Shadow Divers: John Chatterton's Interview with ScubaBoard

[Chatterton]

Thanks for the reply. I am not trying to Monday Morning QB or pass judgement on anyone, but rather utilize a "lessons Learned" approach. My only point was that I think a closer "Buddy approach" to everyone when they dive, along with self sufficaint skills, would minimize incidents. Thats all. To each their own..

Safe diving!

Cheers

.02 psi

I put those caveats in there for me, not you. I was just rendering an opinion. Studying diving accidents is one of the ways we try to better manage the inherent risks associated with our sport. Unfortunately, there is often some subjectivity to the interpretation of the evidence we are able to recover.

I agree with you, in that most divers will benefit from having a buddy. I also agree that most divers benefit from building good self sufficiency skills. However, some environments are somewhat more demanding, and less Buddy Friendly??

Cheers

 

[Chatterton]

I'm serious, you are a Dive God to me. You are a huge credit to diving. Thank you.

One of my goals in life is to do a dive with John Chatterton. Hey John, will you be any where near Little Cayman the week of Feb 10, 2008? I could at least carry your booties, or help you set up?

Cool yer fins, matey, I'm married.

I end up doing a bunch of diving (someof it very mainstream), and I am not that hard to catch up with. You can check my webite. However, I will have to carry my own booties or I will get lazy and fat.

As for Febuary 8th, I am on a shoot, sort of working for a living. If I don' pay the bills, my wife gets disappointed. It will have to be another time.

Cheers

 

[Thalassamania]

Would the world not be a better place if every diver was sufficiently skilled to be totally self-reliant and had a similarly skilled and equipped buddy within arms reach whenever conditions permitted?

 

[Chatterton]

I am almost done reading Shadow Divers. As a newly minted Historian and Diver I find it facinating. I would love to wreck dive, but within the rec limits and with no going inside. =)

I love hands on history.

Thanks so much for your service in Vietnam Mr. Chatterton, BTW.

I really liked reading about the Doria, and I am getting some books on it, I would love a relic from it, I figured some have to make it to ebay, with the hundreds hauled out in Shadow Divers.

Thousands of artifacts, actually. Maybe you will want to go get your own??

Thanks for the nice comments.


Cheers

 

[pilot fish]

I end up doing a bunch of diving (someof it very mainstream), and I am not that hard to catch up with. You can check my webite. However, I will have to carry my own booties or I will get lazy and fat.

As for Febuary 8th, I am on a shoot, sort of working for a living. If I don' pay the bills, my wife gets disappointed. It will have to be another time.

Cheers

What is your website? You name it John and I'll open that date for you. Heck, I'll even spring for the defogger

 

[Chatterton]

Some how I have ignored this thread and shame on me!

There are many who in the very short history of recreational diving have documented the underwater world via the Television camera.

John D Craig, who in 1938 published one of the early best selling dive books "Danger is my business" presented the first underwater syndicated diving program titled "Kingdom of the sea." in the very early 1950s His side kick on this program was the very young ever lovely Zale Parry

In the mid 1950s two California dive shop owners, Earl Sugarman, and the now well known Florida treasure hunter Mel Fisher, gave California and perhaps other parts of the US a weekly televised dive show, whose name I can't recall at this junction of my life

In the late 1950s and into the early 1960s the very popular "Territory Underwater" appeared on the small B&W screens. It was presented by the Bauer brothers, George and Don. Copies of selected programs were available for a short period by Voit Rubber company prior to the company disappearing.

All were local pioneer LA County Underwater instructors-(the term "SCUBA" was not in common usage-) and we were all close social friends and frequent diving companions. Sadly John, Earl, Mel, Don and George are now diving in the big reef in the sky and most of their work has deteriorated to ash and is no longer available.

Then along came Jollywood....

Hugh Downs, the current product pitchman gave us several totally forgettable programs..

Then Sea Hunt ...

David Wolper presented the Underwater world of JYC,

National Geographic presented Bobbie Ballard --for a short while.

Now we have "Undersea Detectives"...Unquestionably the very best underwater program ever presented to the public and the diving world. It is evident that the stars of the program have been there and done that and they are going there and still doing it....Bravo! John & Richie!
sdm

I am flattered. Thank you for the nice comments as well as the brief history. Zale Perry is still a beautiful woman, and still involved in diving. She is working for a couple of diving scholarships in her name with the AUAS.


cheers

 

[RiverRat]

Hi John. Big fan of the show. Scubaboard has been, and continues to be an awesome resource for me and I'm sure many other divers. You are certainly a welcome addition and I look forward to seeing you here on the board and learning from your experiences.

Chris

 

[Scott from LongIsland]

Thousands of artifacts, actually. Maybe you will want to go get your own??

Thanks for the nice comments.


Cheers

John, I am a new diver and am looking forward to the many dives in my future. Some of the books/articles that I have read have mentioned that the Andrea Doria is deteriorating rapidly. I do not want to sound like I have "china fever" but your comment above made me wonder...is there anything left on the great ship? Is there any china that has not yet been taken? I have no plans to dive the Andrea Doria, but I am just curious what is left on the wreck.

 

[tltracy]

I myself just finished reading Shadow Divers after meeting Richie at the Florida Dive Show couple of weekends back... I couldn't put the book down. I felt that I was "diving the wreck" myself, and it opened my eyes up a little about history and wreck diving. The movie "Hitler's Lost Sub" put the book into perspective for me in that I could actually see what the wreck looked like. John, I feel as if I know you!!

And I would like to know too if there is anything left on the Andrea Doria??

 

[tridacna]

Would the world not be a better place if every diver was sufficiently skilled to be totally self-reliant and had a similarly skilled and equipped buddy within arms reach whenever conditions permitted?

I'm not so sure about the WORLD being a better place! Maybe the sport or hobby or even John Chatterton (doubtful but it's his thread so what the heck!).

Curing cancer or dumping GWB early or even doing something about those melting glaciers would definitely make the WORLD a better place. Having a great buddy? Naah.

Happy New Year Thal!