Template Created By: James Nail 2010 WHY CAN’T A WOMAN FLY?: NASA AND THE CULT OF MASCULINITY, 1958-1972 By Erinn Catherine McComb A Dissertation Submitted to the Faculty of Mississippi State University in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctorate of Philosophy in History in the Department of History Mississippi State, Mississippi May 2012 Template Created By: James Nail 2010 Copyright 2012 By Erinn Catherine McComb Template Created By: James Nail 2010 WHY CAN’T A WOMAN FLY?: NASA AND THE CULT OF MASCULINITY, 1958-1972 By Erinn Catherine McComb Approved: _________________________________ ____________________________________ Alan I Marcus, Chair Jessica Martucci Professor of History Assistant Professor of History (Dissertation Director) (Committee Member) _________________________________ ____________________________________ Richard V. Damms Mary Kathryn Barbier Associate Professor of History Associate Professor of History (Committee Member) (Committee Member) _________________________________ ____________________________________ Peter C. Messer Gary L. Myers Associate Professor of History Dean of the College of Arts & Sciences (Graduate Coordinator) Template Created By: James Nail 2010 Name: Erinn Catherine McComb Date of Degree: May 12, 2012 Institution: Mississippi State University Major Field: History Major Professor: Alan I Marcus Title of Study: WHY CAN’T A WOMAN FLY?: NASA AND THE CULT OF MASCULINITY, 1958-1972 Pages in Study: 309 Candidate for Degree of Doctorate of Philosophy This is an investigation into the history of masculinity in spaceflight during some of the tensest years of the Cold War era. This dissertation asks why the U.S. did not counter the Soviet launch of the first woman into space. Scholars have pieced together the story of American women’s fight for spaceflight. The dissertation adds another layer to this narrative by analyzing the construction of the astronaut image from 1958 to 1972, a period characterized by a widespread masculinity crisis. Scholars of Cold War America suggest that Americans saw communism, conformity, feminism, homosexuality, bureaucracy, corporations, male consumerism, leisure, automation, and the dreaded “organization man” as a threat to masculinity. The astronaut was not only a way for Americans to display their superiority over the Soviets; he also represented a widespread domestic reaction against the threat of automation. I build on the scholarship of the Cold War masculinity crisis by focusing on how the crisis played out within the public discourse of the astronaut image. I begin with a narrative of the Cold War masculinity crisis. Using print media, congressional records, and astronaut accounts, I explore how the masculinization of spaceflight created a public image of the Template Created By: James Nail 2010 astronaut that mirrored the Cold War masculinity crisis. As the average American man struggled for individuality and control in his own life, the astronaut struggled to exert and maintain individual control over the space capsule. Continuing through the Apollo program, the discourse surrounding the astronaut shifted away from depictions of him as a rugged individual exerting control in space toward an emphasis on the astronaut as a team player who shared control of the capsule with computers, the scientist-astronauts, and Mission Command. In the end, the astronaut struggled to represent a superior masculinity as he increasingly became the corporate organization man, symbolizing the masculinity crisis. The struggle to resolve the masculinity crisis continued as teamwork replaced individualism, hyphenated scientist-astronauts flew into space, and NASA commissioned the first passenger space shuttles. DEDICATION To Mom, Mike, and Max—a good dog ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS No one can complete a dissertation alone. As Sally Ride once said, “All adventures, especially into new territory, are scary,” and graduate school proved no exception. I would like to thank all of the history professors at Mississippi State University for helping me grow as both a person and a historian. Above all, I wish to thank Dr. Alan I Marcus for his wisdom and criticism and without his guidance, I would be lost. The first semester of graduate school forces students to reconfigure their intellectual groundings and my introduction to graduate school wrought with passivity and uncertainty was no acceptation. Jason Phillips encouraged me to overcome the numerous trepidations that often plague young students. Without his guidance, support, and incisiveness, this project would never have seen the light of day. Humor is a valued commodity in graduate school. Richard Damms’s persistent and intellectual incites provided me with the tools necessary that I would need to succeed both in and out of the academic arena. Jessica Martucci has not only helped me think like the gender historian she knows I can be, but I would like to thank her for helping me realize that I am not limited by what my dissertation is, but only by what I can imagine it will become. You are truly a remarkable person, and I know you will have a brilliant career. While still trying to find my voice, Dr. Mary Kathryn Barbier graciously served as my advisor for my first two years at MSU. I would like to thank her for not only an unforgettable trip to Germany, but also for her much needed advice during our many meetings over the years. You’re right, Dr. B., I am stronger than I think I am. In my twelve years in a university iii setting, I have attended countless lectures. None have been more passionate or inspirational than those given by Dr. Michael V. Williams. It was a pleasure to work with you. I have had several classes and dog sitting adventures with the faculty at MSU, and I owe a debt of gratitude to: Stephen Brain, Amy Gangloff, Jim Giesen, Alison Greene, Alix Hui, Anne Marshall, Peter Messer, Susan Rensing, and Jason Ward. Graduate school is not only about taking class, but we are encouraged to cultivate relationships with those in our particular field. At the 2010 Society for the History of Technology (SHOT) conference I had the pleasure of meeting Alan Meyer. He has not only taught me the lost art of knife fighting, but he has spent many thankless hours helping me on the job market. War Eagle! Archival research is a cold and lonely job. But we love it. I would like to thank various archivists for their assistance. For their many hours spent pulling files for me, I would like to thank the NASA History Office in Washington, D.C. especially Colin Fries, Liz Suckow, Steven Garber, and Jane Odom. I also wish to thank the staff at the John F. Kennedy Library in Boston. My fellow graduate student, friend, and Congressional and Political Research Center archivist at Mitchell Memorial Library, Ryan Semmes, you’re going to do great things for our department. I would like to thank SHOT’s executive secretary Bernie Carlson for the much needed travel grant money. Roger Launius and all the members of SHOT’s Albatross, thank you for your warm welcoming. When I first arrived at State, I met some pretty awesome people. The office managers, Patsy, Pam, and Lonna, do more for us than they really should. To the original “dinosaurs,” Micah, Holly, Andi, Jesse, Nathan, Mike, Kirk, Sean, and Katie, I cannot believe we survived this. Alyssa and Cliff, I hope you enjoy a lifetime of parks and recreation. Dr. Allison Dallas, bless your heart….I’ll miss you. Nathan Drake, keep up iv the writing. I know you will have a best seller some day. Furthermore, I could not have completed this dissertation without the dedicated graduate students that reside in Allen Hall’s “Middle Earth.” There’s nothing like good times, cheap beer, great conversation, and even better people. You amaze me. I am so proud of you all. Stop reading this and publish something. Peter will pass the Jägermeister, just watch out for him on a racquetball court. I wish to thank my family, Mom, John, Dad, Peter, Nathaniel, and Kerry for all their love, support, and wise cracks. I would especially like to thank my mother who taught me that I could do anything. You are my hero. Going through hundreds of folders in archives in Washington and Boston would have been miserable if it were not for the tireless help of my research assistant and girlfriend, the future Dr. Cari Casteel. You do everything, and yet, ask for nothing. You are my safe place. I love you. My younger brother Michael passed away before the end of this dissertation. He was one of my biggest fans. Most days it is hard to imagine life without him. Together we shared a passion for movies. I think it fitting that I end with his favorite quote from The Pursuit of Happiness: “Don’t ever let someone tell you you can’t do something. You got a dream you gotta protect it. People can’t do something themselves, they want to tell you you can’t do it. If you want something, go get it. Period.” v TABLE OF CONTENTS Page DEDICATION .................................................................................................................... ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ............................................................................................... iii CHAPTER I. INTRODUCTION .............................................................................................1 II. RUGGED INDIVIDUALS AND ORGANIZATION MEN: THE COLD WAR MASCULINITY CRISIS ..............................................18 Conclusion .......................................................................................................46 III.