Scuba America was founded by underwater pioneers Albert Tillman and Zale Parry.

The Scuba America Archives consist of audio recordings of hundreds of early skin and scuba divers representing a cross section of recreational, scientific and military divers from across the United States. Thousands of documents, photographs and other ephemera have been saved for future generations of researchers.


The culmination of the research is the four volume set of books on diving history entitled Scuba America. Only Volume I was printed before Albert Tillman's unexpected passing but Zale and Albert's son Tom continue work on getting the final three volumes produced.


Zale Parry's life has been a wild ride within the diving industry. She is best known for her work as an underwater stuntwoman in Hollywood as well as actress on the original Sea Hunt series, Kingdom of the Sea, and Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea. She has graced the cover of numerous dive magazines, as well as the cover of Sports Illustrated as one of the few divers to ever appear on the cover. She is also co-founder of the International Underwater Film Festivals, was the first woman to dive below 200 feet, was one of the first three female instructors in America (LA County), and has also recieved both the NOGI and the "Reaching Out" and Diving Hall of Fame induction. Zale was named the 1999 Woman Diver of the Year by the WSA in January 2000 at DEMA. In 2002 Zale was also inducted into the International Diving Hall of Fame.


Al Tillman's involvement in the diving community is legend. He started free diving in 1938 at the age of ten and has spent a lifetime making contributions to the field of diving. He designed and founded the first organized instructor certification program (Los Angeles County) with Bev Morgan in 1954 and went on to found the National Association of Underwater Instructors (NAUI)with Neal Hess and John C. Jones in 1960. He was the technical advisor for ZIV television for the series Sea Hunt and wrote numerous books and thousands of articles on diving. He has served as an editor for Skin Diver Magazine and Dive Magazine, founded and built UNEXSO in the Bahamas, served as a SW regional director for the YMCA underwater program, has held instructor trainer certifications with numrous agencies, co-founded the International Underwater Film Festivals and Underwater Photographic Society and has recieved both the NOGI award and the DEMA Hall of Fame induction and "Reaching Out" Award. He was also one of the first inductees in the International Diving Hall of Fame. I Thought I Saw Atlantis: Reminiscences of a Pioneer Skin and Scuba Diver, covers Tillman's career and the history of the industry and is available Orcas Outfitters at (360) 376-9327.