For this holiday special episode, we’re bringing you something different - a conversation that captures a remarkable moment in space history, told by the incomparable Major General Charles F. Bolden Jr. Charlie, as he's known to his friends, carved a path from the Marine Corps to the stars, becoming not just a fighter pilot and astronaut, but one of the most influential figures in NASA's history. He commanded two Space Shuttle missions and later served as NASA Administrator under President Obama - the first African American to hold that position.
We begin with a pivotal moment - the launch of STS-60 - when Bolden, a Cold War warrior, is thrust onto the frontline of international diplomacy, as part of a bid to bring the United States and the former Soviet Union closer together through space exploration - bugged hotel rooms notwithstanding.