One of the earliest American proponents of scuba diving and underwater photography. As Editor and later Publisher of Skin Diver Magazine, he wielded an enormous influence for three decades on the development of underwater photography and international diving tourism. His succeeded at one of the most varied, influential and honored careers in the history of international scuba diving.  | Paul J. Tzimoulis was one of the true pioneers in sport diving. He encouraged photography, research, safety and conservation in the underwater world through his writing to the public about diving.
Tzimoulis devoted over 45 years to diving and campaigning to preserve the undersea world. He was an excellent writer, underwater photographer and a very productive manager by drawing the best from people who worked with him. He was a gifted leader of the diving industry.
Paul bought his first AquaLung in 1956. His diving expanded in 1957, when he began sponge diving in Tarpon Springs, Florida.
Tzimoulis began exploring the east coast waters from Bar Harbor, Maine, to Key West, Florida. He quickly became a nationally recognized authority on wreck diving, underwater photography, treasure hunting and underwater natural history.
Soon Tzimoulis was diving in Bermuda, Bimini, Nassau, Puerto Rico, Virgin Islands and Grand Cayman. He also worked as a professional sponge diver in Tarpon Springs and a salvage inspector in Long Island Sound. He was an early diving instructor, receiving his YMCA Instructor Certification at the first Institute conducted in Boston.
Shortly thereafter, he was appointed to the YMCA Board of Examiners for YMCA Diving Instructor Certification. In 1962, Tzimoulis received his NAUI Instructor Certification and soon joined the Eastern NAUI Board of Instructor Examiners. He became a PADI Instructor during their first year of existence, 1966.
Tzimoulis has served on the Board of Advisors of NAUI, PADI and YMCA. Over the years, Paul Tzimoulis has been keenly aware of the need for underwater conservation and marine ecological study. He joined the American Littoral Society in 1961, when it first started. In December, 1962, Skin Diver Magazine published an article by Tzimoulis, "Our Vanishing Wrecks." By early 1963 he had organized a Committee For The Preservation Of undersea Wrecks. As Chairman of the Marine Preserves Committee, Paul Tzimoulis lead a campaign to save the wreck of the U.S.S. San Diego, which lies off the South Shore of Long Island. The campaign Tzimoulis started gained national recognition with an article in the August 16, 1963 issue of Life
Magazine and a television interview by Hugh Downs on the Today Show.
Of all professional underwater photographers, few are as widely known and as easily recognized as Paul Tzimoulis. Beginning in 1957 with just an Argus C-3 in a plastic bag, the superb underwater photography of Tzimoulis has developed to a high level of perfection. He won his first underwater photo competition in 1959. He was a five-time winner of the Connecticut Underwater Photography competitions.
His first article, "Sponge Diving -- Scuba Style," appeared in the August 1959 Skin Diver.
At the prestigious 1964, International Underwater Film Festival held in Santa Monica, CaliforniaTzimoulis was awarded a "Special Tribute" for his documentary filming of the Hannes Keller record 1,000-foot deep dive off Santa Catalina Island, California. He was called "the brightest young meteor on the horizon of diving's future." His documentary photos of this historic event were published in magazines and scientific journals all over the world. He founded and was Executive Director of the first International Underwater Film Festival held in New York City, in February 1965. Tzimoulis helped organize similar events in Philadelphia, Washington, D.C., Boston and Chicago.
One of the early staff members on Skin Diver Magazine, Paul Tzimoulis joined the magazine as Assistant Sales Manager in 1963, with primary responsibility being sales and promotion in the eastern portion of the United States. For some time, Tzimoulis continued to supervise the Sportsways warehouse facility in Jersey City, New Jersey.
Tzimoulis became Eastern Sales representative and Associate Editor in 1964. In 1966, at the age of 29, Paul was named Editor/Publisher of Skin Diver. For many years he guided Skin Diver during its largest growth period, with many publishing innovations and contributions to diving. After 34 years with Skin Diver, Tzimoulis retired as Vice President, Executive Publisher and Group Publisher for the Photography/Marine Division of
Petersen Magazine Network, which publishes Skin Diver.
Not one for sitting on his laurels, Tzimoulis returned from retirement to
become Publisher and Editorial Director of Sport Diver Magazine. He has greatly helped protect the legal rights of sport divers and protect the ocean environment. Within just a few years he had accumulated a tremendous amount of diving, writing, photography, knowledge about the diving industry and an admirable ability in business management.
His excellent underwater photography has appeared in many magazines,
including Skin Diver, U.S. Camera, Underwater Naturalist, Leisure, Carte
Blanche, Argosy, Sea Venture and several other leading publications. He has won numerous honors and tributes for his underwater photography work at film festivals. He has one of the country's most complete photographic and research files on diving. Over the years, Tzimoulis has been the Master of Ceremonies of countless underwater film festivals.
Tzimoulis has conducted Underwater Photography Seminars and courses in
many parts of the world and written numerous articles on the subject.
He also co-authored a classic book on underwater photography with Hank Frey, entitled Camera Below (Association Press, 1968), one of the first books published on underwater photography. He was a prolific writer on many other ocean subjects.
In addition to his wide range of other professional activities, Tzimoulis has
been an active participant in many aspects of the diving community, including: Chairman, Leonard Greenstone Diving Safety Award Selection Committee, and
several others.
He was an active member of the Underwater Photographic Society,
National Oceanography Association, National Association of Underwater
Instructors, Cannon Hunters of Seattle, Professional Association of Diving
Instructors, CEDAM International, International Oceanographic Foundation and the American Littoral Society. Tzimoulis was also on the Board of Directors of the International Scuba Diving Hall of Fame and The Academy of Underwater Arts and Sciences (Chairman).
During his over five decades of contribution to diving, Paul Tzimoulis has received many awards and honors: the Diver Of The Year Award presented by the Boston Sea Rovers (1966); Honored Photographer from the International Underwater Film Festival (1968); the NOGI Award For Sports from the Academy of Underwater Arts and Sciences (1969); Hall of Fame Undersea Photography Award, Hawaii (1971); Oceanus Award - Our Future In Depths Arts Award (1977); Underwater Photographic Society Outstanding Achievement Award (1978); Sir Turtle Award from the Cayman Islands Department of Tourism (1983);
Reaching Out Award and induction into the DEMA Hall of Fame (1997); PADI
Outstanding Achievement Award (1998); induction into the International Scuba
Diving Hall of Fame (2001); and many others.
Paul Tzimoulis and Geri Murphy worked together beginning in 1975. They
were married in 1987.
(This biography adapted from Ed Cargile’s Pioneers in Diving.) |
