Live From Cape Canaveral: Covering the Space Race, from Sputnik to Today

(Paperback)

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Description

Some fifty years ago as a cub reporter, Barbree caught space fever the night that Sputnik passed over Albany, Georgia. On a double date where the couples actually did some star gazing, Barbree recognized that exploring space would become one of the most important stories of the century. Convinced that one day astronauts would walk on the moon, Barbree moved to the then sleepy ocean-side community of Cocoa Beach, right outside Cape Canaveral, and began reporting on rockets that soared, exploded, and fizzled. In the decades to come he witnessed a parade of history as space pioneers, hucksters, groupies and politicians participated in the greatest show of technology the world had ever seen. In "Live from Cape Canaveral", Barbree offers his unique perspective on the space program. Warm and perceptive, he reminds us just how thrilling the great moments of the space race were and why America fell in love with its heroic, sometimes larger-than-life astronauts.

Reviews

"This man knows more about space than anyone I know." -- Tom Brokaw

"Jay Barbree of NBC News is arguably the best correspondent to ever cover the space program." -- Larry King, USA Today

"From Sputnik to the International Space Station, Jay Barbree has seen it all, and reported it well. 'Live From Cape Canaveral' encapsulates the most technically exciting half century in history." -- Neil Armstrong

"Live from Cape Canaveral takes you behind the scenes through triumphs and tragedies, in great and unique detail." -- John Glenn, First American Astronaut in Orbit

"Entertaining and candid...with anecdotes worthy of The Right Stuff." -- BookPage

"A candid, first-person view of the U.S. program's first 50 years...with the wide-eyed excitement of a moon-bound astronaut." -- Entertainment Weekly

"Fast-paced, readable account...[Barbree] delights in telling two kinds of astronaut tales: pranks and heroics." -- St. Petersburg Times

Author Bio

Jay Barbree has covered the space race since Sputnik as a correspondent for NBC. The NBC space unit won an Emmy for its coverage of the first Apollo moon landing. Barbree also broke the world news exclusive on the cause of the Challenger explosion.