SACRED LEGACY ARCHIVES™

Jacques Cousteau

1910-06-11 – 1997-06-25

Commander Cousteau in C.E.1972 in The Hague for a conference. Royalty-free photo. Archives of the Netherlands. AnefoCredit: Hans Peters for Anefo .

Life & Legacy

Jacques-Yves Cousteau (, also UK: ; French: [ʒak iv kusto]; 11 June 1910 – 25 June 1997) was a French naval officer, oceanographer, filmmaker and author. He co-invented the first successful open-circuit self-contained underwater breathing apparatus (SCUBA), called the Aqua-Lung, which assisted him in producing some of the first underwater documentaries.
Cousteau wrote many books describing his undersea explorations. In his first book, The Silent World: A Story of Undersea Discovery and Adventure, Cousteau surmised the existence of the echolocation abilities of porpoises. The book was adapted into an underwater documentary called The Silent World. Co-directed by Cousteau and Louis Malle, it was one of the first films to use underwater cinematography to document the ocean depths in color. The film won the 1956 Palme d'Or at the Cannes Film Festival and remained the only documentary to do so until 2004 (when Fahrenheit 9/11 received the award). It was also awarded the Academy Award for Best Documentary in 1957.
From 1966 to 1976, he hosted The Undersea World of Jacques Cousteau, a documentary television series. A second documentary series, The Cousteau Odyssey, ran from 1977 to 1982 on public television stations.

Occupation & Career

zoologist, explorer, filmmaker, innovator, photographer, conservationist, oceanographer, writer, inventor, screenwriter, Officer of the French Navy, marine biologist, engineer, film director, world traveler, film producer, documentary filmmaker

Education

École Navale; Collège Stanislas de Paris

Accomplishments, Inventions & Publications

Commander of the Legion of Honour; Croix de guerre 1939–1945; Grand Cross of the National Order of Merit; Commandeur des Arts et des Lettres‎; Presidential Medal of Freedom; Benjamin Franklin Medal; BAFTA Fellowship; Academy Award for Best Live Action Short Film; Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature Film; Howard N. Potts Medal; Officer of the Order of Maritime Merit; Genesis Award; Founder’s Medal; Catalonia International Prize; National Inventors Hall of Fame; John Muir Award; Great Gold medal of the Société d'Encouragement au Progrès; honorary doctor of Harvard University; honorary doctorate of the Polytechnic University of Valencia; honorary doctor of Brandeis University; honorary doctorate of Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv; Honorary Companion of the Order of Australia; honorary doctorate of the Vrije Universiteit Brussel; Grand Officer of the National Order of Merit

Legacy Highlights

Honors & Awards

Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature Film · Academy Award for Best Live Action Short Film · BAFTA Fellowship · Benjamin Franklin Medal · Catalonia International Prize · Commander of the Legion of Honour · Commandeur des Arts et des Lettres‎ · Croix de guerre 1939–1945 · Founder’s Medal · Genesis Award · Grand Cross of the National Order of Merit · Grand Officer of the National Order of Merit · Great Gold medal of the Société d'Encouragement au Progrès · Honorary Companion of the Order of Australia · honorary doctor of Brandeis University · honorary doctor of Harvard University · honorary doctorate of Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv · honorary doctorate of the Polytechnic University of Valencia · honorary doctorate of the Vrije Universiteit Brussel · Howard N. Potts Medal · John Muir Award · National Inventors Hall of Fame · Officer of the Order of Maritime Merit · Presidential Medal of Freedom