Bev Morgan, Diving Industry Pioneer

[Akimbo]

For readers with no idea what a Rat Hat is (named for Bob Ratcliffe):

It varies a lot from the Kirby Morgan hats. It uses a first stage regulator mounted to the back of the hat instead of a Dial-a-Breath to compensate for OBP (Over Bottom Pressure), used a mouth tube to actuate the second stage that is entirely inside the hat, and has a round neck ring.

 

[Akimbo]

@Oceanaut started a great thread with his interview with Bev and is well worth reading:
The Late Bev Morgan in his Own Words: Diving in Cook Inlet, Alaska

In case you missed it, Bev is no longer with us: Bev Morgan, a pioneer has passed. He made the world a better place for a lot of divers people.

 

[Akimbo]

@Captain Tim is up here visiting and offered to use his scanner to digitize some of my old slides. We ran across the image below, which I took moments before this happened:

I was wandering the small exhibit hall between speakers, which was full of oceanographic instruments. I suddenly spotted a few of those famous helmets and masks when everything else around me disappeared.

Suddenly a soft-spoken voice breaks my trance and asks if he can answer any questions. I look up from the Band Mask on a manikin head and see the name tag. Trying to be cool while "OMG it's BEV MORGAN!!!" is screaming in my head...

 

[Captain Tim]

I am at Akimbo's home where we are scanning and digitizing his negatives and slides from "those years"

Dive Bells. Saturation Systems, helium cylinders hanging on systems by the thousands.

The sides and hatches adorned with OCEANEERING COMEX, TAYLOR ...another image of a dive system and only the name and the color has been changed to protect the innocent.

Across from me he sits in his burgundy leather bound Stress-less chair where a few dozen boxes of Kodachrome and Ektachrome slides lie at his feet;

"Ok..here is something different...a &$%^*# dive bell from the left side..oh yea and here it is from underneath when the crane is hoisting it?" Kool uh?

Is he asking me a question or stating a fact?
Moments later...
" I found a different one...Have you scanned this one of the bell.. when the hatch is open?"

.... If I am going to turn in some time on Lightroom... will it be about yellow, white and orange dive systems or some creative U/W images

Ok ENUFF
Growing a bit weary of digitizing every form of underwater dive system known to man (and Akimbo).
"Do you have any "artsie fartsie" underwater images?" I ask? Maybe a nice long string of California Bull kelp leading to the surface? Maybe a burst of "Jesus light" breaking into a prismatic masterpiece as it breaks the clear waters of Carmel Bay dancing on the rocky reef and the "hold fast system? Poetic as I describe a recent image of ....NOT MINE!

He tell me "I think there is a diver in a KMB mask that has something like that ..Let me look around....ok here it is"

It is NOTHING at all like that. More like a 500 watt Birns and Sawyer that another diver is holding on the working diver.

And the evening wears on.

 

[Eric Sedletzky]

I am at Akimbo's home where we are scanning and digitizing his negatives and slides from "those years"

Dive Bells. Saturation Systems, helium cylinders hanging on systems by the thousands.

The sides and hatches adorned with OCEANEERING COMEX, TAYLOR ...another image of a dive system and only the name and the color has been changed to protect the innocent.

Across from me he sits in his burgundy leather bound Stress-less chair where a few dozen boxes of Kodachrome and Ektachrome slides lie at his feet;

"Ok..here is something different...a &$%^*# dive bell from the left side..oh yea and here it is from underneath when the crane is hoisting it?" Kool uh?

Is he asking me a question or stating a fact?
Moments later...
" I found a different one...Have you scanned this one of the bell.. when the hatch is open?"

.... If I am going to turn in some time on Lightroom... will it be about yellow, white and orange dive systems or some creative U/W images

Ok ENUFF
Growing a bit weary of digitizing every form of underwater dive system known to man (and Akimbo).
"Do you have any "artsie fartsie" underwater images?" I ask? Maybe a nice long string of California Bull kelp leading to the surface? Maybe a burst of "Jesus light" breaking into a prismatic masterpiece as it breaks the clear waters of Carmel Bay dancing on the rocky reef and the "hold fast system? Poetic as I describe a recent image of ....NOT MINE!

He tell me "I think there is a diver in a KMB mask that has something like that ..Let me look around....ok here it is"

It is NOTHING at all like that. More like a 500 watt Birns and Sawyer that another diver is holding on the working diver.

And the evening wears on.

I sure hope you guys have a couple bottles of something good to accompany you during this process.
Maybe a 19 yo bottle of single malt?
It sounds fun, cool, interesting, nostalgic, thrilling, and very painful, all at the same time.

 

[Akimbo]

Bev Morgan passed away on 6 June 2018: Bev Morgan, a pioneer has passed

 

[abnfrog]

a HUGE star just went out ,the world will not be as good.......

 

[Compressor]

I'm late to this thread but its a fabulous one.

 

[vjb.knife]

One of the nice things about going through the Marine Diving Technology program at Santa Barbara City college in the 1970's was the access that we as students got to companies like Kirby Morgan. I believe they gave support to the program by making the latest band masks and helmets available to us. At that time we dove everything from Heavy gear (see my avatar) to the newly developed lightweight helmets. I met the great people at Kirby Morgan but can not say that I knew them well. It is always a sad day to hear about the passing of pioneers like Bev Morgan as it was when I learned of the passing of one of his friends and my instructors Bob Christensen.

 

[Sam Miller III]

@vjb.knife
"I learned of the passing of one of his friends and my instructors Bob Christensen. "
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I knew Bob for many years …beginning way back in the early NAUI days
it seems like only yesterday that we were setting a Kirby Morgan in Santa Maria chatting away while my son Dr.Sam IV lectured on divmed

I fear I am out of the loop- when did Bob pass away ? A natural passing or a disease?

Sam, 111