On Dec 14, 9:01*pm, (Joseph Nebus) wrote:
* * * * I was rewatching History Channel's ``Sputnik Mania'', which I
quite like for its ``Victory At Sea''-like habit of just showing old
footage with nice long cuts without excessive narrating or contemporary
commentary, and noticed something odd as the storyline got to Sputnik 2:

* * * * The newscaster reported on the launch of Laika that a dog had
knocked a goat off the front page. *So what goat was that? *Was this an
actual goat that'd achieved human-interest status at the time, or was
it a metaphorical goat of the United States rocket program not really
working out so well as might be desired? *

* * * * (I have the suspicion this may be addressed by Matthew Bille and
Erika Lishock's _The First Space Race_, but I haven't got a copy of it.) *

--
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * Joseph Nebus
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I'm afraid we missed that item. This is the first mention I'd heard
of the goat.

Regards,

Matt Bille