From: jittlov@gumby.cs.caltech.edu (Mike Jittlov)
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.science
Subject: Re: o.k. scifi
Date: 5 Oct 1992 02:23:15 GMT
Organization: California Institute of Technology, Pasadena
NNTP-Posting-Host: gumby.cs.caltech.edu

ketil@svale.ii.uib.no (Ketil M. Malde) writes:

>In article <1992Sep26.120059.14249@news.iastate.edu> glitto@iastate.edu (Scott M Klabacha) writes:

>   >Are you saying a person is unable to stay under water for more than 
>   >30 seconds without coming up for breath?

>   >While very cold water will shorten this time, 30 seconds is simply not a 
>   >problem for someone in decent shape.

>   32 degrees (I wish I had _Sphere_ with me...I have this nagging
>   doubt in my mind that the water was even that warm; I'm thinking it
>   might have been even colder [and still not frozen] due to the
>   pressure). The character in _Sphere_ entered the water to rescue
>   another character; the effort nearly proved to be fatal. The
>   character in 'The Abyss' made a much more extended trip (more than
>   a minute long)...and left the water with no ill effects. It ain't
>   right.

>I'm not sure a one-minute trip under water is impossible, but it will
>depend on the person doing it, and his equipment, of course (Haven't
>seen the movie, but I assume wetsuits or similar is out of the
>question?)


Staying underwater for over a minute, is not a difficult feat.
I did it in my feature film, "The Wizard of Speed and Time",
and stayed at the bottom of a swimming pool for 2 minutes and
13 seconds.  I practiced for the scene, once only, by walking
into a neighbor's pool and staying underwater for 3 minutes.

The feature, about special effects filmmakers trying to survive
in Hollywood, had a scene where my character demands his check
from a crooked film producer at a pool party.  The producer's
henchman toss me into a pool, with orders to drag me away when
I come up.  So I stay down.  And during the tension - since no
one wants to mess up party clothes by doing a water rescue -
the crooked producer's dirty dealings are exposed to all.  When
that happens, I swim up to the surface, slog out of the pool, 
grab the producer and throw HIM in.

It was October in Los Angeles, about 9pm, the swimming pool was
on a private estate high in the Hollywood Hills, and the water
was cold.  I had all of my clothes on, and 16 pounds of sheet
lead around my waist to hold me down under.  It was extremely
tense, since we'd had a difficult day, it was an expensive
location with a hundred actors and extras, and we were going
into overtime.  We had only one chance to do this scene - one,
long, uncut overhead angle of the pool and crowds, without
cut-aways, and without any of the actors missing their lines
or cues during this extended shot.  I was not only acting, I 
was also directing.  And I found out later, that the crew had
actually made bets on my surviving the stunt.

This is turning into a short story.

Several factors may have helped me perform this Incredible Feat.
I had asthma as a child - so I had to get by with less oxygen.
And, I have lived in Los Angeles nearly all of my life - so I've
learned to get by, without breathing.  The pool-water was the
bigger threat, really - a 10-minute shower in Los Angeles is
reportedly the same as drinking 10 glasses of its polluted
on-tap effluvium.

(I want to move.  To Norway.)

I've also heard of pearl-divers staying underwater for 10 minutes
- and recall an old TV episode of "Sea Hunt" where they explored
doing that - so 1-2 minutes is not a big deal.

________________________________________ ___._`.*.'_._ ________
 Mike Jittlov - Wizard, etc       .   . +  * .o   o.* `.`. +.  
  Hollywood, CA 90026-2714       '   *  . ' ' |\^/|  `. * .  *
jittlov@gumby.cs.caltech.edu  (: May All Your  \V/  Good Dreams
  <& alt.fan.mike-jittlov>    and Fine Wishes  /_\  Come True:)
============================================= _/ \_ ===========

"He bet me he could stay underwater for 20 minutes.  Then he put
 a bottle of Evian on his head.  So I paid him the $20.  And then
 decked him with the bottle."


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