President Kennedy views the lift-off of astronaut Cmdr. Alan B. Shepard, Jr., on the 1st US manned sub-orbital flight. President John F. Kennedy and others watch television coverage of the lift-off of astronaut Commander Alan B. Shepard, Jr. aboard "Freedom 7," on the first US manned sub-orbital flight. L-R: Unidentified woman; President Kennedy's brother-in-law, Stephen Smith; Naval Aide to the President, Commander Tazewell Shepard; Vice President Lyndon B. Johnson; Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare, Abraham Ribicoff; Assistant Special Counsel to the President, Richard Goodwin; Assistant Secretary of Defense for International Security Affairs, Paul Nitze; Special Assistant to the President, Arthur Schlesinger, Jr.; President Kennedy. Office of the President's Secretary (Evelyn Lincoln), White House, Washington, D.C.