Corvettes and Astronauts

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Fifty years ago Alan B. Shepard became the first American to travel into outer space. When he reported for Space Program training in April, 1959, he brought along his 1957 Corvette. But shortly after his historic flight, he was presented new, white, 1962 Corvette by GM Executive Edward N. Cole. As GM did not routinely give away cars, Indy 500 winner Jim Rathmann stepped into the picture. Rathmann owned a Chevrolet-Cadillac dealership near the Space Center and in, sensing that most of the spacemen were at heart Corvette types, he negotiated a special lease arrangement with Chevrolet to put the astronauts in a Corvette. Six of the Mercury astronauts would take Rathmann up on his Corvette offer. Only stalwart family man John Glenn opted for a new Chevrolet station wagon instead and this wagon reportedly proved just the thing for those occasions when the seven astronauts needed to travel together.

(photos courtesy Chevrolet)

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