American Experience PBS Chasing the Moon

[Patty Haley]

Starting tonight, and I know this is late, there is a three part show about the quest to land on the moon. Check your local PBS schedule online for scheduling. Here.in San Diego the first part is tonight Monday. Then Tuesday and Wednesday night. It starts at 9 pm. PBS also has repeats of each part through this month. Where were you when you when watching Neil Armstrong take that first step? I was at home watching it on my 12 inch black and white TV in my room, and with my family and our neighbors the Waldhousers.

[Mase Taylor]

I was in the barracks on Ton Son Nhut drinking Johnny Walker Black with my buddy Harry Darner.

[A. Niemyer]

Standing in the kitchen of the Hotel Del Coronado, watching a small B&W TV set up in the Chef’s office and turned to face out towards the rest of the kitchen so the staff could watch.

[John O'Shaughnessy [FCM]]

I was in our basement. Mom was doing ironing, and we were both watching the console black and white TV with a mess of tubes in the back. Adjusting the rabbit ears for the best reception. I had a plastic model of the LM and CM too, not too mention the whole Saturn V. I was 5 years old.

[Bill Bridges]

I was in Ranger school at Ft. Benning. Didn't know it was happening.

[Ralph Jones]

I was in Ranger school at Ft. Benning. Didn't know it was happening.

You mean they have a tight class schedule (VBG)?

[Bill Bridges]

You mean they have a tight class schedule (VBG)?

We weren't doin' weekends and holidays. ROFL

[Dave Siciliano]

July 20, 1969 I was out at an A Camp on the Cambodian border called Tra Cu. Have no idea what I did that day, but shortly after that we encountered a North Vietnamese reinforced anti aircraft company and lost about half of the Americans on our team (the 29th actually.) I saw it replayed later but don't recall being able to watch at the time.

[Russell Holton]

I was at home watching it on our 25" "new" color TV - a Heathkit my dad built. (The last of the tube models).

I also had a plastic model of the LM. I think it was an incentive for signing up for a subscription of science "booklets".

[Jeff Hartmann]

I was at home watching it on our 25" "new" color TV - a Heathkit my dad built. (The last of the tube models).

I also had a plastic model of the LM. I think it was an incentive for signing up for a subscription of science "booklets".

My little brother built ours when he was 16... It was great TV , Lasted for years.

[Ralph Jones]

I was at home watching it on our 25" "new" color TV - a Heathkit my dad built. (The last of the tube models).

Me too, 'cept I was the builder. Spent a lot of time keeping that thing converged...only got hit by the big capacitor once.
Remember tube testers at 7-11?

[Bill Bridges]

Me too, 'cept I was the builder. Spent a lot of time keeping that thing converged...only got hit by the big capacitor once.
Remember tube testers at 7-11?

I do remember tube testers at 7-11. Spent a lot of time down there trying to keep my stereo running.

[Russell Holton]

Remember tube testers at 7-11?

I remember seeing them in stores, but I don't think 7-11 made it to my neck of the woods back then.

But then, with my dad around, I didn't need them. We had our own tester - military surplus. <BG> I think it was a TV-3.

The Heathkit TV did well and lasted many years. The one disappointment is they got the wired remote control. The plastic gears that drove the tuner stripped out pretty quick and so it became pointless. As the youngest, I became the designated channel changer. Of course, there was only 3 channels. 4 if you count PBS.

[Terry Carraway]

I don't recall, but probably at home watching.

I had the Revel model of the complete Command Module, Service Module, and Lunar Lander. The Lunar lander sat on a base plate that was the surface of the moon.

Over the years, I had built plastic models of the Redstone/Mercury, and Atlas/Mercury, and Gemini capsule. I had flying model rockets of the V-2, Titan/Gemini, and Saturn 1B.

One of the cool things was, a group of us visited Kennedy Space Center and did the Then and Now Tour. Included the Redstone pad, where the Atlas pad had been (nothing left), the Saturn 1B pad and Saturn 5 pad. The control booth is still standing at the Redstone pad, and it was amazing 1) how small it is, and 2) how close to the pad it is.

[John O'Shaughnessy [FCM]]

Oh yes, I remember taking tubes to the local drugstore for testing. Can you imagine kids replacing tubes in the back of TVs near AC power today???