KIDMAN, Alvin C.

Al Kidman (1929-2008)

KIDMAN, Alvin Chester (1929-2008), born in Mendon, Utah, a husky ex-logger from Idaho, went to Los Angeles in the 1960s to make his fortune salvaging old wrecks and sunken ships. Described variously as "the wildest of a wild breed; the champion of derelict vessels; and Commodore Kidman, Flag Officer of the Ghost Flotilla;" Kidman was also a friend of William Petersen.

In the early 1980s, Kidman towed Spirit of America to Scorpion Harbor for salvage purposes, although she soon sank. In the early 1980s, feeling harassed after two decades of operations, Kidman was reported to have skipped California after he got into trouble with the Coast Guard for illegally docking a capsized barge in the Los Angeles Harbor. He allegedly left behind a harbor floor dotted with wrecks officials said he sank after salvaging them. "Al used the bottom of the harbor for storage. When he would need something off them, he would go out and dive for them." His file with the Los Angeles Harbor Master's office regarding his misdeeds is three-inches thick. [Los Angeles Times 4 December 1986].

Alvin Kidman married his wife Angie under the fig tree at Scorpion Ranch. They flew in by helicopter just long enough to say their vows.