Simone Melchior

Simone Melchior Cousteau 1919-1990, was wife and partner to Jacques Cousteau. The first woman scuba diver, Simone was at Jacques's side during his major underwater accomplishments. She led him to the men and money who would build his scuba invention, she helped buy their beloved Calypso, saved the ship during a storm, and made sure each exploration achieved its objective.

Simone was born January 19, 1919 in Toulon, France. Her father Henri Melchior and both grandfathers Jules Melchior(paternal) and Jean Baehme (maternal) were admirals in the french navy. Simone's mother was Marguerite Melchior, affectionately called Guitte and she had two brothers Maurice and Michel, her twin. She spent her childhood in France and Kobe,Japan.

Simone met her future husband, Jacques, at a party in 1937. He was a naval officer, ten years her senior. They were married at Saint-Louis-des-Invalides, in Paris, on July 12, 1937. After a honeymoon in Switzerland and Italy the Cousteaus settled in Mourillon, France. Jean-Michel was born May 6, 1938 and Philippe Pierre December 30, 1940. Both sons were born on their kitchen table.

"She was the happiest out of camera range, in the crow's nest of Calypso, for example, scanning the sea for whales. Nothing would get by her." Jacques continues to describe his wife: "She lives to spend hour after hour in the wind and the sun, watching, thinking, trying to unravel the mystery of the sea." (1) Simone's ashes were scattered over the Sea of Monaco when she died in 1990.

1. Cousteau: An Unauthorized Biography by Alex Madsen. 1986.

This article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by fixing it.