If you’re among the generation of divers like me, the 1950s television series Sea Hunt may be familiar to you, but younger generation divers may or may not have even heard of it, much less know much about it. Yet, Sea Hunt was a pivotal jump-start for the then-young sport of scuba diving, and its influence continues, albeit in a much less significant way, to this day. It partly or entirely inspired thousands of people to start scuba diving.
A syndicated 30-minute show, Sea Hunt produced 155 episodes over four seasons more than 60 years ago (1958-1961), all starring Lloyd Bridges as professional scuba diver Mike Nelson. The show followed Mike Nelson’s varied underwater adventures that ranged from science and exploration to rescues, crime fighting and explosive removal. The show was cancelled after four seasons (reportedly due to a fall off in first season syndication sales) despite being popular and being the highest rated show for nine months. But it endured, going into reruns immediately. The show continues to be viewable even today on YouTube, DVD and cable channels like Pluto (though to be fair, it is dated by today’s standards, campy/corny and misogynistic at times). Thanks to reruns, it continued as a significant diving catalyst, sparking many people’s interest in the underwater world, marine sciences and scuba well into the 1970s.
Sea Hunt was influential for several reasons. For one, for the period it showed scuba diving realistically, albeit not perfectly, with genuine diving and science advisors to ensure it was more factual (based on what was known at the time) than exaggerated or wrong. Beyond this, Lloyd Bridges was a real diver, learning for the show, and after gaining underwater experience, he did most of the underwater scenes and many of the stunts himself. He continued diving for years after the show, promoting environmental conservation and responsible diving and starring as a diver in two movies, Around the World Under the Sea and The Daring Game. He further helped diving grow by writing diving’s early history in Mask and Flippers and recording diving instruction on an LP record, Hear How to Skin Dive. He was inducted into the International Scuba Diving Hall of Fame in 2000.
Sea Hunt presented diving as a bit elitist, yet open to those who wanted to do it. The show cast women in diving roles, with diving icon Zale Parry (who helped teach Bridges to dive) notably among them, presenting diving as something accessible to both men and women – not the typical attitude for adventure sports in that era. The show’s messages reflected this, with safety an ongoing theme. Reflecting the need to be trained and the importance of risk management, one of the show’s fourth-season closers went, “Hi, I’m Lloyd Bridges. Skin diving is fun and an adventure for young and old, but it can be dangerous. So, know the sport well and don’t take any chances. Be with you next week for another exciting Sea Hunt.”
If you’ve yet to see a Sea Hunt, consider watching some episodes – but remember my cautions about it being dated. That the show’s legacy remains is interesting, visible not merely in those who it inspired, but also in the divers and Ocean Torchbearers inspired and mentored by those Sea Hunt influenced directly. Today, people across the planet are seeking adventure and opportunities to save the ocean every day at a scale and conviction the creators of Sea Hunt could never have fathomed or imagined.
Dr. Drew Richardson
PADI President & CEO
PS – Inspire people to join us as divers by referring a friend. You can earn discounts when you share diving by signing someone up to do the PADI Open Water Diver eLearning – and they get a discount, too. Click the link and learn how.
