. . .AND A BOY SCOUT

The reason I say George was a boy scout. . .
is that he was trustworthy, loyal, helpful, friendly,courteous, kind, obedient, cheerful, thrifty, brave, clean, and reverent ...well maybe not all that reverent but no one is perfect!

Since being on the 1996 Titanic Expedition, and therefore being exposed to George daily for over a month, I believe my observations should hold some credibility.
I've never been very interested in the Titanic or the events surrounding it's sinking so, until being hired by Classic Worldwide Productions to participate in the Expedition, I'd never had much of an opinion about anything related to it.

Shortly after announcing to my friends that I would be on the 96 expedition, I began hearing the usual discussions about: grave robbing, treasure hunters, and a "lunatic, ego maniac, ex-used car salesman" by the name of George Tulloch! I now believe much of the sour grapes over George & RMS Titanic is fueled by a jealous faction...some folks that actually would like to be part of... TEAM TITANIC but are too proud, or perhaps, ashamed to admit it, so they resort to stone throwing.

Let me go on record right now. George was none of those! He was: a driven, hard working, dedicated, compassionate, friendly, honest person. Furthermore, after a month of observing the activities of the 1996 Expedition, I could not have been more impressed with the goals and objectives of the individuals involved in this endeavor. These scientists, historians, pilots, seaman, and Titanic "fanatics" exhibited focused determination to "protect and Preserve" the old ship and her memory. Nope, no grave robbing; no power hungry egotists, no one getting wealthy, no irreverence for the Ship or it's contents! On the contrary I observed really dedicated, talented professionals, methodically working, researching, studying, and probing in an attempt to answer the looming questions of specifically why and how the Titanic sank, and what we can learn from the tragedy that will benefit mankind. I saw no contrived sensationalism but simply a bunch of folks that had a genuine common interest and burning curiosity that is obviously shared by the masses.

I must say, as a television producer, and a private citizen, the experience of being part of the 1996 Titanic Expedition for me was an honor and a privilege! I feel proud to have been part of this historic venture and even more, I am honored to have met, worked with, and learned from George Tulloch! Thank you George for a wonderful experience!

I never realized how many people were that interested in the Titanic until I'd been part of this endeavor.

I recently received a note from Greg Andorfer, Producer of the Discovery Channel special "Titanic: THE INVESTIGATION BEGINS" that aired in October of 1997. Greg stated that "it's ratings placed it in the top 25 rated shows in all of Discovery's history"!

Final thoughts:
I know there's been a lot of criticism regarding the "commercialism and marketing" of the Titanic. Selling cruises, television broadcast rights, coal, photographs and the like. I know I frankly get fed up with all the hype of some organizations too.
I must say however, in defense of RMS Titanic, in light of the huge cost of operating an the expedition, I frankly don't know how they'd raise the money any other way. I'm sure if you had any ideas George would have welcomed them! Until then, for the sake of preserving history and memories of the Titanic, her survivors, crew and passengers, I'd be happy to buy whatever they're selling if it helps the cause!