Moon Shot

• 1. Introduction

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  Moon Shot: The Inside Story of America's Race to the Moon is a book published in 1994, and its cover carries a crowded list of names. Some belong to astronauts, some to journalists, and one name on that list tells a quieter story than the rest. The subtitle promises an inside account of the race to the Moon. That raises a few plain questions. Who actually sat down to write it? Who is the Neil Armstrong connection? And what happened when the book was reshaped for television?

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• 2. The Cover Names

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  Alan Shepard, a member of the Mercury Seven astronaut group, is the lead author of Moon Shot. He did not work alone. Two professional reporters shared the writing with him. Jay Barbree was a correspondent for NBC News, and Howard Benedict covered space for the Associated Press. Together they paired an astronaut's firsthand memory with the habits of newsroom reporting.

  Neil Armstrong appears in a different role. He did not write the main text. He wrote the introduction, which means the first words a reader meets carry his name.

  One more astronaut remains on the cover. His story belongs to the next chapter.

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• 3. An Author in Name Only

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  Donald K. Slayton, known as Deke, is also listed as an author of Moon Shot. He was an astronaut too, and his name sits beside Shepard's on the cover. But Slayton died before the book was completed. He is described as an author in name only, so his credit stands as a tribute more than a record of labor on the pages.

  That credit leaves readers with a small puzzle. A name can appear on a book without the person ever finishing it. The same man would soon be honored again, in a very different medium.

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• 4. The Television Miniseries

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  Four parts long, the television version of Moon Shot aired on TBS in the United States. It was a documentary miniseries built from the book. Barry Corbin served as narrator, speaking in the role of Slayton. The choice gave the missing author a voice, even though he never heard the finished program.

  The film drew on interviews with several American astronauts. It also included a few Russian cosmonauts, which brought the other side of the space race into view.

  Slayton died before the miniseries completed production in 1993. The program is dedicated to his memory, so the credits end by honoring the same man whose name opens the book.

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