08/09/2026
Robert (Bob) G. Ricke, Jr. (1936–2026) was past Chairman of the Board of Beneath the Sea and loved by all. He began his career in broadcasting and won an Emmy for producing a Purex special about women. He went on to become Vice President of advertising for Columbia Pictures and then joined WINS radio. In 1972 he left broadcasting and joined Multi-Media House, where he met the love of his life. He and his wife Maria went on to write a weekly ski column, spending four months a year in Europe for over twenty years, and photographing for tourist boards. They returned to the United States and photographed the major American ski resorts and produced two books. Bob has had his work appear in many magazines as well as three other books in the dive industry. He also produced a fine art book and had an exhibition of his work at both the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Asia Society. He guided Beneath the Sea through two major growth spurts. He spent 40-plus years as a divemaster working side by side with his wife. He had a dry sense of humor along with infinite patience and a profound knack for teaching, always handing out droll words of wisdom. He was a wonderful and giving human being and a very talented man. He was able to master technology as it changed throughout the years. He was a great conversationalist and an avid reader. He could dress a turkey (and many other kitchen skills), build anything, ski from the highest peaks of mountains, and then dive to the depths of the ocean. His legacy will live on in all those he touched.
