplied from (More)
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Victor G. Worst
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George Purifoy: Notable Shipwreck
Discoverer
On September 14, 2008, we lost a true pioneer in the
diving world, George Purifoy. Purifoy loved the water and spent much of
his life diving. One could say that George Purifoy's life came to an end
where he truly loved to be " on the water. The Olympus Dive Center in
Morehead, N.C. was founded by Purifoy in 1976, and is well known among
the diving community. He began with a compressor, rentals and weekend
charters aboard a twin-engine Atlantis II. In the late 1970s he expanded
the business by purchasing (More)
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George Purifoy
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Ray McAllister, Ph.D.: Ocean Engineer/Early
Instructor
Most people would not consider diving at the age of 86,
but Ray McAllister is not your average 86 year old. The retired
professor of Ocean Engineering, Ray began his diving career 57 years ago
at Scripps Institution of Oceanography in 1951. There he taught
his first Scuba class in 1952. Ray went on to earn his doctorate in
geological oceanography from Texas A&M College. Ray's scuba course is
believed to be the first civilian, non-military diver's course in the
United States. His instructions were, "Stay in our bubbles; (More)
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Ray
McAllister
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Robert J. Shourot: Engineer of the NRDS
What type of man desires to have the world's largest
ships run full speed over him while being just a few feet from its huge
propellers" How does it feel to be suspended in the water while a
gigantic vessel, traveling at full speed, passes directly overhead" A
diver taking photographs of a ship's underbelly, particularly when the
behemoth is speeding directly overhead, is not most people's idea of a
tranquil occupation. What type of man dives into lethal nuclear reactors
where death is only a millisecond away" (More)
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Robert
J. Shourot
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Peter Hughes: Father and Legend of Live-Aboard of Diving
The name Peter Hughes has become synonymous with luxury live-aboard dive travel and for good reason. For over 25 years, Hughes ran the most recognized live-aboard company in the world and his name still stands for excellence in dive travel. However, his influence on the dive community extends far beyond that, including the successful operation of
(More)
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Peter Hughes
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Bob Rajner: Ohio Diver for 50 years
Dwight D. Eisenhower was in the Whitehouse, Hawaii
became our 50th State, gasoline cost 30 cents per gallon, and Bob Rajner
took his first breath underwater. The year was 1959, and the dive site
was Whitehouse Quarry. Bob's equipment consisted of a single 72 cubic
foot tank, a two-hose Jet-Air regulator with an R-valve, fins, mask and
swim trunks. Those who have had the good fortune to know one of
Northwest Ohio's pioneer divers would agree that Bob Rajner is a pretty
tough customer in terms of (More)
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Bob Rajner
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John Chatterton: Renowned Wreck Diver: The Shadow Diver
We all might have our favorite TV detective, but for the underwater community there is no one person who stands out more than John Chatterton. And to earn that distinction it is not a matter of what has he done, but what hasn’t he accomplished in the discovery and research of the wrecks that are scattered
(More)
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John Chatterton
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International Legends of Diving - Bahama Islands
Gardner Young: First Nassau Diving Company
Gardner was born in Port Clinton, Ohio in 1929. His
family was from Gloucester, Massachusetts and moved to Ohio when
his father was stationed at Port Clinton, Ohio as a member of
the U.S. Coast Guard. His father was lost on Lake Erie in 1930
while on duty. Gardner joined the Marine Corps at a young age
and met John Cronin (PADI) at Paris Island. The two became good
friends and later in life that relationship would become
fruitful. Gardner loved the water and gravitated to Ft.
Lauderdale and Miami in the (More)
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Gardner Young
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Neal Watson: Record Holder and DEMA Hall of Famer
Neal Watson, owner of Neal Watson's Undersea Adventures
began diving in the Florida Springs in 1953 at the age of 13 and
has been in the diving business for over 40 years. Over the
years Neal has worked as a commercial diver, treasure salver,
stunt coordinator for the movie and TV industry, owned and
operated hotels, a airline charter company and established a
chain of Neal Watson's Undersea Adventure franchise dive
operations in the Bahamas and Caribbean. Neal's achievements are legendary. Neal currently (More)
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Neal Watson
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“Skeet” LaChance: Bahama Venture Cruises Founder
Skeet was born in
1932 in Chicago, Il. As a young child, he contracted polio, but
with the fighting spirit he would be known for throughout his
life, successfully fought it off. The only mark it left was a
curvature of his spine that didn’t become obvious until his
later years. While growing up and attending elementary and high
school in Kenilworth, Il, he and a classmate, Steve Mullins,
developed an avid interest in magic shows, even charging to
perform at local kids’ parties. After being sent away to a
boarding school (More)
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“Skeet” LaChance
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Brendal Stevens: Promoter of Bahama Tourism
Brendal James Stevens was born on Acklins Island and
grew up with the love of nature, ocean, sailing and the
environment. He started working in Tourism in 1964 at the age of
16, and for 41 years Brendal has dedicated his life's work to
Tourism in the Bahamas. For the past 36 years, Brendal's
professional work in Tourism envelops the development of a
facility for attractions and tours for visitors to the Bahamas
and his personal efforts include Adventure Tours and
Attractions, Water Sports, (More)
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Brendal Stevens
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Ben Rose: UNEXSO Guide and Marine Expert
At an early age
Ben Rose knew he belonged in the ocean. He came to UNEXSO in
1965 already with amateur experience in diving. There he learned
to dive with sharks. He has expanded his knowledge of sharks to
expert level. He started a marine identification program,
identifying and categorizing species of fish in the Caribbean.
He is an avid writer, sharing his experiences through personal
accounts of diving history and diving with sharks. (Read more personal accounts by Ben Rose)
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Ben Rose
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Dr. John Clement: The Diving Doctor on the Hydrolab
As the story
goes... A long time ago there was a Brit who came to Grand Bahama
Island and his name is Dr. John Clement. No one can state it
better than John himself when he states, "It is quite a long
story." When John decided he wanted to learn how to dive, there
wasn't a British Sub Aqua Club nearby where we could take lessons,
however, there was a special branch run by the Fire Department
of the experimental Atomic Energy Power plant at Winfrith,
Dorset. He asked if he could train with (More)
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Dr. John Clement
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Dave Woodward: Notable Underwater Photographer
Dave Woodward has
spent 54 years as a diver, scuba instructor, and underwater
photographer with many of those years at the Underwater
Explorers Society (UNEXSO), even as the opening manager of the
resort in 1965. His most notoriety in diving is with underwater
photography. In 1965 he won his first of 26 awards at the
International U/W Film Festival. He was awarded the Platinum Pro
5000 Diver Award by Scuba Schools International and given the
Paul Revere Bronze Spike Award by the Boston (More)
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Dave Woodward
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Stuart Cove: Resort Dive Operator
Michelle Cove: Resort Dive Operator
Stuart and
Michelle Cove were both born on the island of Nassau in the
Bahamas. Stuart, the son of a local dentist, had roots on the
Island of Abaco. Michelle’s parents haled from Scotland and
Switzerland. It was assumed that Stuart would follow in his
father’s Footsteps, but that was not to be. His father remained
a great influence on his life, however, along with Gardner
Young, the first dive operator in Nassau. Gardner’s operation
was called Underwater Tours. Stuart's father was a great diver
and boater, as (More)
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Stuart & Michelle Cove
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Ollie
Ferguson: UNEXSO Dive Instructor
and Lecturer
Ollie Ferguson was
born in Los Angeles CA and grew up in Nassau, in The Bahamas.
After graduating St. Andrews School, he attended Kent School in
Connecticut and Jacksonville University in Florida. Ollie's wife
is Tamee Marshawn Ferguson, daughter Carina Marie Ferguson is
23, and daughter Mallory Marie is 13. Ollie left University 1979
and returned to The Bahamas. He worked as an Architectural
Draftsman for a year, often working in the field supervising
construction projects. Leaving the (More)
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Ollie Ferguson
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Robert
(Bob) Farrelly: Educator and
Wildlife Art Owner
I first came to
know SCUBA diving through Dave Woodward in Spokane, Washington.
When still in high school I learned of a diving school called
WOCO " there I took lessons and fell in love with the underwater
experience thanks to Dave and Cousteau's film and book "The
Silent World." Even though our open water dives took place in
lakes with 10 foot visibility and at times under the ice - I
loved it. While working in Atlanta in 1965 I received a note
from Dave with a picture of the Woodward family together on a (More)
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Robert Farrelly
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Chuck
Burns: Founding Member UNEXSO
Chuck Burns
started his diving career working with Jack Slack and Dick
Tindall running their ski school at the Lucayan Beach Hotel in
the early 60's When they found the Lucayan Treasure Wreck began
doing some diving on the wreck while working during the summers.
In 1965 he and his family became founding members of UNEXSO and
he started working there during the summer of 1965 and 1966.
After college he became a full time diver. In 1968 he was
certified as a NAUI Instructor, #1372 and began teaching (More)
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Chuck Burns
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John
Englander: CEO of ISS and
prior owner of UNEXSO
In June 1968 John
Englander first visited UNEXSO for the NAUI ICC (Instructor
Certification Course as it was then called.) The course was his
high school graduation present. Upon completing the program and
becoming a NAUI Instructor (actually a "Teaching Assistant"
since he was not the required age of 21) he spent another week,
taking the fabled 250" Decompression Diving Course taught by
UNEXSO President Al Tillman. This began a special relationship
with the "Club." During the next four years of college, (More)
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John Englander
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Dick
Clarke: Deep Diving and
Dive Medicine pioneer
Dick began his
diving career in the British Royal Navy, where he served
throughout the decade of the 1960's. In 1969 he relocated to the
Bahamas, and as program director at the International Underwater
Explorers Society. It was here that he honed his underwater
photography skills (under the watchful and somewhat critical eye
of the ever talented Dave Woodward!) and developed UNEXSO's deep
diving course. In 1971 Dick became associate director of the
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (More)
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Dick Clarke
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Charles
Hepp: UNEXSO Founding Member
Chuck learned to
dive in the mid 1950's in Fort Lauderdale. He did some treasure
hunting in the Keys, taught swimming and diving for the City of
Ft. Lauderdale and worked on the beach patrol there. In 1961 he
took the second ever NAUI Instructors' course (NAUI #165) and
joined UNEXSO in 1965. He built the original boat docks and then
worked as a Program Director. He was a safety diver when Jacques
Mayol made his record free dive and made a dive in the deep
diving vessel, the Ben Franklin. In 1972 with the financial (More)
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Charles Hepp
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Cristina Zenato: Shark Researcher, Instructor, Traveler
Cristina Zenato was
born in Italy, 21st Dec 1971, grew up in in the middle of the rain
forest of the Congo Africa till the age of 15, and in doing so developed
a love of the outdoors and a passion for the ocean. Life took a
different turn though and at the age of 22 she went to the Bahamas to
learn Scuba diving. It defined her career for working at the hotel and
completing her dive training. For the past 14 years she has worked for
UNEXSO, starting to work as a temporary diving supervisor back in 1998.
She cave dives (More)
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Cristina Zenato
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Curt Chapman: Youngest NAUI Instructor, Dive Guide
Curt Chapman will be
the first to tell you he was a "lucky man" working alongside Ben Rose,
Dave Woodward and other legends. In 1966 he was certified as a diver by
the YMCA in Chicago, IL, his father was certified in 1959. Soon they
began diving together in local quarries and places like Door County,
Michigan. So, at the age of 16 in 1967 he visited the "Club" with his
father to do some diving. Pursuant to that visit Al Tillman suggested he
return to work there the following summer in 1968. At the end of that (More)
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Curt Chapman
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Bob Thompson: Charter Member of UNEXSO
I first started
diving in the lakes of northern California in the mid '50s. Just
snorkeling and trying to emulate my idol, Lloyd Bridges, in Sea Hunt. I
took my first SCUBA lesson at a YMCA in Jacksonville, Fl. in 1960 and
started on a mission to dive every spring and cave in north Florida and
soon found out that there are a lot of them. The club I belonged to
would travel to a new dive spot every weekend, mostly cave diving, but some fresh water springs and rivers, but sometimes we
would charter a boat and head out (More)
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Bob Thompson
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Hugh Sprunt: Deep Ocean Researcher
Hugh attended the
NAUI Instructor's Course at UNEXSO in June of 1967 as a high school
graduation present, receiving NAUI #1041. He was then offered a staff
position by the General Manager, Dave Woodward. He worked at the Club
each summer through the summer of 1971 living in a small,
air-conditioned first-floor room near the training tank. In his
secondary role as a self-appointed night watchman, Hugh foiled at least
one burglary attempt as the would-be thief snagged his fine sweater on
the dockside barbed (More)
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Hugh Sprunt
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Nick Rolle: Owner of Sunn Odyssey
Divers, LTD
The owner of Sunn
Odyssey Divers; Nick Rolle, was in defiance of his mother; when he took
up scuba diving in 1974 under the instruction of David Andrews ex-Navy
Seal. Although his father was a Sea Captain; his mother was a
non-swimmer; therefore, her belief was stay away from the water because
you will drown! After secretly completing his OW certification Nick
began working with his instructor in Nassau at the Buena Vista Hotel. At
that time they did more snorkel trips than scuba and his longing for
more (More)
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Nick Rolle
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International Legends of Diving - Belize
Jerry Mcdermott: 1st to Bring Diving to Belize
Jerry McDermott can rightfully be credited
as the man who brought scuba diving to Belize. His journey to
the lovely island of Ambergris Caye, off the coast of Belize, began
an ocean away when he was born in Dublin, Ireland on May 13, 1927.
His father was the first in his family to move to the United States
and a year later Jerry and his mother arrived at Ellis Island and then
followed his father to Boston. Soon after the move (More)
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Jerry Mcdermott
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Ramon Nunez: Fisherman, First Diver in Belize, Tourism Ambassador
Ramon Nunez was born in a sailboat off the coast of Belize on June 12, 1940. His family lived up the coast about 12 miles from the village of San Pedro, Ambergris Caye, known as British Honduras at the time. His father put his mother in the sailboat to get help with the delivery, but ended up delivering the baby at sea. He was the last of 14 boys, with one younger sister, Lupita. He was named Ramon after the Patron Saint of the Sea. At the time of his birth, there were only about 150 people living in San Pedro and the Nunez family was quite influential. Despite the family's prominence in (More)
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Ramon Nunez
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Adolfo Ayuso: Fishing Guide, One of the First Scuba Divers & Dive Shop Operators in Belize
Adolfo Ayuso was born in Xcalak Quintana Roo on February 20, 1950. While still a baby, only a year old, his family moved to San Pedro, Ambergris Caye, Belize. He grew up in the little fishing village of San Pedro and attended only elementary school before joining his father and older brother to help support the family at the age of 12 years. Like many in the village, they made their living by fishing and diving for lobster, which they would sell in Belize City. He worked and learned the trade alongside his father and brother until he set (More)
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Adolfo Ayuso
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Gil Gonzalez: One of the First Divers and Fishing Guides of Belize
Gil was born September 18, 1948 on San Pedro, Ambergris Caye, Belize. As a young boy, he grew up fishing and attended primary school until the age of 14 when he began commercial fishing. During the next five years, he spent a lot of time free diving, gathering up lobsters and conch, and spear fishing. He became very well known for his fishing capabilities. His life would take a dramatic turn when Jerry McDermott invited him to serve as a fishing (More)
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Gil Gonzalez
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Eduardo Brown: One of the first scuba divers & sport fishing guides of Belize
Eduardo was born December 18, 1945
in the small fishing village of Xcalak, Mexico, about 30 miles north
of Ambergris Caye, Belize. He began fishing as a small boy with his
father and family, until his life took a tragic turn. In 1955,
Hurricane Janet hit Mexico and devastated that part of the country.
Eduardo was the only one to survive out of his family. At the
tender age of just 9 years, Eduardo was left an orphan and (More)
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Eduardo Brown
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International Legends of Diving - Caribbean
Captain Don Stewart: Underwater Environmentalist, Resort Owner, and Writer
Captain Don was born in the San Francisco Bay area in June of 1925. He had a rocky start, losing his mother when he was only seven years old in 1932. It was the time of the Depression and he was forced to stay with friends and relatives while his father would look for work. By his own admission, he was a scholastic failure and hated sports, but excelled in technical matters. He became a teenage dropout and it wasn't until later in life that
(More)
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Captain Don Stewart
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Bob Soto:
Father of Cayman Island Dive Operations
Bob Soto was born in 1926 on the Isle of Pines to a Cuban father and Caymanian mother. He settled on Grand Cayman with his mother and brothers. Bob's life was touched by adversity at a tender age. He had two older brothers, Rene (16 yr.) and Haldane (21 yr.) who were tragically lost
(More)
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Bob Soto
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International Legends of Diving - Mexico
Alberto Friscione
Carrascosa: Videographer
Alberto developed a passion for undersea life at a very early age. After
graduating with a Veterinary degree from the University of Veracruz,
Alberto settled in Cancun and opened his own dive shop, Solo Buceo. To
this day, he has conducted many expeditions in Mexico, Canada, the
United States, Belize, Honduras, Costa Rica, Colombia, Panama, Bahamas,
Cayman, Cuba, Tonga, Vavau" A, Fiji, Indonesia y some Caribbean islands.
He has made an important number of rescues of lost people in the sea and
underwater (More)
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A. F. Carrascosa
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Ramón Bravo: Diver and Photographer (1925 - 1998)
Buceo y Fotógrafo en Mexico - Ramón Bravo, one of Mexico's most famous divers, is possibly best
known for photographing Tiger Sharks sleeping on the ocean floor off
Isla Mujeres (Island Women). Isla Mujeres is near the Yucatan Peninsula
in the Caribbean north of Cancun. The Smithsonian Institute in
Washington, DC and Jacques Cousteau visited the area to study the
sleeping tigers, a phenomena thought to be caused by underwater
freshwater rivers from the Yucatan. It is believed the tiger (More)
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Ramon Bravo
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Dr. Cuauhtemoc
Sanchez R. “Cuau”: UHMS Organizer
A physician,
professor, author and lecturer based in Mexico, Dr. Sánchez graduated
from the National Autonomous University of México (UNAM) School of
Medicine in 1983. A certified diver since 1986, he was an international
Hyperbaric Fellow at the University of Maryland's R. Adams Cowley Shock
Trauma Center from 1991-1994. While in the United States he voluntarily
translated volumes of materials for the Undersea and Hyperbaric Medicine
Society (UHMS). Returning to his native Mexico in 1994, he organized (More)
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Dr 'Cuau' Sanchez
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Dr. Jorge Dario
Gómez Castillo: DAN Referral Physician
Diving was a passion that launched a career for a
young doctor from Mexico City, Mexico. Nearly a decade later Dr. Jorge
Dario Gómez Castillo is trusted with the lives of many as Medical
Liaison for the Mayan Riviera and DAN Referral Physician. His charge is
the Hyperbaric Chamber on Cozumel, a public chamber and one of three on
the island. The hyperbaric chambers are kept busy throughout the year
with approximately 120 cases of decompression sickness. He said about 10
of those annual cases are those (More)
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Dr Dario Gómez
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Manuel Lazcano: Underwater Photographer
Manuel Lazcano has conducted many expeditions around the
world: Cocos Island (Costa Rica), Fiji, Silver Banks (Dominican
Republic), South Africa, Thailand, Australia, Belize, Palau,
Yap, Hawaii, Guam, Mexico, Malaysia, Alaska, Galapagos Islands,
Azores Islands (Portugal) Bahamas, Bonaire, Turk & Caicos, Cuba,
Los Roques (Venezuela), San Diego (California).
(List of Achievements)
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Manuel Lazcano
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Sergio Sandoval
Vizcaino: Co-Founder of FEMAS
Sergio Sandoval
Vizcaino is the owner and full time executive "DM" at Aquatic Sports /
Deportes Acuaticos Cozumel. Sergio was born in Sayula, Jalisco and
raised along the shores of Manzanillo harbor free diving with the oyster
fishermen. In 1967 Sergio received his degree in Mechanical Engineering
and spent more than 17 years as a mechanical engineer in the automotive
industry. During this period Sergio received his certification as a
diver from AMAS [Mexican Association of Sub-aquatic Activities]. (More)
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Sergio Vizcaino
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International Legends of Diving - Indonesia & South Pacific
Clement Lee: First Dive Resort Operator of Malaysia, Environmentalist
Clement Lee was born on a small island called Labuan, a thirty minute flight from Kota Kinabalu on January 16, 1952. Clement's introduction to the sea came about quite accidently and abruptly when a couple of friends pushed him into the ocean. He quickly, and quite gratefully, discovered that he could float by using his hands and feet. It was uncommon for those of Chinese descent to have much to do with the water, but this did not hold Clement back. It was during a
(More)
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Clement Lee
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International Legends of Diving - Indian Ocean
Rex De Silva: Marine Biologist, Shark Researcher, & Underwater Photographer of Sri Lanka
Rex De Silva was born in Colombo, Sri Lanka on October 22, 1940. Growing up on an island, the water always held a fascination for him and that, combined with what he was learning in school, piqued his interest in diving and experimenting with underwater equipment at a rather early age. He made his first facemask at around 15 years of age, fashioning it out of
(More)
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Rex De Silva
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