Home Poal9

5 Shocking Facts About Jack Black's Mom: The Aerospace Engineer Who Saved Apollo 13

• minute read
Contents

Few people realize that the mother of Hollywood's beloved comedian, Jack Black, was a genuine American hero. While Jack Black, born Thomas Jacob Black, has built a career on comedy, music, and acting, his late mother, Judith Love Cohen, navigated a world of high-stakes engineering that literally saved lives in space. Her legacy is a powerful story of breaking barriers in the mid-20th century, balancing a demanding technical career with a vibrant personal life that included raising an iconic rock-and-roll star. The sheer scope of her achievements is a constant source of renewed public interest, proving her impact extends far beyond her famous son.

As of late 2025, the story of Judith Love Cohen continues to circulate, particularly among those interested in the forgotten women of NASA and the Apollo program. Her professional life was a testament to intellectual rigor and perseverance, culminating in a career that spanned from the Cold War era's missile technology to the golden age of space exploration. Understanding her full biography reveals a woman of extraordinary depth—a dancer, an author, and one of the most important engineers in American history.

The Complete Biography of Judith Love Cohen

Judith Love Cohen's life was a remarkable tapestry of science, art, and advocacy. Born in Brooklyn, New York, she established herself as a polymath whose talents stretched across seemingly disparate fields, leaving an indelible mark on both space exploration and children's literature.

  • Full Name: Judith Love Cohen (also known as Judith Love Siegel Black Katz)
  • Date of Birth: August 16, 1933
  • Place of Birth: Brooklyn, New York, United States
  • Date of Death: July 25, 2016
  • Age at Death: 82 years old
  • Cause of Death: Short battle with cancer
  • Education:
    • Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering (B.S. EE) from the University of Southern California (USC), 1957
    • Master of Science in Electrical Engineering (M.S. EE) from the University of Southern California (USC), 1962
  • Spouses: Thomas William Black (Jack Black's father), and others.
  • Children:
    • Neil Siegel (USC Professor, IBM Professor of Engineering Management)
    • Jack Black (Thomas Jacob Black, Actor, Musician)
  • Notable Careers: Aerospace Engineer, Author, Publisher, Dancer
  • Key Professional Contributions: Minuteman Missile, Apollo Program (Abort-Guidance System), Apollo-Soyuz Test Program, Space Shuttle Program.

The Engineer Who Delivered a Son and Saved a Mission

Judith Love Cohen's most famous professional achievement is inextricably linked to the birth of her most famous son, Jack Black. The story is a powerful illustration of her dedication and the groundbreaking nature of her work in a male-dominated field.

Designing the Critical Abort-Guidance System (AGS)

Cohen was an electrical engineer working on the Apollo Space Program, a pivotal figure in the development of the Abort-Guidance System (AGS) for the Lunar Module. The AGS was essentially the backup navigational computer designed to guide the Lunar Module back to Earth in the event of a catastrophic failure in the primary guidance system.

The system was designed for the Apollo 11 mission, but its true moment of glory came during the Apollo 13 mission in April 1970. When an oxygen tank exploded, crippling the main command module, the three astronauts—Jim Lovell, Jack Swigert, and Fred Haise—were forced to use the Lunar Module as a "lifeboat."

A Life-Saving Delivery on Two Fronts

The legendary story of her commitment recounts that on the day Jack Black was born in August 1969, Cohen was at her office working on a critical problem for the AGS. She reportedly took a printout of the engineering problem with her to the hospital. While in labor, she called her colleagues with the solution. She then delivered her son, Thomas Jacob Black, and immediately returned to the office the next day to hand in the final solution.

This dedication paid off less than a year later. When the Apollo 13 disaster struck, it was the AGS—the system Cohen had worked on during her son's birth—that was crucial to calculating the trajectory and burn times needed to safely guide the crippled craft and its crew back to Earth. Her work directly contributed to the "successful failure" that saved the lives of the Apollo 13 astronauts.

From Ballerina to Barrier-Breaker: A Woman of Many Talents

Judith Love Cohen’s life was far from the stereotype of a quiet engineer. Her background and later-life pursuits highlight a dynamic personality committed to both the arts and science, making her an incredible role model for women in STEM.

A Dancer on the World Stage

Before dedicating herself fully to engineering, Cohen was an accomplished dancer. In her youth, she was a dancer in the Corps de Ballet of the New York Metropolitan Opera Ballet Company. This early career in a demanding art form underscores the multifaceted nature of her intellect and her ability to excel in completely different disciplines.

Advocacy Through Children’s Literature

After her engineering career, Cohen co-founded a publishing company and became a prolific author. She recognized the significant lack of female role models in science and technology for young girls. To address this, she created the popular "You Can Be a Woman..." series of children's books, which featured real-life women in various STEM and non-traditional careers. Titles in the series include:

  • *You Can Be a Woman Engineer*
  • *You Can Be a Woman Astronomer* (featuring Andrea Mia Ghez)
  • *You Can Be a Woman Paleontologist*
  • *You Can Be a Woman Chemist*
  • *You Can Be a Woman Architect*

Her books were a direct extension of her life's mission: to inspire the next generation of girls to pursue their dreams in science, engineering, and any field they chose, regardless of traditional gender roles.

The Black Family Legacy: The Engineer and The Entertainer

The contrasting careers of Judith Love Cohen and her son, Jack Black, offer a fascinating look at the family's legacy. While one engineered systems to explore space, the other engineered laughter and entertainment for millions.

Jack Black has often spoken about his mother's incredible achievements, acknowledging her as a true trailblazer. He was born Thomas Jacob Black in August 1969, just a month after the Apollo 11 moon landing and during the height of his mother's work on the Apollo program. His father, Thomas William Black, was also an engineer who worked alongside Judith, creating a household rooted in science and intellectual rigor.

Judith Love Cohen’s first son, Neil Siegel, followed in her footsteps, becoming a distinguished engineer and a professor at USC. This duality—one son becoming a prominent academic and engineer, the other a global comedic star—speaks volumes about the diverse and supportive environment she created for her children. Her life serves as a powerful reminder that behind many famous figures are often even more extraordinary, unsung heroes whose contributions shaped the world in profound ways.

Her passing in 2016 from cancer marked the end of an era, but her story, particularly her role in the Apollo 13 mission, has been consistently rediscovered and celebrated in recent years, cementing her status as a true legend of engineering and women's advocacy.

5 Shocking Facts About Jack Black's Mom: The Aerospace Engineer Who Saved Apollo 13
jack black's mom
jack black's mom

Detail Author:

  • Name : Dr. Johanna Bode
  • Username : mathew.prosacco
  • Email : orrin.buckridge@gmail.com
  • Birthdate : 1973-12-27
  • Address : 94293 Donnelly Neck New Floyport, MO 32395-6700
  • Phone : 1-804-507-2256
  • Company : Gulgowski Ltd
  • Job : Stock Broker
  • Bio : Iure esse quia libero facere omnis dolorem. Omnis libero dolor veritatis accusantium aut pariatur sed. Soluta maiores sed neque voluptas sit sed. Iure nam rerum quia quas veritatis voluptatem.

Socials

facebook:

instagram:

linkedin:

twitter:

  • url : https://twitter.com/beer2010
  • username : beer2010
  • bio : Cumque officia labore asperiores. Eum illum repellendus ipsum atque officiis quidem amet atque. Id sed consequatur cupiditate at.
  • followers : 131
  • following : 166

Random Posts