Sea Hunt

Executive producer Ivan Tors conceived Sea Hunt while working on the 1958 film Underwater Warrior, but all three major US networks passed on the idea because they doubted an underwater-set series could sustain viewer interest.

Tors instead sold the series into first-run syndication with Ziv Television Programs, placing it in over 100 syndicated markets before its January 1958 debut.

Sea Hunt served as a comeback vehicle for Lloyd Bridges, who had been briefly blacklisted after admitting to the House Un-American Activities Committee that he belonged to the Actors' Laboratory Theatre, a group linked to the Communist Party.

Although Bridges had Coast Guard experience with ships, he had to take a crash course in scuba diving from Zale Parry and Courtney Brown, with Brown also serving as his underwater stunt double; he was further trained by Brad Pinkernell, whom he met by chance on a Southern California beach.

Several future stars appeared early in their careers on the show, including Leonard Nimoy, Bruce Dern, Robert Conrad, Larry Hagman, Jack Nicholson, and Bridges' own sons Beau and Jeff Bridges.

Underwater sequences were assembled in post-production from footage shot at many different sites, including studio tanks and real locations in California, Florida, and the Bahamas, mixed with stock footage.

Over the course of the series, Bridges became increasingly involved in the underwater stunt work himself, progressing from simple close-ups early on to performing nearly all stunts except the most dangerous by the show's end.

Because no dialogue was possible underwater, Bridges provided voice-over narration for every episode.

The production boat was named the Argonaut after the mythological Greek sailors who accompanied Jason on the quest for the Golden Fleece; one notable vessel used was a custom 1960 Trojan Express cabin cruiser with mahogany planking and teak decks.

Wetsuits for the show were made by the small Los Angeles shop Dive N' Surf, which later became the genesis of the Body Glove brand.

Composer David Rose is credited with the score, though several Sea Hunt stock music cues were also used in the 1958 Columbia Western film Buchanan Rides Alone.

During its first nine months, Sea Hunt was the number one rated show, capturing half the viewing audience in 50 major cities and 59% of the audience in New York City; producer Ivan Tors later estimated 40 million people watched it weekly.

Sport Diver magazine credited the show with a lasting impact on the scuba diving hobby, noting an annual Florida event called Sea Hunt Forever where divers use vintage gear to re-enact scenes from the series.

A 1987 revival starring Ron Ely was filmed with land scenes shot in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada for budgetary reasons, despite the story being set in Florida; it was canceled after just one season.