The Mercury 13
The True Story of Thirteen Women and the Dream of Space Flight
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Narrated by:
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Julie Eickhoff
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By:
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Martha Ackmann
About this listen
For fans of The Astronaut Wives Club, The Mercury 13 reveals the little-known true story of the remarkable women who trained for NASA space flight.
In 1961, just as NASA launched its first man into space, a group of women underwent secret testing in the hopes of becoming America’s first female astronauts. They passed the same battery of tests at the legendary Lovelace Foundation as did the Mercury 7 astronauts, but they were summarily dismissed by the boys’ club at NASA and on Capitol Hill. The USSR sent its first woman into space in 1963; the United States did not follow suit for another 20 years.
For the first time, Martha Ackmann tells the story of the dramatic events surrounding these 13 remarkable women, all crackerjack pilots and patriots who sometimes sacrificed jobs and marriages for a chance to participate in America’s space race against the Soviet Union. In addition to talking extensively to these women, Ackmann interviewed Chuck Yeager, John Glenn, Scott Carpenter, and others at NASA and in the White House with firsthand knowledge of the program. Despite the crushing disappointment of watching their dreams being derailed, the Mercury 13 went on to extraordinary achievement in their lives: Jerrie Cobb, who began flying when she was so small she had to sit on pillows to see out of the cockpit, dedicated her life to flying solo missions to the Amazon rain forest; Wally Funk, who talked her way into the Lovelace trials, went on to become one of the first female FAA investigators; Janey Hart, mother of eight and, at age 40, the oldest astronaut candidate, had the political savvy to steer the women through congressional hearings and later helped found the National Organization for Women. A provocative tribute to these extraordinary women, The Mercury 13 is an unforgettable story of determination, resilience, and inextinguishable hope.
©2003 Martha Ackmann. Foreword copyright 2003 by Lynn Sherr (P)2014 Audible Inc.Listeners also enjoyed...
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Story
John Boyd may be the most remarkable unsung hero in all of American military history. Some remember him as the greatest US fighter pilot ever - the man who, in simulated air-to-air combat, defeated every challenger in less than 40 seconds. Some recall him as the father of our country's most legendary fighter aircraft - the F-15 and F-16. Still, others think of Boyd as the most influential military theorist since Sun Tzu. They know only half the story.
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Stick With It if You Want a Rare Gem
- By Michael Richards on 08-30-16
By: Robert Coram
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The Great Stewardess Rebellion
- How Women Launched a Workplace Revolution at 30,000 Feet
- By: Nell McShane Wulfhart
- Narrated by: Bonnie Friel
- Length: 10 hrs and 6 mins
- Unabridged
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It was the Golden Age of Travel, and everyone wanted in. As flying boomed in the 1960s, women from across the United States applied for jobs as stewardesses. They were drawn to the promise of glamorous jet-setting, the chance to see the world, and an alternative to traditional occupations like homemaking, nursing, and teaching.
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Amazingly true!!
- By Kay on 08-13-23
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Chasing Space
- An Astronaut's Story of Grit, Grace, and Second Chances
- By: Leland Melvin
- Narrated by: Ron Butler
- Length: 7 hrs and 14 mins
- Unabridged
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Leland Melvin is the only person in human history to catch a pass in the National Football League and in space. Though his path from the gridiron to the heavens was riddled with setbacks and injury, Leland persevered to reach the stars. While training with NASA, Melvin suffered a severe injury that left him deaf. Leland was relegated to earthbound assignments but chose to remain and support his astronaut family. His loyalty paid off. Recovering partial hearing, he earned his eligibility for space travel.
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A Must Listen to for any Space Enthusiast!
- By B.A. Lopez on 01-11-20
By: Leland Melvin
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The League of Wives
- The Untold Story of the Women Who Took on the U.S. Government to Bring Their Husbands Home
- By: Heath Hardage Lee
- Narrated by: Heath Hardage Lee
- Length: 10 hrs and 18 mins
- Unabridged
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The true story of the fierce band of women who battled Washington - and Hanoi - to bring their husbands home from the jungles of Vietnam.
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Great review of history that I lived through as a child
- By Linda B on 11-15-24
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109 East Palace
- Robert Oppenheimer and the Secret City of Los Alamos
- By: Jennet Conant
- Narrated by: Anne Twomey
- Length: 5 hrs and 57 mins
- Abridged
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They were told as little as possible. Their orders were to go to Santa Fe, New Mexico, and report for work at a classified Manhattan Project site, a location so covert it was known to them only by the mysterious address: 109 East Palace.
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Great Listen
- By John H. Davis III on 10-22-05
By: Jennet Conant
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Tuxedo Park
- A Wall Street Tycoon and the Secret Palace of Science That Changed the Course of World War II
- By: Jennet Conant
- Narrated by: John Kroft
- Length: 13 hrs and 40 mins
- Unabridged
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In the late 1930s, legendary financier, philanthropist, and society figure Alfred Lee Loomis gathered the most visionary scientific minds of the 20th century at his state-of-the-art laboratory in Tuxedo Park, New York. He established a top-secret defense laboratory at MIT and personally bankrolled pioneering research into new, high-powered radar detection systems that helped defeat the German Air Force and U-boats. With Ernest Lawrence, he pushed Franklin Delano Roosevelt to fund research in nuclear fission, which led to the development of the atomic bomb.
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Fantastic book, weak technical execution
- By Paul on 10-13-18
By: Jennet Conant
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Lady Bird and Lyndon
- The Hidden Story of a Marriage That Made a President
- By: Betty Boyd Caroli
- Narrated by: Amanda Carlin
- Length: 16 hrs and 6 mins
- Unabridged
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A fresh look at Lady Bird Johnson that upends her image as a plain Jane who was married for her money and mistreated by Lyndon. This Lady Bird worked quietly behind the scenes through every campaign, every illness, and a trying presidency as a key strategist, fundraiser, barnstormer, peacemaker, and indispensable therapist.
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Lady Bird & btw Lyndon
- By Richard on 11-27-15
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Rocket Men
- The Daring Odyssey of Apollo 8 and the Astronauts Who Made Man's First Journey to the Moon
- By: Robert Kurson
- Narrated by: Ray Porter, Robert Kurson
- Length: 12 hrs and 20 mins
- Unabridged
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By August 1968, the American space program was in danger of failing in its two most important objectives: to land a man on the moon by President Kennedy's end-of-decade deadline and to triumph over the Soviets in space. With its back against the wall, NASA made an almost unimaginable leap: It would scrap its usual methodical approach and risk everything on a sudden launch, sending the first men in history to the moon - in just four months.
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The Men Who Saved 1968
- By Gillian on 04-04-18
By: Robert Kurson
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Phenomena
- The Secret History of the U.S. Government's Investigations into Extrasensory Perception and Psychokinesis
- By: Annie Jacobsen
- Narrated by: Annie Jacobsen
- Length: 17 hrs and 30 mins
- Unabridged
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For more than 40 years, the US government has researched extrasensory perception, using it in attempts to locate hostages, fugitives, secret bases, and downed fighter jets, to divine other nations' secrets, and even to predict future threats to national security. The intelligence agencies and military services involved include CIA, DIA, NSA, DEA, the navy, air force, and army - and even the Joint Chiefs of Staff. Now, for the first time, New York Times best-selling author Annie Jacobsen tells the story of these radical, controversial programs.
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Phenomenally mediocre narration of a good book
- By philip on 05-18-17
By: Annie Jacobsen
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JFK's Last Hundred Days
- The Transformation of a Man and the Emergence of a Great President
- By: Thurston Clarke
- Narrated by: Malcolm Hillgartner
- Length: 14 hrs and 48 mins
- Unabridged
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A revelatory, minute-by-minute account of JFK’s final days that asks what might have been. Fifty years after his assassination, President John F. Kennedy’s legend endures. Noted author and historian Thurston Clarke reexamines the last months of the president’s life to show a man in the midst of great change, both in his family and in the key issues of his day: The Cold War, Civil Rights, and Vietnam, finally on the cusp of making good on his extraordinary promise.
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In Depth and Beautifully Written
- By grace on 06-03-23
By: Thurston Clarke
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Proving Ground
- The Untold Story of the Six Women Who Programmed the World's First Modern Computer
- By: Kathy Kleiman
- Narrated by: Erin Bennett
- Length: 7 hrs and 53 mins
- Unabridged
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After the end of World War II, the race for technological supremacy sped on. Top-secret research into ballistics and computing, begun during the war to aid those on the front lines, continued across the United States as engineers and programmers rushed to complete their confidential assignments. Among them were six pioneering women, tasked with figuring out how to program the world's first general-purpose, programmable, all-electronic computer—better known as the ENIAC. Proving Ground restores these women to their rightful place as technological revolutionaries.
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A Joy to Listen To
- By Sam on 08-07-22
By: Kathy Kleiman
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LeMay
- By: Warren Kozak
- Narrated by: Grainger Hines
- Length: 13 hrs and 50 mins
- Unabridged
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The firebombing of Tokyo. Strategic Air Command. John F. Kennedy. Dr. Strangelove. George Wallace. All of these have one man in common—General Curtis LeMay, who remains as enigmatic and controversial as he was in life. Until now. Warren Kozak traces the trajectory of America’s most infamous general, from his troubled background and heroic service in Europe to his firebombing of Tokyo, guardianship of the U.S. nuclear arsenal in the Cold War, frustrated career in government, and short-lived political run.
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Definition.....Leader.....General Curtis Le May
- By Nj-Mike on 01-04-15
By: Warren Kozak
What listeners say about The Mercury 13
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- Angie Griffin
- 03-30-23
The mercury 13
The Mercury 13 are and were amazing women in need of an honorable place in history. I was glad to know more.
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- Chilli Dog
- 01-26-15
Amazing story
Before I listened to this audiobook I never knew of the Mercury 13. At first I thought it was a book about the wives of the Mercury 7 astronauts. I quickly realized that it was something completely different, but I was intrigued and kept on listening. So glad I did. I've always been fascinated with space, and the space program and I can't believe I did not know about any of this. What an inspiring story about these women who not only wanted to be astronauts but what it meant in the evolution of women being treated as equals to men. We have come a long way in this country and a lot of that change had to do with these women and their struggles and commitment to try to achieve a goal that was only meant for a select group of men. in their own right they were pioneers of a different class. If you have an interest in the whole space program and the history of it, don't deny yourself a great experience with this book. Highly recommended.
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2 people found this helpful
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- David
- 09-29-15
Rough start, great finish
What started out a bit confused and unfocused turned in to a wonderful tale. I hadn't known about the Women in Space program, although having read the Feminine Mystique, it's quite understandable to see where the program ended up, in the short term at least. There are quite a few interesting figures in the book, so it takes a while to settle in and get to know them. This book has me want to meet some of these women, I wonder how they look at the change over all these years.
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1 person found this helpful
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- Sean D. Mcclinton
- 03-12-15
Powerful story
Well told. A shame we didn't have more foresight. In hindsight, I think it set America's space program back many years.
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1 person found this helpful
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- Rebecca
- 02-08-18
Amazing book
Fantastic book, amazing women! I highly recommend this book to all. Not going to lie, at some points you will be so frustrated you'll want to yell and rant (I did to my coworkers) but it's important to see the struggle women have been through in general but space in particular, and the struggle women still face to this day. Great narrator too.
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