Hans Hass

Hans Hass
Born	(1919-01-23) January 23, 1919 Vienna, Austria
Occupation(s)	Diver, Presenter

Hans Hass (born January 23, 1919) is a diving pioneer and mainly known for his documentaries about sharks, the energon theory, and his commitment, later in life, to the protection of the environment. He was born in Vienna, Austria.

Early years

His Matura trip of 1937 to the Riviera, which included underwater hunting and photography, had a formative effect on him. After making expeditions to the Caribbean Sea and writing his first professional articles, in 1940 Hass switched from reading law to zoology studies and graduated in 1943. In his early diving he used rebreathers which he had made for him by the German diving gear makers Dräger: he had these sets made with the breathing bag on his back, as he did not like the bag-on-chest "frogman look".

Don Stewart, one of the first scuba operators on the Caribbean island of Bonaire, blames Hass for single-handedly hunting the Goliath grouper to local extinction.

Wartime period

Hass completed his first underwater video called Pirsch unter Wasser (i.e. Stalking under Water) in 1940. It was published by the Universum Film AG, lasted originally only 16 minutes and was shown in theatres before the main movie, but would eventually be extended by additional filming done in the Adriatic Sea close to Dubrovnik.

Hass moved from Vienna to Berlin in 1941, where he founded the tax privileged society Expedition für biologische Meereskunde (i.e. Expedition for biological oceanography).

In 1942 Hass completed the filming of his second underwater movie called Menschen unter Haien (i.e. Men among Sharks) which lasted for 84 minutes and was produced during several months in the Aegean Sea and the Sea of Crete. Shown are e.g. wrasses, jellyfish, sponges, sea anemones, and rays. A highlight is the interaction of the divers with sharks.

Hass was then conscripted in the Nazi Germany's Wehrmacht. Due to his diving skills he was assigned to the so-called "Fighters of the Sea" battalion: the first frogmen of the German "Wehrmacht" as they used to call themselves. Founded in 1943 as an element of the military secret service they were one of the "Kriegsmarine's" most important nuclei of the so called "Kleinkampfverband" in 1944. Its main mission was to explore the opponent's port facilities, to eliminate the enemy's vessels and to destroy bridges and floodgates in inland waters.

The origin, equipment and training of this legendary special unit as well as its incorporation into the command structure of the "Wehrmacht" are until today only fragmentarily documented in scientific investigations. The main reason is that corresponding records were almost completely destroyed. Furthermore many of the still living veterans such as Hans Hass himself feel themselves bound by their oath of secrecy they swore at that time.

Post war activity and fame

In 1945 his research vessel was lost when the Russians captured Königsberg, so he addressed himself to anthropology and evolution. In 1947 his movie Menschen unter Haien (Men Among Sharks) had its world premiere in Zurich, and his most popular book with a very similar title was released in 1948. As a consequence, he got contracts with Herzog-Film (Munich) and Sascha-Film (Vienna). He also performed his first "Xarifa" expeditions. The new research ship, named Xarifa, mostly had to be self-financed through photo safaris in the Red Sea and by the BBC.

After expeditions in East Africa and South Asia his first TV series were developed in 1959, in 1961 for the first time about creatures outside the water. This was followed by behaviour research and the energon theory from 1963 to 1966 as the basis of the following works. Combined with management strategies, in 1969 Hass published about commonalities with the evolution. In the 1970s he addressed environmental and commercial themes and was appointed to a professorship by the University of Vienna.

In 1983 he started longtime studies and a huge amount of tutorials about predatory instincts in profession. Hass consolidated marine biology, behaviour research and management theories under one umbrella. From his point of view his energon theory cannot be disproved. In 1989 he addressed himself to environmental themes.

Hans Hass has been married to his second wife, Lotte Baierl, since 1950. His son, also called Hans, was born in 1946.

Publications

• 4 popular films
• about 70 television films
• more than 25 books, including:
  • 1939: Jagd unter Wasser mit Harpune und Kamera (Hunt under water with harpoon and camera)
  • 1941: Unter Korallen und Haien (Among corals and sharks)
  • 1942: Fotojagd am Meeresgrund (Photo-hunt at the sea-bottom)
  • 1947: Drei Jäger auf dem Meeresgrund (Three hunters on the sea-bottom)
  • 1949: Menschen und Haie (Humans and sharks)
  • 1952: Manta, Teufel im Roten Meer (Manta, devil in the Red Sea): English version: Manta, Under the Red Sea with Spear and Camera, English translation by James Cleugh, 1952, Rand McNally & Co., Library of Congress Card Cat. No. 53-6152.
  • 1954: Ich fotografierte in den 7 Meeren (I photographed in the 7 seas)
  • 1957: Wir kommen aus dem Meer (We come from the sea)
  • 1958: Fische und Korallen (Fish and corals)
  • 1961: Expedition ins Unbekannte (Expedition into the unknown)
  • 1968: Wir Menschen. Das Geheimnis unseres Verhaltens (We humans. The secret of our behavior)
  • 1970: Energon: Das verborgene Geheimnis (Energon: The hidden secret)
  • 1971: In unberührten Tiefe. Die Bezwingung der tropischen Meere. (In unaffected depth. Conquest of the tropical seas)
  • 1972: Vorstoss in die Tiefe. Ein Magazin über Abenteuer bei der Erforschung der Meere. (Raid into the depth. A magazine over adventures with the study of the seas)
  • 1973: Welt unter Wasser. Der abenteuerliche Vorstoss des Menschen ins Meer. (World under water. The adventurous raid of humans in the sea)
  • 1976: Eroberung der Tiefe. Das Meer - seine Geheimnisse, seine Gefahren, seine Erforschung. (Conquest of the deeps. The sea - its secrets, its dangers, its research)
  • 1976: Der Hans-Hass-Tauchführer. Das Mittelmeer. Ein Ratgeber für Sporttaucher und Schnorchler. (The Hans Hass dive guide. The Mediterranean. An adviser for sport divers and snorkellers.)
  • 1977: Der Hai. Legende eines Mörders. (The shark. Legend of a killer)
  • 1978: Die Schöpfung geht weiter. Station Mensch im Strom des Lebens. (The creation continues. Station of humans in the river of the life)
  • 1979: Wie der Fisch zum Menschen wurde. Die faszinierende Entwicklungsgeschichte unseres Körpers. (How fish became humans. The fascinating history of the development of our body)
  • 1980: Im Roten Meer. Wiederkehr nach 30 Jahren. (In the Red Sea. Return after 30 years)
  • 1985: Stadt und Lebensqualität. (City and quality of life)
  • 1986: Abenteuer unter Wasser. Meine Erlebnisse und Forschungen im Meer. (Adventure under water. My experiences and research in the sea)
  • 1987: Der Ball und die Rose (The ball and the rose)
  • 1988: Der Hai im Management. Instinkte steuern und kontrollieren. (The shark in the management. Instincts steer and control)
  • 1991: Vorstoss in unbekannte Meere (Push into unknown seas)
  • 1994: Die Hyperzeller. Das neue Menschenbild der Evolution. (The Hyper-cellars. The new human picture of evolution)
  • 1996: Aus der Pionierzeit des Tauchens. In unberührte Tiefen. (From the pioneer time of diving. Into untouched depths)
  • 2004: Erinnerungen und Abenteuer. (Memories and adventures)

Awards

• Biennale Prize 1951
• Oscar for extraordinary underwater photography for the film Unternehmen Xarifa 1959
• Austrian Decoration for Science and Art 1998
• Konrad Lorenz Award 1999
• International Scuba Diving Hall of fame, 2000, [1]
• Five more science awards

External links

• Homepage of Hans Hass
• Hans-Hass-Institut für Submarine Forschung und Tauchtechnik