2009 is the 40th anniversary of the first Apollo Lunar Landing and in celebration I’ve been immersing myself in all things Apollo: Michael Collins’ book “Carrying the Fire”, the HBO special “From the Earth to the Moon” and Ron Howard’s movie “In the Shadow of the Moon”. One of the best pieces I uncovered was Pete Conrad’s first words as he descended onto the surface of the moon – “Whoopee!” We all know what Neil Armstrong said “That’s one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind.” Apollo 12 arrived next, and as the world awaited what astronaut Conrad would say, we got a great dose of his sense of fun and humor. Wikipedia says “He described himself as the first man to dance on the moon.” They say that particular crew of three, Pete Conrad, Al Bean and Dick Gordon, bonded the most of any crew that flew together in space. They even drove matching gold Corvettes. Laughter bonds, even in space. It’s a beautiful thing.
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