Ric O'Barry

Richard "Ric" O'Barry (born Richard Barry O'Feldman, October 14, 1939) is an American activist first recognized in the 1960s for capturing and training the five dolphins that were used in the TV series Flipper. O'Barry transitioned from training dolphins to instead advocating against industries that keep dolphins in captivity, soon after Kathy, one of the Flipper dolphins, died in his arms. O'Barry believes Kathy committed suicide.

In 1970 he founded the Dolphin Project, a group that aims to educate the public about captivity and, where feasible, free captive dolphins. He was featured in the Academy Award-winning film, The Cove (2009), which used covert techniques to expose the yearly dolphin drive hunting that goes on in Taiji, Japan.

Flipper
Richard O'Barry started out capturing and training dolphins for the Miami Seaquarium and through the 1960s became the head trainer for the five dolphins who collectively played Flipper on the popular American TV show, while also serving as stunt double for show cast member Luke Halpin. When, in early 1970, a few years after production of Flipper had ended, Kathy, the dolphin who most often played Flipper, did not resurface for air, O'Barry considered the possibility that she had committed suicide, and concluded that capturing, displaying and training dolphins to perform tricks was wrong.

Activism
On Earth Day in 1970 he founded The Dolphin Project, an organization dedicated to educating the public about the plight of dolphins in captivity. He also pioneered work to demonstrate rehabilitation and release as a viable alternative for captive dolphins. O’Barry has since rescued and released over twenty-five captive dolphins in Haiti, Colombia, Guatemala, Nicaragua, Brazil, The Bahamas and the United States.

O’Barry was fined Civil penalties for taking by harassment and illegally transporting two dolphins in the Gulf of Mexico; a 1999 Commerce Department press release argued that they "were not prepared to survive in the wild and sustained life-threatening injuries".

For the last 40 plus years O’Barry has spoken about the harmful effects of captivity on dolphins at lectures and conferences around the world. In 1991 in recognition of his contribution to the protection of dolphins, O’Barry received an Environmental Achievement Award, presented by the US Committee for the United Nations Environmental Program. In 2007, Ric and Helene O’Barry became consultants for the Earth Island Institute's International Marine Mammal Project.

O'Barry resigned from his position at the Earth Island Institute in September 2014, due to disagreements with its management regarding the acceptance of funds from the tuna industry, and its use of Fish Aggregation Devices.

Working with Ric O'Barry's Dolphin Project, he leads an international effort to stop the killing of dolphins, end the trafficking in live dolphins to theme parks and captive swim-with-the-dolphins attractions and continues to lecture and speak out against the captivity industry. O’Barry is co-author of three books, Behind the Dolphin Smile, To Free a Dolphin (both with Keith Colbourne) and most recently Die Bucht about dolphins and the making of The Cove published in Germany with Hans Peter Roth. Richard O’Barry is a Fellow National in the Explorers Club.

O’Barry lives in Coconut Grove, Florida, US. O’Barry is Founder and is Director of the non-profit organization, Ric O'Barry's Dolphin Project Inc.

The Cove
O'Barry was featured in the Academy Award-winning feature-length documentary The Cove, directed by Louie Psihoyos which investigates links between the killing, capture, trade and display of dolphins all over the world. The 2009 film centers on Taiji, Wakayama, Japan, drawing attention to the hunt of about 2,000 dolphins taking place there every year. O’Barry and his son Lincoln O'Barry are also behind the Blood Dolphin$ TV show for Discovery’s Animal Planet, which continues on where The Cove left off.