Cheryll Barron and the Atoms of Democracy by John A. A. Logan
While still a teenager, Cheryll Barron was sent out by a New Delhi magazine to conduct her first ever interview. It was with Wernher von Braun, inventor of the V-2 rocket for Nazi Germany, and, later, the Saturn V rocket for the United States; a member of the SS who, following World War 2 was moved to the United States as part of Operation Paperclip, where he developed the rockets that launched America’s first space satellite and first series of moon missions. According to NASA, von Braun was the “Father of Rocket Science”. Barron’s article on von Braun, published in 1973, was entitled, “The Man Who Put Man on the Moon”. It began, “Somewhat guiltily, I ignored the shocking pink placard hung on the doorknob, reading ‘DO NOT DISTURB’ in three languages, and rang the bell for the second time in 15 minutes. Expecting a long wait, I was midway through shifting my weight from one foot to the other when the door opened very suddenly – just wide enough to reveal a pair of ...