2000 Cosmic Correspondence Archive

February 2000

[From Brian Morris (2/12/00):]

My name is Brian Morris and I was born in 1947. My early years were spent watching Captain Video and His Video Rangers, with Al Hodge. I never saw Richard Coogan.

I have been reading your comments and have just been amazed after all these years to find my childhood hero becoming of such interest to me. I have printed your remarks and also pictures (I have only had my computer and been on line a couple of months).

Recently I purchased a video tape from TVIDEO which has one episode with Coogan and one with Al Hodge. I think it was mentioned that there are still some out there some place (TVIDEO only had the one tape available). Do you know how I would be able to find other tapes?

One of my biggest disappointments was the day I turned on the television in anticipation of seeing the next installment of my favorite show and it was off the air with no explanation. To an 8 year old, his hero had ceased to exist, I didn't even know what the DuMont network was then, nor did I care.

[SpacEditor's note: Captain Bijou has one other CV tape with another Al Hodge program. Only two Al Hodge programs are currently available. One I call "The Mail or the Ranger." It's in the "Operation Micromail" storyline, broadcast 21 April 1952 to 12 May 1952. CV is in the Galaxy I. The other program I call "Comet Menaces Pluto Space Stations," and it is in the "Birth of the Galaxy I" storyline, first to feature the Galaxy I. It was broadcast from 24 March 1952 to 21 April 1952. Both storylines are written by George Lowther. See the Space Hero Files, page 2, for info about ordering from Captain Bijou.]

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April 2000

[From Ron Legro (4/24/00):]

Hey, Lou! My big passion is "Rocky Jones" but of course I loved all the usual stuff as a kid, including "Captain Video" (the first SF series I got to see on our tiny '52-model Philco TV), "Tom Corbett," "Captain Midnight," "Johnny Jupiter" and, naturally, "Adventures of Superman."

I grew up in Antigo, Wisconsin and for a couple of years we only got one channel, that very dimly seen at first through static and snow from (I believe) Green Bay, 75 miles away. "Captain Video" showed up on that channel but there were times when the picture was unviewable, so it turned into kind of radio show. Luckily we had seen enough imagery that little brother and I could concoct the missing scenes in our heads. I was only 3 or 4 to begin with, so I vaguely recall a very scary Cap Video moment when a giant killer robot was advancing upon our heroes. I think I ran and hid under the bed covers.

Several years later dad got my brother and me a discarded cardboard refrigerator shipping box. We cut a big door in the back and a window in the front, put folding chairs inside and had our own spaceship! I remember using mom's kitchen pot lids as steering wheels and affixing to the makeshift dashboard astro-instruments that we got as prizes in cereal boxes. That was the greatest toy my brother and I ever had. It also served as a jet airplane, submarine and time machine, depending on our play line of the day. I think we called it the "Orbit Jet" after Rocky Jones' ship.

Anyway, kudos on the memory-inspiring website.

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May 2000

[From Binkele, (5/6/00) :]

I don't remember a lot - I was pretty young back then - but [Captain Video] was one of my heros. I remember an evil robot - I think his name was Tobor (robot spelled backwards) Seems like it had two loop "antennas" one turned horizontaly and the other vertically. seems, also, that between was some moving junk behind glass - looking like a cross between valve lifters on an engine and a juke box.

You could tell someone was inside (it had legs). I have seen one similar on several shows (later years) and wonder if it's not the same costume. One other common thing was a shrinking room where the walls would come together to crush people. I can't remember how they got out. I wish someone could rebroadcast the few remaining episodes just for sparking memories in us "old people"! Thanks!

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[From Dave Cockrum (5/14/00):]

I just found the 'Roaring Rockets' website and enjoyed it very much. I've been looking for photos and info on Captain Video's 'Galaxy' for nearly thirty years, hoping to do a model of it. Yours are the first photos I've found of her. But I have a question:

Admittedly, my memories of the show are forty-five years old, but the photos of 'Galaxy II' don't entirely match the images in my mind. I was wondering if you know whether she differed in some details from the original 'Galaxy', which would mean perhaps the original is what I remember.

Plotwise, I don't remember a lot, but my mental images of the Galaxy show a generally similar design to Galaxy II but without a lot of the surface convolutions and all those windows in the hull. I recall big dorsal and ventral tailfins sans rockets or tanks, with side mounted tailfins displaying tear-drop-shaped tanks--not rockets--and a tail exhaust. The overall effect was something like a Lockheed F-90 merged with a DC-6. There were gun turrets/blisters on the nose and cockpit area.

My other strongest memory was of the evil robot, Tobor. He was a guy in a suit most of the time, of course, but if they had to transport him somewhere, he was too dangerous to have aboard ship and they towed him with a tractor beam. When he was out in space he was depicted by a model robot with springs for arms and legs and they would 'sproing' up and down in a fashion even I, at that tender age, thought ridiculous.

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[From Randy Everett (5/21/00):]

From the rocket fields of the Academy,
To the far flung stars of outer space,
Because we're brave, we light the way,
To inter-planet space!

Space Academy Alma Mater

Love your web site, "Roaring Rockets" ! I just discovered it tonight. What memories ! Never missed an episode of Tom Corbett or Captain Video back in the 50's.

I remember ...............

Captain Video and the Video Ranger taking a copter-cab up to the 144th floor of the Public Safety Building to meet with the Commissioner of Public Safety - Carey.

I remember ..........

A villan named Octavo and his accompliss Jeremy Finch. They would escape from prison on earth or on the moon and it was up to Captain Video to outsmart them and re-capture them. I think they were finally taken to the penal colony on Jupiter and never heard from again.

I remember ........

TOBOR !!!!!!!!

Thanks for the memories!

Randy Everett
Space Cadet

[SpacEditor's note: Actually, you are remembering the two records that featured Captain Video adventures, in one of which CV escorted Octavo and Finch, and in the other of which CV took Commissioner Carey to Saturn.]

Thanks, I believe that you are right. I remember having a number of sci-fi records when I was quite young. I was between 6 and 8 years old. I know that I had a Captain Zero record (Z'ro ?), and I know for sure that I had the Tom Corbett record. The one where they found Lt. Peyson unconscious, but still alive. They were towing his ship trying to escape from the space pirates, but the towed ship was slowing them down. They released the ship and used it to ram into the pirate's ship.

Now if I could just find my Captain Midnight Secret Squadron Decoder before the next episode starts, I'd really be happy!

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June 2000

[From Tom Powers (6/8/00):]

Great job you've done putting up the interviews. This is a very important resource for `50's Space Opera fans, and should help to clear things up a bit.

On another note, I took a second look at the color shot of Frankie Thomas in uniform from Starlog Magazine that you posted. Looking at it recently, I noted that it seemed quite faded and color-shifted, and decided to try to touch it up. Accidentally, I hit a function on my art program called "Optimize", and whammo! -- unexpected color popped out. I've tried to duplicate the effect here on the picture I've attached. It's much brighter than the picture was intended to be printed, and may be a bit exaggerated -- but I think we may have the "true" colors here. If so, the uniforms may been designed with comic strip or comic book printing in mind, because they're pretty close to pure printer's cyan and magenta. Interesting.

Spaceman's Luck!

[SpacEditor's note: Allan Harris has always claimed that the colors on Frankie's uniform when he met Frankie in person in uniform back in the early 1950s were cyan (suit) and magenta (large yoke). I note a dark blue for the studded yoke also pops out, and this deep blue can still be seen on Frankie's studded yoke today. Since Frankie's uniform is apparently the only uniform still existing (unless Wade Williams has some stashed away), and it has faded badly, the real colors will probably never be known to us. However, I like this result!]

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[From Doug Howard (6/12/00):]

Re: Your "Roaring Heroic Plastic" column. The statement was made, "For a brief period in the early 1990s, It was possible to buy model kits of early 1950s space craft." That statement needs to be updated to read: "at the present time." I have just ordered resin models of the Terra V and Flash Gordon's spaceship from the 1936 movie, from an online hobby shop carrying them from the manufacturer, Herb Deeks Models. Also, the Heroic Age models made by Lunar Models are still available, from the manufacturer and from a couple of online mailorder hobby shops. Blast me for a Martian mouse --- here come the reinforcements!

[SpacEditor's note: Fellow spaceman Howard is correct. Since the Plastic feature was written in 1998, Herb Deeks has offered for the past few months a lovely 12-inch model of the three-fin Terra V. As noted several times before on this site, he has had available kits of the Flash Gordon serial Zarkov and Ming ships, and Commando Cody's rocket, for quite a few years. However, we were unaware Luna Models was still in business. Our last known address for them is 106 Century Drive, Cleburne, TX 76031. We might mention that if you go to an old, large model shop in your nearby city and scan the dusty shelves, you can sometimes locate kits that have sat there since the 1960s and 1970s. There are a number of online sites now that sell garage kits, and even if a 1990 kit is no longer in manufacture, such sites often have them in stock.

[ A convenient on-line source for 1950s space-related, limited-supply garage resin model kits from a large number of different manufacturers is Scifimatters. Check them out if only to see what is finally becoming available.]

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[From Rick Watkins (6/15/00):]

What a wonderful site you've put together! My father went to the Pasadena Playhouse with Ed Kemmer, Lyn Osborn, Paul Burke, Carolyn Jones, and who knows who else. Whenever he spoke of Osborn, he always referred to him as Muggsie (my spelling). If you are in contact with Kemmer, it would be interesting to know if he remembers anything about that nickname.

The Space Origins page was interesting and rightly reflects the impact Destination Moon had on our generation. One source you did not cite from the period was the series that Collier's magazine did on space exploration. If I recall, Willy Lay and VonBraun were contributors - but don't quote me on that. The ship was a 3-stage rocket with a winged V-2 (the Germans had a winged version too) as the top stage. Actually, it looked like a cross between the V-2 and the Chance-Vought Cutlass. It featured collapsing individual crew escape ejection tubes around the acceleration couches. The graphics were mind blowing at the time. It is the first I remember seeing the spoked wheel space station design.

Flash Gordon, Captain Video, Tom Corbet, and Space Patrol were all part of my weekly TV viewing, and for some, radio listening. Other favorites were Captain Midnight, Sky King, Kukla, Fran & Ollie, Howdy Doody, Sgt. Preston, Green Hornet, The Shadow, Science Fiction Theatre, and many more. I will be exploring your site in more detail later and plan to visit again often.

Meanwhile, I wonder if anyone has ever detailed all the promotional items associated with the various shows. About the time Ralston was had the Space Patrol space ship contest, they also had cardboard periscopes and cadet caps with built-in, flip-up sunglasses. If memory serves, Tom Corbet? had a glow in the dark decoder belt. I probably still have the buckle somewhere. Captain Video sold tiny spring launched plastic rockets which figured prominently in his extrication from danger in one episode. We always had to send away for the really neat stuff vs. dig it out of the cereal box.

Warmest regards and thanks for a job well done,

Rick Watkins

[SpacEditor's note: "Muggsie"--- Smokin' Rockets! But it fits. The lack of mention so far of the COLLIERS symposia on space flight is due to the fact that they appeared too late to influence the space designs of SPACE PATROL, CAPTAIN VIDEO and TOM CORBETT (all finalized by early 1950). Some COLLIERS influence is clearly seen in ROCKY JONES (1954) and a great deal of influence in MEN INTO SPACE (1959-60).

[ There are several books on the market listing Science Fictional TV and movie tie-in toys and premiums, and most of these books include fairly large sections for SPACE PATROL and SPACE CADET premiums. Your local antique mall will have some of these books in their section of books on collectibles.]

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[From Scott Sizer (6/23/00):]

Holy rocket smoke, what a great site! Cadet Scott Sizer here, from Brattleboro VT. I was born in 1944, grew up in Southern CT, and my Dad bought our first TV set in late 1951 (will have to check on that). I was hooked on the big three: Tom Corbett, Captain Video and Space Patrol. My favorite was Tom Corbett, which appeared in the 15-minute version three times a week. I've been trying to remember why this program made the biggest impression on me, and I think it was because the control deck of the Polaris, the other sets and the camera angles created the most vivid illusion that the cadets really WERE flying through space.

After reading your description of Captain Video, I now wished I'd watched it more faithfully. Dumont must have had a weak transmitter, because the reception where I lived was poor: there was often a lot of 'ghosting' from another channel, which made it unwatchable. I remember the Prince Spartak character because my mom liked him. "Ooh, he's handsome!," she would exclaim. My dad was not amused! Iremember one comic episode when Princess Aurora was trying to cook Spartak a 'Venusian Stew,' which apparently tasted pretty awful. I recall another incident when the Ranger was struggling against a storm on a barren planet, and he accidentally kicked a stalagmite over which rolled around and clattered on the floor a bit.

I watched Space Patrol on Saturday morning, but can't remember any of the plots. Ah, yes, Carol and Tonga in those short little skirts. You'd think their shapely legs would've gotten cold in outer space, but then, what do I know about space technology a thousand years hence? I remember the name 'Prince Baccarati' and the Black Planet, but not much more. I'll have to check out those live fight scenes again on video.

One show I was lukewarm about was Rocky Jones, Space Ranger. All I remember is that they were always crawling around power lines at an electrical power station somewhere.

Didn't mean to ramble on like this, but since I've started revisiting 'Space' in Cyberspace a few weeks ago, a Pandora's box of memories is starting to open up. Thanks again for this great labor-of-love website! Yours in space!

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[From Mike Elmo (6/24/00):]

Hey Fellow Cadets,

This is a great site for those who love Classic Space Opera!! I'm a big fan of Rocky Jones Space Ranger!! As a kid in Baltimore, I found out too late about the other Greats, Captain Video, Tom Corbett, Rod Brown and the like. I was told by a playmate about Rocky in 1958, when I was 7. I was HOOKED!! That was 4 years after the Show went out of production, so I missed out on all the cool stuff that they offered. When I went to visit my elder cousin Skip, who was 16 in 1958, he told me of Captain Video after we had been talking about Rocky. He lived in Harrisburg, Pa. and was a REAL BIG FAN of the Good Captain!! Hearing him tell the sagas of the Good Captain for hours in his back yard under the summer night skys, gazing up at the stars as he spoke, I WAS IN HEAVEN!! What a great shame that I had never had a chance to join in on the Good Captain's adventures as most of you did!! The same can be said for Space Patrol and Tom Corbett!!

Now, I'm going through a second childhood as I enjoy the tapes of these wonderful Space Adventurers. What a real THRILL I would have had as a kid to have been able to see all these wonderful Series first hand!! I guess that is why I started to produce the Space Opera Jackets, T shirts and Sweats. Missing out on all those wonderful Premimums, I decided to make my own. What is a real treat is, that I can offer them to other Cadets also. And so far, all the Cadets have loved what I offer. THANKS!!

What is a real hoot is, we are attracting young Cadets!! New fans who are only in their teens and twenties are turning on to these wonderful Classic Series, in a big way!! They offer true role models that are very attractive to generation X!!! Star Trek and the lot don't offer seat of the pants adventures that fire their imaginations as do the Classics!! I think, although the contemporary Shows are well done, they don't touch the inate child in all of us as do the Classics. They just missed the boat on that score!!

Thanks To Cadet Rory for a WONDERFUL SITE for us ole Space Dogs!!

Spaceman's Luck Cadets,
S.R. Mike E.

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July 2000

[From Larry Dowell (7/11/00):]

I came across your great site dedicated to early TV science fiction. I was interested in your comments regarding the Republic Studios serials featuring the "Rocketman" character. One thing is wrong, or else I read it wrong. The last "Rocketman" serial is entitled "Radar Men From the Moon", and was actually the pilot for the Commando Cody TV show which was completely different from the serial. The TV show itself is a self-contained serial. That is, each episode is complete within itself, but there is a link to the next episode. Cody is pursuing the master villain, and of course doesn't catch him until the last episode. All three serials, and the TV show are available. I thought for the time in which they were made that Republic, with the Lydecker brothers, managed to pull off some good flying effects. Contrast this with the "Superman" serials that Columbia made. A cartoon Superman!!! Sheesh.

Anyway, I'm sure you've heard from others pointing out the difference between the last "Rocketman" serial and the TV show.

[SpacEditor's note: I fear our discussion of Ole Bullethead is a bit confusing since it is split into two parts, one in Serial Heros and the other in Space Hero Files The one discusses space hero serials in general, the other Cody in particular. Briefly, both RADAR MEN FROM THE MOON and COMMANDO CODY were originally released as serials in theaters, but CODY was sold to NBC for a summer show 2 years after its theatrical release in 1953.]

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[From Steve Rhea (7/12/00):]

Your site is great! I was born in 1948, and one of the great disappointments of my childhood came at Christmas of, as I recall, 1953, when I looked in the display window of the local Sears store and they had Tom Corbett Space Academy playset assembled there. I was absolutely awed by it, and my aunt tried to buy it for me but they said they only had that one and it was a display model only. Most of them were probably at Macy's in New York. I doubt that Beaumont, Texas was a high marketing priority for Marx back then.

I just recently started searching for the old space toys on the net and have scored at least one each of nearly every pose of the Tom Corbett figures. There are a few entire playsets out there, but they tend to get bid up too high for my budget. I am, however, forging ahead on a space diorama, building some of my own sets and incorporating some Captain Video aliens. I am really searching for more Captain Video alien figures (the ones 1.5 -2 inches tall). If anyone knows where some of these could be obtained for a reasonable price, please let me know.

Meantime, keep up the good work. I really enjoy your web site.

Thanks,

Steve Rhea
Houston, TX

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[From Carolee Diggeret (7/12/00):]

Thank you for the great memories and pictures of Captain Video and his Video Rangers.

I remember Princes Aurora (probably misspelled). Do you have a picture of her and what her real name was?

As a child I named all my kittens after the crew. I had Captain Video, Ranger, Roger, and Princess Aurora.

I remember that I ate an awful lot of candy bars to get the gear that they were selling. And I hated the candy bars but I would do anything to be a Video Ranger.

I have a picture of myself and my brother in paper space helmets that I think we got from the Captain Video offers but maybe they were from some other space show.

I am 57 now and still remember coming home to watch that show when I was a child. To this day I am a sci/fi addict.

[SpacEditor's note: We'd love to see photos if you have any way to send them on. With a kitten named "Roger," sounds like you were watching Tom Corbett, Space Cadet as well. Georgann Johnson played Princess Aurora, read more about her in Space Hero Files and Inside Captain Video]

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[From Jan Merlin (7/14/00):]

Kitten named Roger? Hmmmm... very likely... very funny... a lot of kids became named Jan, too, after that show, and also after the Rough Riders series... used to be a rare name in my time... mostly ran into it with the Dutch or Polish or South African Boer people... but not in America.

Welll... I have been known to be a bit of a pussy-cat in my time....

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[From Lou Rugani (7/13/00):]

Al's hometown - Ravenna, Ohio - has honored him with a Cultural/Arts placement in the Raven Hall of Fame.

As part of the observance, the Captain has been remembered with a unique artist's portrait in uniform.

This page will soon be added as a link to Al's webpage on the Internet Movie DataBase.

Here's the URL to the Albert Hodge page in the Raven Hall of Fame.

Well-done, Captain. Congratulations.

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[From Don Petkus (7/14/00):]

I really enjoy this site. Used to watch these shows (broadcast out of Chicago) in the early 1950s in Gary, Indiana. I seem to remember being struck as a kid by the way different shows would use the story lines. One month Captain Video would visit an underwater city, next month Space Patrol would visit underwater cities, on Venus, I think. One show would have a troublesome robot one month, and another would have a runaway robot on theirs.

I also remember strange continuity. At the end of one Captain Video, the characters were exchanging ray gun blasts with obviously battery powered flash-light based pistols. When the episode picked up the next night, they were firing at each other with standard revolvers using blanks. The commissioner (?) that the captain worked for always looked to me like he had wondered into the wrong show. He seem befuddled and was always dressed like a 1950s banker. I'm sure that in one episode he was using a standard stapler as a sending key to send Morse code.

Glad that I found this site again after being away for a while.

[SpacEditor's note: Welcome back, Don. Yes, the story line on SPACE PATROL often seemed to owe a lot to CAPTAIN VIDEO; such borrowing was epidemic on early live TV. When Sid Caesar and Steve Allen both had weekend hour-long comedy/variety shows, many viewers noted that any particularly good skit or satire Sid did the week before would rerun in slightly altered form on Steve's next show!

As in the movie serials, where a cliffhanger at the end of one chapter sometimes had no match at all at the beginning of the next chapter, Captain Video's continuity seemed particularly fragile.]

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[From Mike Jarmas (8/11/00):]

I'm a 55-year-old ten-year-old who has just discovered your Space Heroes site (and some others) when doing a search for info on Rod Brown. Thank you! There were times over the years when I thought I'd imagined the show, since nobody to whom I ever mentioned it could recall it! Then, some years ago, I came across a copy the record of the theme, still in its picture sleeve and knew I wasn't crazy. BTW, any idea what it's worth? People are amazed when I tell them that Brown was one of Cliff Robertson's early roles. It's great to read the background information and the various reminiscences on all the great old shows. If only someone would discover a cache of those lost Rod Brown episodes. Wow!

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[From Harry Persanis (8/14/00):]

Hi, my name is Harry Persanis and I was surprised to see a picture of me standing on a ladder looking over a miniature set for Captain Video. I was in high school in NY at the time and worked afternoons as a camera operator, prop maker, editor and often delivery boy for that days 16mm special effects film showing the Galaxy and many other space ships doing battle in space. Appearing in the picture with me is Leo Russel the partner of Alex Haberstroh (he appears at the center of the other picture peering over the landscape with the Galaxy looming in front) who were my bosses and produced all the special effects that appeared on film and were cut into the live performance. By the way the two pictures you show of the special effects crew came from LIFE magazine with Judy Garland on the cover. Thanks for the memories.

[SpacEditor's note: Welcome aboard the Galaxy III, Harry, and how about an interview covering those fascinating days, for our crew?]

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[From Terry Parr (9/13/00):]

Hi,

I have to compliment you and your Roaring Rocket website! I really love your site and all the awesome photos. I have not seen these shows but I will seek them out pronto. (I do have a vintage Tom Corbett Space Cadet comic).

I also hope to keep the rocket tradition alive with my creator-owned comic "Rocket Rangers" but instead of having men at the helm I have two women and their robot sidekick. It mixes pulp magazines, Flash Gordon, and 50's b-movies. Click here.

I assume that you are also a Texan? I am too. keep up the good work!

[SpacEditor's note: Women in space ships!?! Sorry, not in pulp magazines, or Flash Gordon, or 1950s B-movies, unless they were there as decoration (like Carol and Tonga), or to empty the ash trays!]

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October 2000

[From James DuMont (10/11/00):]

I found your site via the net and wanted to thank you for keeping the family name out there. My name is James DuMont and my Great Uncle was Allen B. DuMont. My uncle is Bruce DuMont, who founded the Museum Of Broadcast Communications in Chicago. I am an actor/producer. I'm just glad to see you have preserved the name, as I believe Allen was way ahead of his time.

Just wanted to say...keep it up.

James DuMont

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November 2000

[From RMessi5248@cs.com (11/19/00):]

Thank you for creating this website and sharing your information with others. Recently I have resuscitated my interest in space movies I watched as a kid growing up in the 1960s. My brother and I were talking about the movies we watched and he told me about this site. I have enjoyed being here. I once thought that the 1960s was a great time to be a kid, but I have come to see that the 1950s was even better. Nothing today or in the 1960s captures the awe and expectation so present in the sci-fi movies of the 1950s. Yesterday I purchased "The War of The Worlds" DVD and watched it for the first time since 1964. WOW! That movie is modern by today's standards! Destination Moon, Rocketship X-M, This Island Earth, The Forbidden Planet, When Worlds Collide, and The Day the Earth Stood Still, among others, give testimony to a time and a culture which was not afraid to look outward. If you know of a site which has a list of all science fiction flicks made and where I can purchase some of them, please let me know. In particular, I am looking for a movie I recall watching as a kid in which a large space ship is enroute to another planet for a home. Along the way they encounter an ancient spaceship from their own planet which explodes with atomic force when one of their crew members boards it. The planet the spaceship reaches as its final destination is Earth. I would love to watch this movie again.

Thanks again!

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December 2000

[From Gary Harris (12/02/00):]

I'm sorry but you don't have it quite right about the origins of the spacesuits at your "Space Origins" site. The Life Magazine spacesuit drawings were based upon a high altitude pressure suit built by Mr. Russ Colley, and his engineer Karrol Krupp, of B.F. Goodrich (that's right, the tire company) back in 1943. This suit was called the XH-5 (High Altitude-EXperimental) and was part of the Air Force's secret MX-117 Program. Several companies built experimental pressure suits for the MX-117 Program during World War-II, they were: B.F. Goodrich, U.S. Rubber Company, Goodyear and the Arrowhead Rubber Co. In those days they wanted to be able to bomb targets from high altitude, so they either used a pressurized aircraft cabin, or they used some type of pressure garment. They naturally tried for the latter, but all of the suits developed were failures, as the technology was simply too immature. The XH-5 was declassified in 1946, and so was featured in various magazine articles, for example, Mechanix llustrated, July 1947. If you want to see a picture of the XH-5 find Lloyd Mallan's old book "Suiting Up For Space" or Lillian Kozlowski's rather poor but newer book "U.S. Space Gear."

You have my permission to put my comments on your site. I worked in pressure suit technology for some time with Weaver Aerospace as a project engineer. In March, I have a book coming out, my third, about advanced extra-vehicular space suits. The book will be published by Univelt, the publishing arm of the American Astronautical Society. It is called "The Origins and Technology of the Advanced Extra-vehicular Space Suit." It does not have material about early pressure suits (1930-1949) such as the Goodrich model-1 through XH-6, but it does shed light on some of the early technology. I have a friend (and fellow writer) who was close to the late Lloyd Mallan, author of "Suiting Up For Space." He has given me all of Mr. Mallan's photo records. With this information and what I have accrued over the last two decades, I may set the record straight about early suits such as were developed by Project MX-117. In the meantime I enjoyed your web site keep up the good work!

Best wishes,
Gary Harris, Author.

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