At 04:13:24:48 elapsed time into the mission of Apollo 11, which in the United States was a few seconds before 10:57 p.m. EDT on Sunday, July 20, 1969, Neil Armstrong took his historic first step onto the lunar surface. He then spoke his eternally famous first words. What the world heard, a quarter of a million miles through space, was “That’s one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind.”1
No one knew what Armstrong would say when he stepped onto the lunar surface, not even his crewmates. Buzz Aldrin recalled: “On the way to the Moon, Mike and I had asked Neil what he was going to say when he stepped out on the Moon. He replied that he was still thinking it over.”2
To the end of his life, Armstrong maintained that he did not compose what he would say until sometime after he and Buzz successfully executed the landing of their lunar module, Eagle, onto the Sea of Tranquility, which had occurred some six and a half hours earlier, at 4:17:39 p.m. EDT. As Neil explained: “Once on the surface and realizing that the moment was at hand, fortunately I had some hours to think about it after getting there. My own view was that it was a very simplistic statement: what can you say when you step off of something? Well, something about a step. It just sort of evolved during the period that I was doing the procedures of the practice takeoff and the EVA prep and all the other activities that were on our flight schedule at that time. I didn’t think it was particularly important, but other people obviously did. Even so, I have never thought that I picked a particularly enlightening statement.”3
Many people had had ideas for what Armstrong should say when he stepped out onto the Sea of Tranquility—and several of them shared them with him. One to do so who had some official authority over NASA was Willis Shapley, the associate deputy administrator at NASA Headquarters. On April 19, 1969, by which time it was growing increasingly clear that a Moon landing would be attempted in the early summer, Shapley sent a memorandum to Dr. George Mueller, head of the Office of Manned Space Flight. It was a three-page memo entitled “Symbolic Items for the First Lunar Landing,” and in it Shapley addressed point-by-point what sorts of items should be left on the Moon by the Apollo Moon landing crew as well as what commemorative articles should be taken to the lunar surface, which ones should be left there, and which ones should be returned. Early in the memo, in discussing what sort of bigger message the Moon landing should present to the world, Shapley wrote: “The intended overall impression of the symbolic activities and of the manner in which they are presented to the world should be to signalize the first lunar landing as an historic step forward for all mankind that has been accomplished by the United States of America…. The ‘forward step for all mankind’ aspect of the landing should be symbolized primarily by a suitable inscription to be left on the Moon and by statements made on Earth … and also perhaps by leaving on the Moon miniature flags of all nations.” Dr. Mueller passed Shapley’s memo on to Deke Slayton, the chief of the astronaut office (and one of the original Mercury astronauts), who shared it with Armstrong.4 Thus came the conjecture that the seed for the idea for Neil’s expression of his “one small step” was planted by the Shapley memo.
But Armstrong never had any recall of the memo—none. As hauntingly similar as the phrase “forward step for all mankind” might seem to be to us, Neil did not remember getting a copy of it or ever hearing anything about it. It seems to be an example—like CBS news anchor Walter Cronkite’s comment on television the morning of the Apollo 11 landing about taking “a giant leap”—of a similar statement having been made independently of the thought process behind Armstrong’s own words. As Neil would explain over the years: “My guess is that you can take almost any statement, and if you look around for a while, you can find other statements that were made similarly by other people.” In Neil’s mind, there was never any particular context for the genesis of his phrase and he did not connect it to any other quotation or experience. “Not that I know of or can recall,” Neil would say. “But you never know subliminally in your brain where things come from. But it certainly wasn’t conscious. When an idea runs for the first time through your own mind, it comes out as an original thought.”5
Nor was Neil aware of the article “Le Mot Juste for the Moon” (“The Right Word for the Moon”) by journalist William H. Honan, culture editor at the New York Times, published in the July 1, 1969, issue of Esquire magazine. Honan’s article began with this extraordinary appeal to Neil Armstrong: “We, the human race, hereby request that the first man on the moon, destined to speak on our behalf, pause for a moment and give some consideration to what he intends to say.”6 Honan then offered to Neil “Fifty Helpful Hints,” some serious, some in jest, that he had solicited from diverse notable individuals, including the following:
Hubert H. Humphrey, former vice president of the United States: “May the conflicts and troubles of man never find a home here. May the moon be a symbol of peace and cooperation among the nations of earth.”
William Bernbach, chairman of the board of the international advertising agency Doyle Dane Bernbach: “This neighborhood is never going to be the same.”
James Whittaker, the first American to climb Mount Everest: “Now how the hell do we get back?”
Sun Ra, space-age jazz poet: “Reality has touched against myth / Humanity can move to achieve the impossible / Because when you’ve achieved one impossible the others / Come together to be with their brother, the first impossible / Borrowed from the rim of the myth.”
Keir Dullea, the actor who played Major Tom in the 1968 Stanley Kubrick film 2001: A Space Odyssey: “I shall never lose the awe of being the first man to stand on a given spot where no man had ever trod before.”
Lawrence Ferlinghetti, San Francisco beat poet: “We Roman emperors of space have hereby proved that heaven doesn’t exist and that the only god is consciousness itself.”
Marianne Moore, American modernist poet: “Just got here and I have to look around.”
Leonard Nimoy, actor who played Spock in the television series Star Trek: “I’d say to earth, from here you are a peaceful, beautiful ball and I only wish everyone could see it with that perspective and unity.”
E. H. Munn Sr., chairman of the executive committee of the Prohibition National Committee: “Be assured, people of earth, we shall not corrupt the moon with beverage alcohol, with tobacco’s poisons or with other of man’s unfortunate concoctions. Rather, we shall keep this area of God’s universe pure and free from the ugliness and the devastation of the sinful excesses of humankind.”
Robert Graves, British poet, historical novelist, critic, and classicist: “Forgive the intrusion, Ma’am” (a tactful propitiation of the Moon Goddess).”
Harold O’Neill, president of the American Sunbathing Association: “I proclaim this a wonderful spot where the bare facts of life shall not be loused up with earthly convention. Moonlife shall be sans clothing, thus eliminating the need for vacation wardrobes … an important weight factor when considering space travel.”
New York poet Stanley Kunitz: “Earth was my home, but even there I was a stranger. This mineral crust. I walk like a swimmer. What titanic bombardments in those old astral wars! I know what I know: I shall never escape from strangeness or complete my journey. Think of me as nostalgic, afraid, exalted. I am your man on the moon, a speck of megalomania, restless for the leap towards island universes pulsing beyond where the constellations set. Infinite space overwhelms the human heart, but in the middle of nowhere life inexorably calls to life. Forward my mail to Mars. What news from the Great Spiral Nebula in Andromeda and the Magellanic Clouds?”
U.S. senator George McGovern: “I raise the flag of the United Nations to claim this planet for all mankind and to signal a new era of understanding and cooperation among nations—both on the Moon and on Earth.”
William Safire, speechwriter for President Nixon: “Free at last.”
Isaac Asimov, American writer of science fiction and popular science: “Goddard, we are here! (A salute to American rocket pioneer Robert Hutchings Goddard, 1882–1945)
Dr. Timothy Leary, American psychologist, anti-war activist, and writer known for advocating the exploration of the therapeutic potential of psychedelic drugs: “The C.I.A. really blew it again. How did all those barefoot, long-haired, smiling-eyed kids get up here ahead of us?”
Heavyweight champion boxer Muhammad Ali: “Bring me back a challenger, ’cause I’ve defeated everyone here on earth.”
Entertainer Bob Hope: “1) Well, at least I didn’t end up in Havana, 2) My God, smog!, 3) I’ll be darned, it’s made of cheese!”
Brother Antoninus (aka William “Bill” Everson), an American poet of the San Francisco Renaissance: “Bone cold. An immense Golgotha. Out of this tomb, what resurrection? Out of this dust, what weird rebirth?”
Joseph Heller, author of the satiric anti-war novel Catch 22: “I’d like to hear nothing; the chances are I won’t be listening. I’m more interested in what Joe Namath or George Sauer has to say about anything, and I hope the moon landing doesn’t take place during a Jets football game and interrupt the telecast. One of my favorite statements of recent times, in fact, came from George Sauer. He was talking about a Baltimore player with a crew cut, and he said: ‘He ought to let his hair grow, he looks funny that way.’ I doubt if anything said about the moon landing will make more sense.” (Joe Namath was the star quarterback of the New York Jets and George Sauer Jr. was the wide receiver on 1968 Jets team that upset the Baltimore Colts in the 1968 Super Bowl played on January 12, 1969. Both Namath and Sauer wore their hair stylishly long.)
Entertainer Tiny Tim (aka Herbert Buckingham Khaury), an eccentric American singer and ukulele player best known for his song “Tiptoe through the Tulips”: “The first thing I would like to hear him say is ‘Praise the Lord through Christ that we landed well and safely.’ Then I’d like him to describe the moon, and how it looks and feels, what the craters are like, whether there are any cities around, if there’s any air to breathe. I think there are definitely beings on the moon. They will probably be very different from us, but the astronauts should be prepared to show them goodwill of the people of Earth. Things like candies, balloons, bubble pipes, soap bars, pens, pencils, plants, even a ukulele, and, most important, the Holy Scriptures, so we can give our new acquaintances some idea of what life is like down here. I really believe life exists on every planet, even the suns, and before we go visiting other worlds, we should be sure we are ready to make the people we find waiting there our friends.” (Interestingly, upon the safe return of Apollo 11 to Earth, Armstrong, in the lunar quarantine facility would play a ukulele, though there is no evidence to connect it with anything to do with Tiny Tim. It would be interesting to know if Neil played “Tiptoe through the Tulips” for his crewmates in the LQF, Aldrin and Collins, as the silly little song [actually composed in 1929] rose to as high as #17 on the popular music charts in 1968.)
Author Truman Capote, best known for his 1966 bestselling book In Cold Blood: “If I were the first astronaut on the moon my first remark would be: So far so good.”
U.S. Supreme Court Justice William O. Douglas: “I pledge that we the people of the earth will not litter, pollute and despoil the moon as we have our own planet.”
Theodore Weiss, American poet: “Moon that we have for thousands of years looked up to, now help us to see the earth in its true light, as whole and one.”
New York congressman Ed Koch: “I proclaim the moon an international scientific laboratory, for all men of all nations to use peacefully in their quest for a deeper understanding of the many worlds which are theirs.”
Gwendolyn Brooks, Pulitzer Prize–winning poet: “Here there shall be peace and love.”
David Slavitt, American writer, poet, and film critic: “We have realized an ancient dream, and it is rock and dust; now we must look back to earth, imagine what it ought to be, and hope that dream turns out better.”
American economist John Kenneth Galbraith: “We will hafta pave the damn thing.”
Marshall McLuhan, Canadian professor, philosopher, and public intellectual whose work set one of the cornerstones of the study of media theory, known for coining the expression “the medium is the message” and the term “global village”: “The thickest mud that was ever heard dumped.”
Hollywood actor Sal Mineo: “Oh, hi!”
Russian American writer and philosopher Ayn Rand: “What hath man wrought?”
Norman Cousins, American political journalist, author, and world peace advocate: “Actually, I would hope he might feel the occasion called for a moment or two of quiet, perhaps even meditation.”
Russell Baker, Pulitzer Prize–winning American writer known for his satirical commentary and self-critical prose: “I hereby declare this moon open for pollution.”
R. Buckminster Fuller, American architect, systems theorist, inventor, and futurist who coined the term “Spaceship Earth”: “Wish you were here.”
United Nations secretary general U Thant: “I would like the first astronaut to land on the moon to remind us again that we are all brothers, so that we may all have a new sense of perspective to enable us, in the language of the Charter of the United Nations, to practice tolerance and live together in peace with another as good neighbors.”
W. H. Auden, Anglo-American poet: “I’ve never done this before!”
Father Malcolm Boyd, Episcopal priest and author of Are You Running With Me Jesus?: “I baptize thee in the name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Ghost. Amen. All right, you guys, whoever you are standing behind the rock over there, come out with your hands up!”
The correspondence that follows comprises mostly telegrams sent to Neil in the weeks immediately preceding the launch of Apollo 11 on July 16, 1969, many offering suggestions for what he should say when he first steps onto the Moon. A major theme of these suggestions is that he should say something spiritual or even quote scripture. In fact, as a multitude of letters in the Armstrong Collection at Purdue University attest, Neil would receive a great many letters over the years concerning God and the possible religious meaning of landing on the Moon and of space exploration generally. However, he would respond to virtually nothing that came to him concerning religion—any religion. Though his mother, Viola Engel Armstrong (1907–1990), was a devout evangelical Christian (a member of the Reformed Church in America), Neil was a deist, a person whose belief in God was founded on reason rather than on revelation, and on an understanding of God’s natural laws rather than on the authority of any particular creed or church doctrine. Similar to many other deists (famous deists of the Enlightenment include Englishman John Locke, Scotsman David Hume, and a number of founding fathers of the United States, notably James Madison, Alexander Hamilton, and Thomas Jefferson), Neil, a highly private man, kept his views on God to himself and did not care to hear the religious views of others.
“EVERYONE HAS BEEN TRYING TO GIVE
YOU THE FIRST WORDS”
June 21, 1969
Dear Col. Armstrong:
I see in Esquire that everyone has been trying to give you the first words to be spoken on the moon. How about these un-Cernan-like suggestions?
“I’ve taken Man’s first step into the Universe, and the ground is solid.” (Or squashy, but firm, as the case may be.)
“God has allowed us to take Man’s first steps into the Universe. We are humble and grateful.”
I dedicate the enclosed recent article of mine to you, and I dare believe you will find these words as succinct, prophetic and perhaps eloquent as any that will be written later about your destined deed.
If you want, I’ll frame these two pages for your wall, and deliver it to you.”
Sincerely,
Thomas Sweeney
Wheeling, West Virginia
The letter writer seems to have been Thomas B. Sweeney Jr. (1903–1973), a Republican politician from Wheeling, West Virginia, whose grandfather Thomas Sweeney was a prominent early industrialist (glassmaker) in Wheeling and served in both houses of the Virginia General Assembly as a Whig. This Thomas Sweeney was a member of the West Virginia Senate 1st District (1939–1942) and at various times also a candidate for West Virginia House of Delegates, U.S. senator from West Virginia, and U.S. representative from West Virginia. He was also a delegate to the Republican National Convention from West Virginia in 1948 and 1960. Mr. Sweeney’s reference to “Cernan” is to astronaut Eugene Cernan, who, prior to the date of this letter, had served as pilot for Gemini 9 (June 1966) and as lunar module pilot for Apollo 10 (May 1969). Mr. Sweeney’s mention of “un-Cernan-like suggestions” refers to a colorfully worded comment by Cernan during an unexpected tumble in the Apollo 10 lunar module during a maneuver in preparation for rendezvous and docking with the command module. While still on a hot mike, with the world listening, Cernan blurted out, “Son of bitch, what the hell happened?”
“CARRY A SUPPLY OF ROCKET POPCORN SEED”
Western Union Telegram
To: “Commander, Neil A. Armstrong, Astronaut”
Received NASA Kennedy Space Center Communication Center
July 1, 1969, 8:14 A.M. CDT
Sent from Murray, Kentucky
MR. ARMSTRONG, WE RESPECTFULLY REQUEST THAT APOLLO 11 CARRY A SUPPLY OF ROCKET POPCORN SEED FOR PLANTING ON THE MOON. ROCKET POPCORN HAS BEEN ON THE MARKET FOR OVER 20 YEARS AS WE LONG AGO ANTICIPATED THE MOON LANDIN. WE MUST BE FIRST ON THE MOON WITH THE ALL-AMERICAN PRODUCT POPCORN WHICH HAS TREMENDOUS FOOD ENERGY VALUE AND WILL GLADLY SUPPLY THE ROCKET POPCORN SEED FOR PLANTING. ALSO A YEARS SUPPLY OF ROCKET POPCORN FOR POPPING FOR ANY ASTRONAUT WHO DECIDES TO STAY ON THE MOON. WE HAVE WIRED PRESIDENT NIXON FOR HIS APPROVAL AND YOUR CONSIDERATION WILL BE GREATLY APPRECIATED.
MOST RESPECTFULLY
ED CHRISMAN
CHRISMAN POPCORN CO
MURRAY KY
“ANNOUNCE ALL UNITS IN THE
INTERNATIONAL SYSTEM (METRIC)”
Western Union Telegram
To: “Neil A. Armstrong, Commander, Apollo 11”
Received NASA Kennedy Space Center Communication Center
July 1, 1969, 2:40 P.M. CDT
Sent from Hattiesburg, Mississippi
TWO THOUSAND STUDENTS AT THE UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN MISSISSIPPI PLEAD WITH YOU TO ANNOUNCE ALL UNITS IN THE INTERNATIONAL SYSTEM (METRIC)
JOHN M FLOWERS
ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR
UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN MISSISSIPPI
HATTIESBURG MS
“I BEG YOU NOT TO GO”
July 8, 1969
Astronaut Neil Armstrong
c/o NASA
Houston, Texas 77001
Dear Commander Armstrong:
I am writing this letter hoping you will give it more consideration than would be expected. I am a 12 year old girl living in a small town of 8,200. I know you must be a brilliant man and your intelligence and position leaves me feeling quite insignificant. However, after considering all this I am compelled to write to you anyway.
The night of June 11, 1969 I had a very disturbing dream. It had such an impact upon me every time I start to tell it I cannot hold back the tears. The dream was so forceful it woke me out of my sleep. Then I prayed and asked God to show me if it was Him. He then proved to me it was by making his picture glow in the dark and giving me another dream which came true. I am a born again Christian and have experienced God’s transforming power in my life. This is why I am willing to do what He tells me and knew He is concerned about you and Aldrin and Collins.
In the dream I was told to tell you not to go on the flight. God showed me it would have an effect upon the whole world. Even though I don’t know you at all, I beg you not to go. Mr. Armstrong, please don’t go for your sake, the world, and the other two.
If you will give the enclosed copies of this letter to Aldrin and Collins, I would be very grateful. Thank you.
Praying for you,
Georgia Teal
c/o Vealton Teal
Burley, Idaho
“THANK GOD PUBLICALLY”
Western Union Telegram
To: “Astronaut Neil Armstrong”
Received NASA Kennedy Space Center Communication Center
July 9, 1969, 1:39 P.M. EDT
Sent from Cincinnati, Ohio
PLEASE ACKNOWLEDGE AND THANK GOD PUBLICALLY WHEN YOU LAND ON THE MOON
MRS JAMES STOUT
CINCINNATI OHIO
“ALWAYS KNEW THERE WAS A MAN ON THE MOON”
Western Union Telegram
To: “Astronaut Neil Armstrong”
Received NASA Kennedy Space Center Communication Center
July 11, 1969, 9:11 A.M. EDT
Sent from Lancaster, California
ALWAYS KNEW THERE WAS A MAN ON THE MOON. UP TO NOW DIDNT KNOW HIS NAME. AT LEAST YOUR SECRETARY CAN KEEP TRACK OF YOU WHICH WAS MORE THAN YOUR FORMER GAL FRIDAY COULD DO. HAPPY LANDING NEIL DEAR AND SAFE RETURN. SHALL BE WATCHING AND LISTENING EVERY MINUTE.
DELLA MAE BOWLING
“SAY A PRAYER FOR HUMANITY”
Western Union Telegram
To: “Apollo 11 Mission Commander Neil Armstrong”
Received NASA Kennedy Space Center Communication Center
July 11, 1969, 5:58 P.M. EDT
Sent from San Francisco, California
ALMIGHTY GOD BLESS YOU AND THE CREW ON YOUR JOURNEY TO THE MOON[.] WHEN ON THE MOON PLEASE SAY A PRAYER FOR HUMANITY
JOHN SHANOVSKOY
ARCHBISHOP OF SAN FRANCISCO AND WESTERN UNITED STATES RUSSIAN ORTHODOX GREEK CATHOLIC CHURCH OF AMERICA
“PLEASE TAKE MEMENTO OF JOHN F KENNEDY”
Western Union Telegram
To: “Astronaut Neil Armstrong”
Received NASA Kennedy Space Center Communications Center
July 11, 1969, 9:11 04 P.M. EDT
Sent from Toledo, Ohio
PLEASE TAKE MEMENTO OF JOHN F KENNEDY TO MOON[.] HE GAVE INITIATIVE TO GO GO GO
MARY KATHY AND ROBERTA STOCKWELL
FELLOW OHIOANS
TOLEDO OH
“WHAT GOD HATH WROUGHT”
Western Union Telegram
To: “Neil Armstrong”
Received NASA Kennedy Space Center Communication Center
July 15, 1969, 7:51 A.M. EDT
Sent from Jackson Heights, New York
SUGGEST FOR WHAT TO SAY WHAT GOD HATH WROUGHT
HARRISON A MOYER
PRESIDENT OF THE SAMARITANS
JACKSON HEIGHTS NY
“KNEEL AND GIVE HIM THANKS”
Western Union Telegram
To: “Astronaut Neil Armstrong”
Received NASA Kennedy Space Center Communication Center
Sent from North Bergen, New Jersey
THE WHOLE WORLD AND GOD WILL BE WATCHING YOU. PLEASE PLEASE AS YOUR FIRST ACT KNEEL AND GIVE HIM THANKS
MR EDWARD SOMICK
NORTH BERGEN NJ
“IT IS THE PILOT’S FIRST DUTY AFTER LANDING”
Western Union Telegram
To: “Neal Armstrong”
Received NASA Kennedy Space Center Communication Center
July 15, 1969, 8:00 A.M. CDT
Sent from San Antonio, Texas
AS A REMINDER UNDER RULE 4.10 IT IS THE PILOTS FIRST DUTY AFTER LANDING AND SECURING HIS AIRCRAFT TO NOTIFY CONTEST HEADQUARTERS GIVING PERTINENT LANDING DATA[.] UNDER RULE 4.11 THE LOCATION OF A LANDING AWAY FROM THE CONTEST SIGHT MUST BE CONFIRMED BY 2 IMPARTIAL WITNESSES[.] IT IS EXPECTED YOU WILL COMPLY WITH THESE REQUIREMENTS. IF SCORING OF YOUR FLIGHT IS TO BE ACCEPTABLE TO SSA USE YOUR CONTEST NUMBER. WE HOPE YOU FIND EACH THERMAL K AT THE DESIRED AND REQUIRED TIME AND PLACE[.] BEST OF LUCK
H. MARSHALL CLAYBOURN
COMPETITIONS DIRECTOR
SOARING SOCIETY OF AMERICA (SSA)
Western Union Telegram
To: “Neil Armstrong”
Received NASA Kennedy Space Center Communication Center
July 15, 1969, 9:05 EDT
Sent from Mysore, State of Karnataka, India
REQUEST READING PSLAMS EIGHT CHAPTER 5 VERSES THREE TO SIX FROM MOON
BOWRON BIBLE CLASS
YADAGIRI
MYSORE
STATE OF KARNATAKA INDIA
“GENESIS IST CHAPTER IST VERSE”
Western Union Telegram
To: “Astronaut Neil Armstrong, Commander of Apollo 11”
Received NASA Kennedy Space Center Communication Center
July 15, 1969, 5:44 P.M. CDT
Sent from Grand Bay, Alabama
MAY I SUGGST THAT WHEY YOU FIRST SET FOOT ON THE MOON TO GIVE GOD CREDIT FOR THE SUCCESSFUL ADVENTURE READING FROM THE BIBLE GENESIS 1ST CHAPTER 1ST VERSE AND ALSO 28TH VERSE[.] THANKS
DEWITT DEES
GRAND BAY ALA
“BRING ALL MEN TOGETHER IN PEACE AND FRIENDSHIP”
Western Union Telegram
To: “Neil Armstrong”
Received NASA Kennedy Space Center Communication Center
July 16, 1969, 6:58 A.M. EDT
Sent from Bowling Green, Ohio
THE LISTENERS OF WSBN RADIO CENTRAL PENN SUGGEST THESE WORDS BE THE FIRST FROM THE MOON QUOTE LET US PROCLAIM THAT WE PEOPLE FROM THE PLANET EARTH SHALL USE THIS MOON AS A LAUNCHING BASE TO BRING ALL MEN TOGETHER IN PEACE AND FRIENDSHIP UNQUOTE BEST OF LUCK
WSBN RADIO
BOWLING GREEN OH
“I CAME I SAW I CONQUERED”
Western Union Telegram
To: “Neil Armstrong”
Received NASA Kennedy Space Center Communication Center
July 16, 1969, 7:15 A.M. EDT
Sent from West Palm Beach, Florida
IF YOU ARE WORRIED ABOUT WHAT TO SAY UPON LANDING OF THE MOON ITS SIMPLE. I CAME I SAW I CONQUERED. BEST OF LUCK TO ALL OF YOU
NANCY PARSONS
WEST PALM BEACH FL
U.S. Government Telegram
To: “Commander Neil Armstrong and Apollo 11 Astronauts”
Received NASA Kennedy Space Center Communication Center
July 16, 1969, 8:17 A.M. EDT
Sent from the White House, Washington, D.C.
ON THE EVE OF YOUR EPIC MISSION, I WANT YOU TO KNOW THAT MY HOPES AND MY PRAYERS—AND THOSE OF ALL AMERICANS—GO WITH YOU. YEARS OF STUDY AND PLANNING AND EXPERIMENT AND HARD WORK ON THE PART OF THOUSANDS HAVE LED TO THIS UNIQUE MOMENT IN THE STORY OF MANKIND; IT IS NOW YOUR MOMENT AND FROM THE DEPTHS OF YOUR MINDS AND HEARTS AND SPIRITS WILL COME THE TRIUMPH ALL MEN WILL SHARE. I LOOK FORWARD TO GREETING YOU ON YOUR RETURN. UNTIL THEN, KNOW THAT ALL THAT IS BEST IN THE SPIRIT OF MANKIND WILL BE WITH YOU DURING YOUR MISSION AND WHEN YOU RETURN TO EARTH.
RICHARD M. NIXON
PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES
“WISHING YOUR COMPLETE SUCCESS”
U.S. Government Telegram
To: “Mr. Neil A. Armstrong”
Received NASA Kennedy Space Center Communication Center
July 16, 1969, 8:49 A.M. EDT
Sent from the Pentagon, Washington, D.C.
PLEASE PASS THE FOLLOWING MESSAGE TO MR. NEIL A. ARMSTRONG IMMEDIATELY PRIOR TO APOLLO 11 LAUNCH.
PERSONAL FOR MR. ARMSTRONG FROM MCCONNELL SECRETARY SEAMANS AND I SPEAK FOR ALL MEMBERS OF THE UNITED STATES AIR FORCE IN WISHING YOUR COMPLETE SUCCESS THROUGHOUT YOUR HISTORY-MAKING MISSION TO THE MOON AND RETURN. YOUR PROGRESS THROUGH ALL THE PHASES OF ARDUOUS PREPARATION FOR THIS FLIGHT IS IN ITSELF A NOTABLE AND PRAISEWORTHY ACHIEVEMENT. IN UNDERTAKING MAN’S FIRST LANDING UPON THE LUNAR SURFACE, YOU WILL EARN STILL FURTHER GRATITUDE AND HONOR FROM OUR NATION AND THE WORLD. GODSPEED.
J.P. MCCONNELL, GENERAL, USAF
CHIEF OF STAFF
“THIS IS A FIRM CONTRACT”
Western Union Telegram
To: “Neil Armstrong”
Received NASA Kennedy Space Center Communication Center
July 18, 1969, 7:54 A.M. EDT
Sent from Las Vegas, Nevada
THIS IS A FIRM CONTRACT OFFER[.] I AM OFFERING 120,000 EACH FOR APPEARANCES AT THE ED SULLIVAN SHOW AND HOLLYWOOD PALACE[.] EACH APPEARANCE WILL LAST TWO MINUTES OR IF YOU DESIRE WE CAN EXTEND THE TIME AS LONG AS YOU WANT[.] I AM THE TALENT SCOUT FOR THE AERIAL ATTRACTIONS FOR THE ED SULLIVAN SHOW ORIGINATING IN NEW YORK AND HOLLYWOOD PALACE HOLLYWOOD CALIF
GOOD LUCK
ALEXANDER DOBRITCH
EXECUTIVE PRODUCER
CIRCUS CIRCUS