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Edward Irving "Ted" Griffin (born November 22, 1935) is an American former aquarium owner and entrepreneur who was the first man to ever swim with a killer whale in a public exhibition, with the whale named Namu. [1] He is best known for capturing, performing with, and selling a number of orcas during the late 1960s and early 1970s.
The Yukon Harbor orca capture operation was the first planned, deliberate trapping of a large group of orcas (killer whales). 15 southern resident orcas were trapped by Ted Griffin and his Seattle Public Aquarium party on 15 February 1967, in Yukon Harbor on the west side of Puget Sound. [1]
Namu (unknown – July 9, 1966) was a male orca unintentionally captured in 1965 from the C1 Pod of the northern resident community. He was the first captive orca to perform with a human in the water. [1] He was the subject of much media attention, including a starring role in the 1966 film Namu, the Killer Whale. Namu's captivity introduced ...
Initially named Walter the Whale, [144] [145] this orca was taken into captivity during the Yukon Harbor orca capture operation, which was the first planned, deliberate trapping of a large group of orcas (killer whales). 15 southern resident orcas were trapped by Ted Griffin and his Seattle Public Aquarium party on 15 February 1967, in Yukon ...
Shamu / ʃ æ m uː / (c. 1961 [1] – August 16, 1971) was a female orca captured in October 1965 from a southern resident pod. She was sold to SeaWorld San Diego and became a star attraction. Shamu was the fourth orca ever captured, and the second female. [2] She died in August 1971, after about six years of captivity. [3]
Griffin paid $8,000 for Namu, who was captured in 1965. At the time, Namu was the world's only captive killer whale on display. [1] He was 22 feet in length and weighed about four tons. Namu performed demonstrations for aquarium attendees. [1] Following the death of Namu, thousands of local fans wanted Griffin to get another orca.
Walter the Whale was the orca's advertised name at first, [2] but she was later renamed Skana. [3] Walter was captured from K Pod of the southern resident orcas in 1967 by Ted Griffin, and shipped to the Seattle Public Aquarium. Soon the orca was transported by truck to Vancouver in a rental arrangement with boat show producer Bob O'Loughlin.
The killer whale was sold for $8,000 to Ted Griffin, a Seattle public aquarium owner. Named after his place of capture, Namu was the subject of a film that changed some people's attitudes toward orcas.