Chimp in Orbit: 'First in Space'

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"THE RIGHT STUFF" is often seen as one of the definitive works that chronicles the early American astronauts. But, technically, it glosses over one of the first: Subject 65.

Subject 65, affectionately called Ham by his handler, was the first chimpanzee in space, launched into orbit on January 31, 1961.

While the first seven human astronauts in Project Mercury were highlighted in Tom Wolfe's book and a subsequent film, Ham hasn't received his due until "First in Space," the new graphic novel by James Vining.

The genesis of the book came from a doodle, and if things had gone as Vining had initially planned, "First in Space" would be a comedy with sci-fi-inspired craziness. But when the artist started doing visual research and came upon the story of Ham, he found a new interest.

Rather than have "First in Space" be about a specific human, the beautifully illustrated graphic novel keeps the camera focused on the chimp as you watch the story unfold around him.

"I didn't necessarily want to be beholden to any one particular person's story or viewpoint," Vining said. "I was more interested in telling the chimp's point of view, the events that went on and how the training might have impacted him."

Vining does a masterful job of capturing the personality of the chimp, adding a little bit of Disney touch to add some humanity to Ham, who almost becomes like a son to his handler.

To accurately depict Ham, Vining mined the accounts of the people who worked with the chimp, noting that he was a "pretty congenial little fellow.

"I tried to make him kind of like a little kid because he is not aware of what is going on to him," Vining said. "He can only respond to the immediate moment. I think that is way a lot of really small kids react to things."

Ham's personality is only half of the character though. To make the chimp seem, well, like a chimp, Vining had to spend some time at zoos, watching and drawing the primates. He said the Discovery Channel is also "really good for that sort of thing." The end result is a very expressive and often funny little creature that is instantly understood and adored. (And speaking of zoos, after finishing with the space program, Ham became a Washingtonian, taking up residence at the National Zoo for about 17 years.)

With the character down, the story was the next task to tackle. As with many tales based on historical figures, Vining had to take some liberties.

"I basically did two years worth of research so I could disregard a big chunk of it," he said.

Vining compressed the story and the cast into an easy-to-read graphic novel that gives you a taste of the history while keeping the story readable and fun.

"I didn't want to go into a huge amount of detail," he said. "I'm not writing 'The Right Stuff.'"