This mini-series is a documentary that chronicles the NASA space program from its inception up through the final moon mission of Apollo 17 with historical, archived NASA film footage.This mini-series is a documentary that chronicles the NASA space program from its inception up through the final moon mission of Apollo 17 with historical, archived NASA film footage.This mini-series is a documentary that chronicles the NASA space program from its inception up through the final moon mission of Apollo 17 with historical, archived NASA film footage.
- Nominated for 2 Primetime Emmys
- 1 win & 2 nominations total
Photos
Barry Corbin
- Narrator
- (voice)
- …
Eugene Cernan
- Self - Astronaut
- (as Gene Cernan)
Charles Conrad
- Self - Astronaut Candidate
- (as Pete Conrad)
William K. Douglas
- Self - Astronaut Doctor
- (voice)
- (as Bill Douglas)
Richard Gordon
- Self - Astronaut
- (voice)
- (as Dick Gordon)
Gus Grissom
- Self - Astronaut
- (archive footage)
Christopher Kraft
- Self - Flight Director
- (voice)
- (as Chris Kraft)
Gene Kranz
- Self - Flight Director
- (as Gene Krantz)
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaDedicated to Deke Slayton who passed away from cancer a few months before the release of this miniseries.
Featured review
Really REALLY Good NASA Space Program "Documentary"
I always wanted to be an astronaut when I was a kid. Neil Armstrong was my hero, Gus Grissom and Alan Shepard too. This TBS production is a very "viewer friendly" trip down history lane starting from the beginning of the astronaut selection for the Mercury program through the Apollo-Soyuz test flight. As told by Deke Slayton, it's easy to understand, doesn't waste the viewer's time with a lot of heady details, puts all due influence on our Cold War competition with the Russians (the astronauts were all soldiers, and the Apollo program was at first an effort to show we could put soldiers with a payload -- re: weapons systems -- on the moon), and has it told by the astronauts themselves: Wally Schirra, Alan Shepard, Buzz Aldrin, Scott Carpenter, ground crew people like Chris Kraft.
Do kids these days even know who these people were? Do they understand that we really did shoot people into space in little tin cans with no bathrooms or kitchenettes? Do they understand that these cold warriors were "men", who had egos and wives and drank and got into trouble and made history? People died, too, both on the Soviet side and our boys, and the special very soberly gives attention to all of that while being genuinely amusing at times, mixing period era authentic NASA test footage with the astronauts reminiscing about how ALL OF THIS WAS REAL.
One thing does kind of work against it and that's the overly "down home" narration by Barry Corbin. Yes, Deke Slayton had a bit of a cornpone accept, but after a while it strikes you as having been laid on a bit too thick, along with the comedic music and pratfalls. It's when the presentation sharpens up and gets down to telling you what it was like to be an astronaut candidate that it all comes together. They were competitive, somewhat egotistical and "cocksure" fighter jocks, and one of the interesting points that the film does a good job in getting across is that in 1966 or whatever, not everybody could be an astronaut. Today sure, but only because of the pioneering work these men undertook.
Highly recommended and suitable for all ages & audiences, anybody will be entertained and just like Cosby used to say if you aren't careful you just may learn a few things too.
Do kids these days even know who these people were? Do they understand that we really did shoot people into space in little tin cans with no bathrooms or kitchenettes? Do they understand that these cold warriors were "men", who had egos and wives and drank and got into trouble and made history? People died, too, both on the Soviet side and our boys, and the special very soberly gives attention to all of that while being genuinely amusing at times, mixing period era authentic NASA test footage with the astronauts reminiscing about how ALL OF THIS WAS REAL.
One thing does kind of work against it and that's the overly "down home" narration by Barry Corbin. Yes, Deke Slayton had a bit of a cornpone accept, but after a while it strikes you as having been laid on a bit too thick, along with the comedic music and pratfalls. It's when the presentation sharpens up and gets down to telling you what it was like to be an astronaut candidate that it all comes together. They were competitive, somewhat egotistical and "cocksure" fighter jocks, and one of the interesting points that the film does a good job in getting across is that in 1966 or whatever, not everybody could be an astronaut. Today sure, but only because of the pioneering work these men undertook.
Highly recommended and suitable for all ages & audiences, anybody will be entertained and just like Cosby used to say if you aren't careful you just may learn a few things too.
- Steve_Nyland
- Apr 20, 2008
- Permalink
Details
- Runtime3 hours 8 minutes
- Color
- Sound mix
- Aspect ratio
- 1.33 : 1
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