The Barber, The Astronaut, and The Golf Ball

by Barbara Radnofsky and Ed Supkis

Biography / Golf / Space Travel

Publisher: Stoney Creek Publishing

Pages: 202

Publication Date: September 17, 2024

SYNOPSIS

In 1971, famed astronaut Alan Shepard returned from the moon and went to get a haircut. Before settling into the barber’s chair in Webster, Texas, near NASA’s Mission Control, Shepard gave his longtime barber and friend, Carlos Villagomez, an autographed golf ball.                                        

During his Apollo 14 moonwalk, Shepard had conducted a world-famous demonstration of gravity by hitting a golf ball in an out-of-this-world sand trap. It took him two tries.

Carlos, a Navy combat veteran and barber for numerous astronauts, says Shepard gave him the ball immediately after he returned to earth and was released from quarantine.
Had Shepard taken a third ball to the moon? And did he give it to his barber as a token of their long friendship?                                       

The debate provides a backdrop for The Barber, The Astronaut, and the Golf Ball, a story of two extraordinary men and their lasting friendship. The book offers a rare glimpse behind the scenes of America’s space program at its pinnacle and shows the ordinary people who supported one of the nation’s most monumental scientific endeavors.

Praise for The Barber, The Astronaut, and The Golf Ball:

It’s perfect!! Barbara and Ed capture Daddy and his long friendship with Carlos. —Laura Shepard, Daughter of Alan Shepard

Brings back the glory days of the U.S. Space Program and the importance of the “little people” who made it happen.  We see stern Shepard in a new and admirable light – in Shepard’s high regard for the vast team of dedicated supporters who enabled astronauts to succeed. —Charlie Duke, Apollo Astronaut

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ABOUT THE AUTHORS

Barbara Radnofsky and Ed Supkis grew up in the 1960s in the shadow of NASA’s Manned Spacecraft Center and married in 1982. They have three children and five grandchildren. The couple —with many other community members — are co-owners of Brazos Bookstore, an independent bookseller. As children of NASA scientists, Barbara and Ed had front-row seats to the development of the space program and the community built around it on rural cow pastures near Webster, Texas.

Barbara Radnofsky is a writer, mediator, teacher, and lawyer. She’s the author of A Citizen’s Guide to Impeachment, a nonpartisan explanation of U.S. constitutional impeachment history and practice.

Ed Supkis MD is a board-certified anesthesiologist specializing in cardiac anesthesia. He served as Director of Quality Assurance for the Division of Anesthesiology and as Medical Director of Respiratory Care for the Division of Surgery and Anesthesiology. 

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REVIEW

Space travel is a fascinating subject. I wouldn’t like to go up in space myself, but I do enjoy reading about the golden age of NASA and the astronauts who made mind-boggling journeys outside our atmosphere. So I was intrigued by a story about the friendship between Alan Shepard, commander of the Apollo 14 mission in 1971, and his barber, Carlos Villagomez, and a longstanding mystery involving the two men.

This book offers a good deal of historical insight into the space program and the different roles Shepard played. I’m not a history nerd, and it was almost too much detail for me. I did enjoy learning a few things I didn’t know, though, like the fact that Shepard was the oldest person to walk on the moon at age 47. I also didn’t realize how integral a part he was of the space program as a whole, not just the Apollo 14 mission. It was interesting hearing from people who knew him and worked with him, seeing how they perceived him as a coworker, a leader, and a friend.

I didn’t know about Alan Shepard’s philanthropic inclinations, either. Being as how I have a technologically inclined high school student, I’m tucking away information on the Astronaut Scholarship Foundation (founded by Shepard and the other surviving members of the Mercury 7 mission and Betty Grissom, the widow of Gus Grissom) for future reference! It’s always nice to find out that people who did great things in history were also quietly decent people in their personal lives.

History is clear that Shepard did indeed play golf on the moon. But did he bring a golf ball back from the moon for his barber and friend Carlos? Does the book satisfactorily resolve that mystery? I’m not telling. If you can’t get enough of all things space-related, if this mystery has you intrigued, grab a copy of The Barber, the Astronaut, and the Golf Ball and get to reading.

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