UPDATE 11/1/2012: I recently finished reading Armstrong's ONLY authorized biography, written in 2005 by James R. Hansen entitled "First Man: the Life of Neil A. Armstrong" (some details: Simon & Schuster, NY, NY, 2005, Illustrated with diagrams & photos, 7x10 inches, 769 pages). Overall, I'm happy to have read the book, but it was just an above average effort. Much of the book I found to be boring because, frankly, Armstrong was a fairly boring person (if you can believe that) who led an amazing life of accomplishment. He was so focused throughout his entire life on his engineering and piloting, and on his personal privacy, that among the Apollo astronauts, he was probably the only real one with a snoozer of a personality. I'm not saying that to be unkind, because he epitomizes the definition of a great American. He was humble, focused, and not out for his slice of fame, though it was right at his fingertips throughout his entire adult life.
The highlights of the book are the same as the highlights of his career accomplishments: numerous X-15 experimental aircraft flights out of Edwards Air Force Base, 78 successful fighter combat missions in the Korean War, and of course, being the first man to set foot on the moon. Shortly after his successful Moon walk, he worked for NASA for another year or so, then hid out as an engineering professor at his alma mater, Purdue University for about 10 years. After that, he became a spokesperson for Chrysler Corporation (nobody seems to remember that!), and lived a quiet lifestyle out of the public eye.
I'm sure there are better book reviews of "First Man" out there than mine, but I think you will most enjoy the Apollo years, which of course gets the most pages of attention - as it should. Given the importance of Armstrong's achievements, I recommend this book, though not highly. Should you only want to read one "Moon Book", I much prefer "A Man on the Moon" by Chaiken. I also recommend the 12-part HBO TV miniseries narrated by Tom Hanks that was based on Chaiken's book: From the Earth to the Moon.
UPDATE 8/27/2012: Read this article on Armstrong. I am inspired to add comments on the man that was Neil Armstrong. His family, over the weekend, came out with statements about the life of the first man that walked on the moon. As noted below, Armstrong considered himself to be "just a nerdy engineer" who was just "doing his job". His family's statement said this:
"Neil was a reluctant American hero who always believed he was just doing his job. Honor his example of service, accomplishment and modesty, and the next time you walk outside on a clear night and see the moon smiling down at you, think of Neil Armstrong and give him a wink."
Armstrong epitomized the calm, assured tone that astronauts prized. Mr. Armstrong wrote his authorized biography in 2005. From Wikipedia:
"Armstrong's authorized biography, First Man: The Life of Neil A. Armstrong, was published in 2005. For many years, Armstrong turned down biography offers from authors such as Stephen Ambrose and James A. Michener, but agreed to work with James R. Hansen after reading one of Hansen's other biographies."
I just ordered a used copy of the book at Amazon for $9 including shipping - I look forward to reading it, and adding it to my Apollo / Gemini / Moon Book collection.
ORIGINAL ARTICLE: Well-known, soft-spoken American astronaut Neil Armstrong passed away on Saturday 8/25/2012 at the age of 82. I am a HUGE Apollo and Gemini program follower, having read and watched dozens of books and programs on this amazing era in American accomplishment, and am saddened to be reading in the paper this moring about his passing. Armstrong represented what a determined, hard-working America can accomplish.
Armstrong was a smart and strong man, with many accomplishments beyond being the first human to set foot on the surface of the moon. After receiving fame for his Apollo 11 moon accomplishments, he retreated to quietly and humbly teach and work on his Ohio farm. Before his Apollo fame, he earned an aeronautical engineering bachelor's and master's degree, and flew 78 combat missions for the U. S. Navy in the Korean War in 1949.
His moonwalk on July 20, 1969 capped America's victory in the Cold War Space Race that began on October 4, 1957, with the launch of the Soviet Union's Sputnik 1 Satellite. The end of the Race marked the meeting of Kennedy's audacious deadline set in May 1961 to have an American walk on the moon before the end of the decade (1970) was out - a goal that was met 5 months early with Armstrong's "Giant Leap for Mankind". Another astronaut of Apollo fame, John Glen, spoke of Armstrong's steely nerve when landing the Eagle on the surface of the moon, using all but 15 seconds of fuel when going for a safe landing on the moon. Armstrong calmly transmitted this message that caused the world to rejoice: "Houston, Tranquility Base Here. The Eagle Has Landed".
Armstrong stayed out of the spotlight of celebrity and glamour that followed the Apollo Program Astronauts, but came out in 2010 with concerns that our federal government was shifting attention away from a return to the moon and towards private companies developing spaceships. Apollo inspired a generation of young Americans, yet it seems that our energy and imagination is no longer stirred by the passions of programs like going to the moon. That is a sad testimony to where our country is headed, with massive debt, unending liabilities and no ability to ever fund an Apollo-like program again.
On that day in 1969, America showed the 600 million world-wide viewers that the American spirit can accomplish amazing things - things that seemed impossible a few years before. Fortunately, the Mars Curiosity Rover is inspiring similar, though less intense, feelings among Americans about what we can accomplish when we put our minds to it. We need to put our eager, enthusiastic, bright Americans to work on programs like Apollo. Tom Hanks said it best with his Letter to Congress in 1995. We'll see what happens next.
My favorite Apollo reading is the book "A Man on the Moon" by Andrew Chaikin that was later turned into a 12-part HBO Special "From the Earth to the Moon" narrated by Tom Hanks. I urge you to honor Neil Armstrong and the accomplishments of that generation, and look it up, and read the books or watch the series.
Another Apollo favorite of mine is the 1995 movie "Apollo 13" starring Tom Hanks and Kevin Bacon. Apollo 13 takes us on a wild ride of a moon mission when the lunar landing was aborted after an oxygen tank exploded, crippling the service module. The daring of our American engineers and control center staff turned our saddest tragedy into our greatest moment. Despite great hardship caused by limited power, loss of cabin heat, shortage of potable water, and the critical need to jury-rig the carbon dioxide removal system, the crew returned safely to Earth on April 17.
When I worked at TRW in the 1980's, we still had aeronautical engineers working there that were called in to work when things went so wrong on Apollo 13. They told the stories of checking their software and hardware developed for the Apollo Program, and coordinating rescue saving knowledge to Flight Control. I was honored to have known and worked with these people for the short time that I did.
American legend Neil Armstrong - thank-you for your strength and resolve, and being part of an incredible team that accomplished incredible things, and made us proud to be Americans.
