Today you can pick up a Nikon Coolpix underwater camera for a few hundred bucks and grab yourself some underwater shots pretty easily. Not so in the old days. These photos go back to the early 50’s when my dad became fascinated with scuba diving (after seeing the film “The Frogmen, “1951) and underwater photography. He developed one of the first underwater camera cases, which resulted in his being invited by Jacques Cousteau aboard the Calypso so that Mr. Cousteau could see it. The model is my mom, Jean Lefavour.
E.J. Lefavour
Good Morning Gloucester 
so beautiful, thank you for sharing
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awesome…so cool-
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Your posts are always so interesting and your Mom was beautiful!
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Thanks Deb, and yes she was, and still is, even at 82.
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What wonderful photos! Your mom is truly beautiful! I hope you continue to post more of your discoveries. (When I was 10, I took scuba lessons in preparation for a trip to the Bahamas. The instructor put all the gear on me and tossed me into the pool–I didn’t believe that I could breathe under water so I held my breath the entire length of the pool. –haha! What a wimp.)
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Glad to see that you’re back able to comment again! How long did it take for you to believe you could breathe underwater? It was a long time ago, but I seem to remember practicing breathing from the tank before going underwater, but I also was used to snorkeling and had been a mermaid in my last life, so breathing underwater wasn’t foreign to me.
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We did practice breathing before going under, and it was fine once I stopped holding my breath. Unlike you, I haven’t had the experience of being a mermaid:-)
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Interesting, and I like the lighting set-up at poolside.
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But man, that lighting by the pool is truly scary! One slip and ZAP! there goes whoever might have been enjoying the water!
Nice pics EJ! Your dad must have been a cool guy to even attempt the waterproof case! And as others have said, your mom is beautiful!
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You’re not kidding! I never thought about that – Mom and Dad could have been both gone in one fell swoop! Dad was, and still is very creative and inventive. If he wanted to do something and there wasn’t the equipment available to do it, he’d invent and build it, like the underwater camera case. He designed and manufactured wet suits back in the day when everyone used dry suits. He was great at inventing and creating, but not so much at patenting his creations. He is also a good artist.
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Wow, awesome story and I was going to ask who that cute woman who’s face was in the photo with you naked in the sink. Now I know. A hot model.
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Totally cool and interesting! You’ve got some awesome memorabilia! Not to mention great discussion topics at cocktail parties !
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Love it! Thanks for sharing EJ.
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Great post EJ.
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I believe your beautiful mother was a mermaid in a past life too. Such joy in her face!
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Yes, she loved the water in her younger days, and was one of the first woman scuba divers in the Northeast.
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Just Beautiful EJ (your Mom) and thanks so much for sharing.
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What a wonderful story and pics, love it!!
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Thanks Jenn. I am really enjoying going back and discovering/rediscovering some of my immediate family history that ties into a greater general history about scuba diving, etc.
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Excellent and very nice a memory lane for sure Thank You! Walk back to go forward what it’s all about 🙂
Sea Hunt – Beginning and End (Yep Star Trek Spock was in this too)!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8HFdvCy6ivY )
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