National Aeronautics and News Space Administration & NASA HISTORY PROGRAM OFFICE Notes Office of Communications Volume 30, Number 3 Third Quarter 2013 From The NASA Seal and the Chief Insignia, Part 2 Historian At least once each By Joseph R. Chambers, NASA Langley Research Center (Retired) quarter, I get to tear myself away from the “The NASA Seal and Insignia, Part 1” is available online in our last News & seemingly endless Notes (Vol. 30-2) at http://history.nasa.gov/nltr30-2.pdf. round of meetings and the daily tidal wave of e-mail to write up my contributions to this newsletter. For Dr. T. me, it is like downing a giant iced coffee on insignia for informal uses by the new agency. The applications of the a steamy July here in Washington—bracing, insignia would include items such as lapel pins and signs on buildings and refreshing, and energizing. Not only does it facilities. Modarelli worked on the insignia design task while completing the force me to step back and see things outside seal design. - my office from a wider perspective, but it nia: the circle, representing the planets; the stars, representing space; the also gives me a chance to learn about new supersonic arrow wing, representing aeronautics; and an orbiting space- things: NASA history and the great family of craft. He then added the letters: N-A-S-A.1 folks who share a passion for it. I think you’ll really enjoy the variety in this of the Quartermaster General (now the Army Institute of Heraldry) that it issue; yet what struck me the most in review- would use the insignia design created by Modarelli and that NASA would ing the content is the cumulative effect of the not require its services for this undertaking. daily efforts of so many of the people work- . At times, these efforts earn 1. “This Is NASA Insignia,” Orbit (31 July 1959): 1. The Orbit was an in-house newsletter at some well-deserved recognition. For exam- Lewis Research Center. ple, our colleague Bob Arrighi was recently awarded NASA’s Exceptional Public Service continued on next page Center. Well done, Bob! Also, our esteemed In This Issue: colleague (and my predecessor as Chief Historian) Roger Launius was promoted this From the Chief Historian . 1 summer to Associate Director for Collections The NASA Seal and Insignia, Part 2 . 1 and Curatorial Affairs at the National Air and News from Headquarters and the Centers . 4 Space Museum. Congratulations, Roger! Moffett Air Wing . 14 The Value of Gaining New Perspectives . 16 Other efforts may be less noted but are Langley’s Richard Whitcomb Makes History . 18 no less important. I think, for example, of Jet Propulsion Laboratory historian Erik Barron Hilton Flight and Space Exploration Archives Conway’s election to the History of Science at Purdue University . 23 Society Council or Pete Merlin’s incred- Other Aerospace History News . 25 ible productivity in the NASA Aeronautics Recent Publications and Online Resources . 28 Book Series. Another largely thankless job Upcoming Meetings . 34 continued on next page NASA HISTORY PROGRAM OFFICE From the Chief Historian (continued) was turning the papers from our 2011 history symposium into a coherent and thought-provoking book� Let me rectify that thankless part right here and now with a big thank-you to Mike Neufeld for shepherding Spacefarers: Images of Astronauts and Cosmonauts in the Heroic Age of Spaceflight to such a successful completion� He and the team at Smithsonian Institution Scholarly Press have not only produced a beautiful book but have gotten it into print in record time� (You’ve set the bar pretty high with this one, Mike�) Throughout this issue, you’ll see similar reports from the NASA Centers, the Smithsonian Institution, Purdue University, professional societies, and others who are doing outstanding work in preserving the stuff of aerospace history, stimu- lating the study of this subject, and communicating the wonder of it all to others� If this issue of the newsletter doesn’t make you pause in wonder at it all, then maybe you need one of those iced coffees to go along with it� Drink it in, and Godspeed, William P� Barry Chief Historian The NASA Seal and Insignia, Part 2 (continued) Glennan formally announced the new NASA insignia in the NASA Management Manual on 15 July 1959� Specifications and orders for insignia lapel pins, decals, and stationery were completed during the fall of 1959� In November 1959, James Modarelli transferred to NASA Headquarters, where he held the position of Director of Exhibits for NASA until he returned to Lewis Research Center in 1961�2 Known for its first 16 years as the insignia, Modarelli’s creation would be replaced in 1975� The NASA Logotype 2� “Modarelli Transfers to Headquarters,” Orbit (20 November 1959): 1� 2 Volume 30, Number 3 Third Quarter 2013 The NASA insignia served the Agency well for 16 years, becoming a graphic centerpiece during the excitement of the Apollo years� However, in 1975, it was decided that the insignia should take on a more contemporary appearance� Modarelli’s original insignia was dubbed “the meatball” in 1975 by the head of technical publications at NASA Headquarters, to differentiate it from the new logo called the NASA logotype� As part of the Federal Graphics Improvement Program of the National Endowment for the Arts, NASA replaced the meatball with a stripped-down, modernist interpretation where even the cross strokes of the A’s were removed� The logotype was designed by a New York firm specializing in corporate identity� In addition to providing a more contemporary look, the logotype was in part justified by difficulties encountered with colors during the printing process for the meatball before the age of high-quality digital printers� In addition, recognition of the elements was difficult for some viewing conditions� Acceptance of the new logotype insignia was not universal within the Agency� In particular, longtime employees were dismayed by the replacement of their beloved meatball with the new insignia, which they called “the worm” in a deroga- tory sense� Rebirth of the Meatball Interestingly, during the Agency-wide adop- tion of the logotype, most NASA Centers retained the meatball markings on their air- craft hangars� When new NASA Administrator Daniel Goldin made his first tour of the Langley Research Center in 1992, he asked Center Director Paul Holloway what he could do to improve morale at the NASA Centers� Holloway pointed to the meatball insignia that had been retained on the hangar and said, “Restore the meatball�” Mr. and Mrs. James Modarelli receive a special award from NASA Administrator Daniel Goldin In May 1992, Goldin brought back the meatball in 1992. The award citation stated, “To the to “instill new enthusiasm and pride across the creator of NASA’s original ‘meatball’ insignia. [A]gency” by invoking the symbol of the glory In honor of your lasting contributions to the days and the enthusiastic culture that existed proud spirit of the National Aeronautics and during NASA’s highly successful crewed Space Administration[,] October 21, 1992.” space programs of the 1960s and 1970s�3 (NASA Glenn 1992_09961) 3� Hilary Greenbaum, “Who Made Those NASA Logos?” New York Times (31 October 2012), available online at http://6thfloor.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/08/03/who-made-those-nasa-logos/ (accessed 20 February 2013)� 3 NASA HISTORY PROGRAM OFFICE The Designer Passes James Modarelli left Lewis and served as Exhibits Chief at NASA Headquarters for two years (1959– 1961), then returned to Lewis, where he served as Chief of the Technical Publications Division and retired in 1979 as Chief of the Management Services Division after a 30-year career� He had, of course, been very disappointed Workers at NASA Lewis Research Center apply finishing when his meatball design had touches to a new 20-foot-diameter meatball insignia for the been replaced by the worm�4 Lewis aircraft hangar in 1997. (NASA Lewis C-1997-4062) Eighteen years after Modarelli’s retirement, on 1 October 1997, NASA Lewis Research Center replaced its weather-worn, 35-year-old meatball insignia on the Lewis hangar with a new, 20-foot-diameter version� Following a rededication ceremony, the Lewis employees were invited to sign their names on the back of the insignia before it was placed on the hangar� The honor of being the first to sign was, of course, given to Jim Modarelli�5 James J� Modarelli died on 27 September 2002, but his meatball concept and artis- tic skills live on to instill the pride, dedication, and accomplishments of his Agency� News from Headquarters and the Centers NASA Headquarters History Program Office By Bill Barry As many of you may have heard, Alan Ladwig, the Public Outreach Division Director in the NASA Headquarters Office of Communications, retired at the end of May� Not only is Alan a great supporter of the NASA History Program, but he was also our boss� When the Public Outreach Division was created in 2010, the History Division moved from the (then) Office of External Relations to the Public Outreach Division in the newly renamed Office of Communications (formerly the Office of Public Affairs, or Code P)� Steve Garber had been the acting Chief Historian for quite a while at 4� “Designer Reflects on Creation of NASA ‘Meatball’,”Lewis News (3 July 1992): 1� The Lewis News was an in-house newsletter� 5� “Employees Rededicate Famous NASA Symbol,” Lewis News (November 1997): 1� 4 Volume 30, Number 3 Third Quarter 2013 that point, so Alan acted as quickly as he could to fill that vacancy� I’m eternally grateful for his confidence