Strange Angel

Now a CBS All Access series created by Mark Heyman with executive producer Ridley Scott. ROCKET SCIENTIST KILLED IN PASADENA EXPLOSIONscreamed the headline of the Los Angeles Times. John Parsons a maverick rocketeer who helped transform the rocket from a derided sci-fi plot line into a reality was at first mourned as a scientific prodigy. But reporters soon uncovered a more shocking story: Parsons had been a devotee of black magic. George Pendle re-creates the world of John Parsons in this dazzling portrait of prewar superstition cold war paranoia and futuristic possibility. Fueled by childhood dreams of space flight Parsons was a leader of the motley band of enthusiastic young men who founded the Jet Propulsion Laboratory a cornerstone of the American space program. But Parsons''s wild imagination also led him into the occult- for if he could make rocketry a reality why not magic? With a cast of characters including Howard Hughes L. Ron Hubbard and Robert Heinlein Strange Angel explores the unruly consequences of genius.