At the dawn of the Space Race, seven test pilots set out to become the first American astronauts to enter space. However, the road to making history brings momentous challenges.
Sam Shepard
Chuck Yeager
Scott Glenn
Alan Shepard
Ed Harris
John Glenn
Dennis Quaid
Gordon Cooper
Fred Ward
Gus Grissom
Barbara Hershey
Glennis Yeager
Kim Stanley
Pancho Barnes
Veronica Cartwright
Betty Grissom
Pamela Reed
Trudy Cooper
Scott Paulin
Deke Slayton
Charles Frank
Scott Carpenter
Lance Henriksen
Wally Schirra
Donald Moffat
Lyndon B. Johnson
Levon Helm
Jack Ridley / Narrator
Mary Jo Deschanel
Annie Glenn
Scott Wilson
Scott Crossfield
Kathy Baker
Louise Shepard
Mickey Crocker
Marge Slayton
Susan Kase
Rene Carpenter
Mittie Smith
Jo Schirra
Royal Dano
Minister
David Clennon
Liaison Man
Jim Haynie
Air Force Major
Jeff Goldblum
NASA Recruiter
Harry Shearer
Scott Beach
Chief Scientist
Jane Dornacker
Nurse Murch
Anthony Munoz
Gonzales
John P. Ryan
Head of Program
Darryl Henriques
Life Reporter
Eric Sevareid
Himself
William Russ
Slick Goodlin
Drew Letchworth
The Permanent Press Corps
Christopher P. Beale
Richard Dupell
William Hall
John X. Heart
Ed Holmes
Jack Bruno Tate
Edward Anhalt
Grand Designer
Mary Apick
Woman Reporter
Robert Beer
Dwight D. Eisenhower
Erik Bergmann
Eddie Hodges
James Brady
Aide to Lyndon B. Johnson
Katherine Conklin
Woman TV Reporter
Maureen Coyne
Waitress
Tom Dahlgren
Bell Aircraft Executive
John Lion
Peggy Davis
Sally Rand
John Dehner
Henry Luce
Robert Elross
Review Board President
Drew Eshelman
Assistant Scientist
Robert J. Geary
Game Show M.C.
Royce Grones
1st X-1 Pilot
David Gulpilil
Aborigine
Anthony Wallis
Australian Driver
Kaaren Lee
Young Widow
Sandy Kronemeyer
Cocoa Beach Girl
Frankie Di
Michael Pritchard
Texan
Edward Corbett
O-Lan Jones
Girl at Pancho's
Mark Todd
Astronaut Trainee
Allen Gebhardt
Fred
Mimi Sarkisian
New Mexico Nurse in Lobby (uncredited)
Tom Wolfe
Novel
Glenn Farr
Editor
Irwin Winkler
Producer
Lisa Fruchtman
Bill Conti
Original Music Composer
James D. Brubaker
Executive Producer
Tom Rolf
Caleb Deschanel
Director of Photography
Stephen A. Rotter
Douglas Stewart
Robert Chartoff
Philip Kaufman
Screenplay
Director
Peter R. Romero
Art Direction
W. Stewart Campbell
Richard Lawrence
Ted Churchill
Steadicam Operator
Alice Tompkins
Script Supervisor
Lynn Stalmaster
Casting
David MacMillan
Production Sound Mixer
Ken Pepiot
Special Effects Supervisor
Buddy Joe Hooker
Stunt Coordinator
Harry Mathias
George R. Nelson
Set Decoration
Geoffrey Kirkland
Production Design
Jim Poynter
Jordan Belson
Visual Effects
Pat Grover
Hairstylist
Todd Boekelheide
Sound Re-Recording Mixer
Tim Holland
Sound Effects Editor
Randy Thom
Karen G. Wilson
Yvonne Curry
Makeup Artist
Mark Berger
John Benson
Thomas Scott
Pat Jackson
Bruce Geller
Andy Wiskes
Catherine Childers
Jay Boekelheide
Supervising Sound Editor
Richard Hymns
Karen Bradley
Susan Roether
Production Secretary
