Zale Parry

Who is Zale Parry?

Zale Parry is an American pioneer scuba diver, underwater photographer and actress.

Parry started diving in the 1940s as a young girl. She was raised on a Wisconsin lake and learned to swim and love the water at an early age. As a young woman, she became involved in pioneering diving and scientific work. In 1953 she became a tester of underwater equipment for Scientific Underwater Research Enterprises. Later, she and her partner designed, built, and marketed the first civilian hyperbaric chamber for divers. They were evangelists for the purchase of hyperbaric around the world to provide lifesaving facilities for divers suffering from "the bends".

In 1954, Parry set a women's depth record to 209 feet. She is said to have stopped at 209 feet when she reached the bottom. That year, she became the third female instructor to graduate from the L.A. County UICC program.

Later in 1954, Parry made her screen debut in Kingdom of the Sea, a Jack Douglas Production, which was shown in 70 countries and had a successful run of several years.

Because of her work in Kingdom of the Sea, Parry was tapped by the producers of the new show, Sea Hunt. Parry has referred to Sea Hunt as an "underwater western". The lead character, Mike Nelson, was introduced to an undersea problem or villain at the start of the show. By the end of the half hour, he had resolved the problem. Parry's beauty and her knowledge of the sea and diving made her a natural to join the Sea Hunt show. She was cast without a single screen test. Her role in the series was primarily as a female underwater stunt double, but she did appear as an actress in a few episodes. She also assisted in teaching Mr. Bridges how to use scuba gear prior to the series going into production.