October 2016 Hello ,
So happy it's Friday! Seems like it's been an awfully long week.
To Tell the Truth:
Women Contribute to Space Race |
Thanks to the book and movie Hidden Figures we've had the chance to learn how three brilliant
African-American women contributed to John Glen's successful to the launch of into orbit.
Now, comes news of a woman artist and sculptor who played an important role in several American aerospace projects, including creating space helmets for 1964 Project Mercury astronauts. Alice King Chatham was recruited by the Air Force to help make the first successful oxygen breathing masks worn by all American World War II pilots, and also designed tiny
pressure suits and helmuts for monkeys used in sub-orbital rocket tests in the 1940s.
She outfitted an array of animals in oxygen equipment for flight tests, including guinea pigs, rabbits, pigs, and a 140-pound Saint Bernard, which led to her eventual work with
NASA.
At left: On May 22, 1952, two Philippine monkeys, Patricia and Mike, were enclosed in an Aerobee nose section at Holloman Air Force Base. Fired 36 miles up at a speed of 2000 mph, these two monkeys were the first primates to reach such a high altitude.
For the Mercury Project, King Chatham cast each of the
astronauts’ heads in wax to get perfect, custom headgear.
“All the astronauts are extremely stable, and have great personalities,” King Chatham told Mary Ann Callan for the Los Angeles Times in 1961. “They were easy to work with, even though the fitting took half a day each.”
There is some debate about the extent of King Chatham's contributions to aviation and space flight, but you can take a peek at her life in this episode of To Tell the Truth.
Fast-forward to 16:50 minutes into this August 31, 1964 episode of the game show and join a panel of celebrities (including Betty White) try to identify the real Alice King Chatham.
Huge thanks to Jacob White
on Heartland Labor Forum for interviewing me about Fannie Sellins this week. If you're up early, you can catch the replay at 5:30 (CT) Friday morning. Click here...
Heartland Labor Forum is Kansas City’s only program about the workplace, produced by and for working people,
agitating on the air since 1989 and winner of numerous International Labor Communications Awards.
Thanks to reader Penelope Landa who wrote to tell me about a favorite author.
I really appreciate Julia Alvarez, an author from the Dominican Republic, now a professor in Vermont. Her book, "In the Time of the Butterflies" takes us to the revolution in the DR and to its heroines, "Las Mariposas". Her book of essays entitled "Something to Declare" shows us her sense of humor, her writing habits, and tidbits of life from the
viewpoint of a Latina immigrant.
Too many books, too little time! The movie has also been recommended to me. Anybody seen it? Until next week... Have you read a great book? Tell me about it. Have a burning question? Let me know.
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