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Mercury astronaut had to beg controllers for permission to pee

There was a time during the countdown when there was a problem with the inverter in the Redstone. [L.] Gordon Cooper [Jr.] was the voice communicator in the block house.

The story in Shepard's own words: There was a time during the countdown when there was a problem with the inverter in the Redstone. [L.] Gordon Cooper [Jr.] was the voice communicator in the block house. ., I guess after there were some discussions going on outside—it took about 3 or 4 minutes—and finally came back and said [in a German accent], "No, he says; [Wernher] von Braun says, 'The astronaut shall stay in the nosecone.'"

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