There’s always that one guy.
You know the type—the one who knows the rules but breaks them anyway.
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In 1965, that guy at NASA was astronaut John Young.
Famous for his Apollo 16 moonwalks and for commanding the first space shuttle mission, Young is also remembered for a smaller, but memorable scandal: smuggling a corned beef sandwich into space.
Just before the launch of Gemini 3 on March 23, 1965, Young tucked the sandwich into the pocket of his spacesuit. This was the first U.S. mission to carry two astronauts—Young and his crewmate, Gus Grissom.
Tensions were already high during the Space Race, as the Soviets had launched their own two-person mission less than a week earlier.
According to transcripts, the corned beef sandwich sparked some conversation between Young and Grissom.
“What is it?” asked Grissom.
“Corned-beef sandwich. I brought it with me. Let’s see how it tastes. Smells, doesn’t it?” Young replied.
After tasting it, they agreed it was a good sandwich, but a bad idea. It was breaking apart in the zero-gravity environment.
When they returned to Earth, Grissom recounted the incident to Life magazine, and soon, the sandwich became the subject of a review by the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Appropriations. One committee member famously called it the “$30 million sandwich,” citing safety concerns about the crumbs.
NASA’s Associate Administrator for Manned Space Flight, George Mueller, assured the committee: “We have taken steps to prevent the recurrence of corned-beef sandwiches in future flights.”
Young later reflected on the incident in his 2012 memoir, Forever Young: “Today, the theater that took place inside the meeting room strikes me as totally comic, but I can assure you that those testifying for NASA at the time were not smiling.”
What restaurant did John Young’s Space Sandwich come from?
It came from a small shop in Cocoa Beach called Wolfie’s Restaurant & Sandwich Shop, which, unfortunately, closed in 2002.
Was it the first smuggled food?
It was actually the third sandwich carried into space, as early astronaut food was notoriously bland.
Where did John Young get the space sandwich?
It was given to John Young by fellow astronaut Wally Schirra.
