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Posted by bajahaha on January 10, 2009 at 07:38:33:
In Reply to: Re: Golden Doubloon no longer with us posted by Chris on January 09, 2009 at 19:47:24:
The Golden Doubloon was one of the early California Dive boats but certainly was not the original California dive boat.
California's first and therefore the world's first commercial dive boat was in operation in 1951 as the 43 foot "Moray" owned and operated by Mort Toggweiler with a very young Ron Merker as the deck hand..both are still kicking Mort is in his 90s and Ron is in his mid 70s.
Other early boats predating the GD would be the;
"Say When" owned by the South Gate policeman Jack Tilney
The "Velreron" owned and operated by Jack ? of OC with a young Bobbie Frazier as the Deck hand..The boat was formerly the private yacht of the early movie star and early diver James Cagney.
And several others...which are burried in my file
The Golden Doubloon, which was launched in 1945 as a USN mine sweeper, did not appear in the fleet until the late 1950s. At that time it was owned by SoCal dive shop owner Mel Fisher with Eddie Tsumura ( pro Suka Mura) as the captain. After an aborted trip through the Panama Canal in the summer of 1960, Mel sold the boat to Eddie in early 1960s.
Eddie owned an operated the GD for the majority of its operational life.
Both Mel, who sold his shop,aka "Mel's Aqua Shop," now owned by Barry Friedman on Catalina Avenue in Redondo Beach, and went on to fame and fortune as a treasure hunter and Eddie who sold the GD are no longer with us.
The boat was purchased by Mike Piantonio, (Sp) and Greg Elliot who became the second captain of the boat, with my son as the deck hand.
Mike sold his interest to Greg and is now an official with XScuba.
My son completed his under grad work as a week end deck hand and continued on to Medical school is now a practicing ER/Hyperbaric doctor.. And so it goes
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