01x01 - Red Moon

[bunniefuu]

I believe that this nation should commit itself to achieving the goal before this decade is out of landing a man on the moon and returning him safely to the Earth.

I don't think that we can exaggerate the great advantage which the Soviet Union secured in the '50s by being first in space.

They were able to give prestige to their system.

They were able to give force to their argument that they were an advancing society...

[cheering, applause]

...and that we were on the decline.

[protesters shouting, clamoring]

Our great system will be judged by how we do in the field of space... and therefore this country.

Both political parties have determined that the United States shall be first.

Quite obviously, if we fail, we're humiliated, here and around the world.

[crickets chirping]

-[festive music playing] -[chattering]

[man, in Spanish] Aleida, my dear. Your mamma wants you.

[man speaks Spanish]

[TV anchor, in English] Still no further word on the progress of the spacecraft toward the surface of the moon.

But we believe that it will be touching down any minute now.

The last official report we have said that the landing vehicle was descending toward the surface...

Mama.

[in Spanish] How long do we have to watch this?

Shh.

They just talk, talk, talk...

Aleida. This is special.

You'll remember this the rest of your life.

This is the beginning of the future.

You can be part of that.

Maybe even go to the moon one day.

[man speaks Spanish]

You should be in bed. The doctor says you need rest--

Never mind the doctor.

I want to be here for this.

With her.

So she'll remember.

[TV anchor] ...the spacecraft has landed.

Can we confirm that?

Yes.

They are on the moon, ladies and gentlemen.

Radio and television signals from the moon take less than two seconds to reach us here on Earth.

So if we do get television pictures, they'll be essentially broadcasting live.

That's right.

Live from the moon.

In the United Kingdom, we're told that Queen Elizabeth II was awakened...

[door opens, closes]

...when first reports of the pending moon landing was received.

And in Tokyo, Emperor Hirohito...

Are they down? The radio wasn't sure if they landed or--

They're down. They're down.

There's no video yet, but they're down.

At the Vatican, Pope Paul VI positioned--

[man on radio] One of the most shocking events of my lifetime.

This will shake things up in this country. I'll tell you that right now.

Things will never be the same.

...are little more than guesswork.

But experts have long anticipated a possible viewership of over 500 million people.

Is this really happening?

I'm hearing we're getting a picture.

Is that right? We have a picture?

Sid, can we patch into...

Got it.

Ladies and gentlemen, this is a live signal from the moon.

Having some trouble seeing it.

Uh... There, I see it. There it is.

Amazing.

Just unbelievable.

The shock across the nation at this event.

Indeed, the shock across the world is just indescribable.

What was considered a fantasy just a short time ago is coming true right before our eyes.

[whispering]

I believe we're looking at the legs of the lunar lander.

There at the bottom of your screen is what appears to be a ladder.

No word yet on when someone will be climbing down that ladder, but--

Wait, wait. Here we go.

I see something.

There he is. We have him.

Oh, my goodness. Wow.

Can you believe it?

After thousands of years, ladies and gentlemen, gazing up in the heavens and dreaming of this day, a man is about to set foot on the moon.

[cosmonaut speaking Russian]

Don't know what he's saying, obviously, but we'll get a translation of his words, man's first words from the moon, in just a minute.

Okay, we have the translation now, and these are the words that Cosmonaut Alexei Leonov, the first man to set foot on the moon, spoke just moments ago.

"I take this step for my country, for my people, and for the Marxist-Leninist way of life.

Knowing that today is but one small step on a journey that someday will take us all to the stars."

I'm not sure what to say.

Perhaps there are no words.

So, for now, we'll let you soak in this historic moment... and reflect on what it means for our country... and for the world.

[Richard Nixon] How the hell did this happen?

Those bastards at NASA have been acting like they had everything under control, and then they fumble the ball right at the g*dd*mn goal line.

Right at the goal!

Yes, sir, it sure looks that way.

CIA is working up a review of their intel over the last year to see if they missed any signs of Soviet advances that--

[Nixon] They missed the whole g*dd*mn thing!

The whole match!

You know how the press is gonna play this, don't you?

The New York Times is going to say that Kennedy started the moon race, Johnson ran it, and then Nixon tripped at the goal line.

That's what it's gonna be.

They're gonna try and hang this around my neck, but they're not gonna succeed.

No, sir.

I'll tell you that right g*dd*mn now.

Not Nixon.

Shane, let's go. Shake a leg. Bus is almost here.

[footsteps approaching]

-Last day of school? -Next week.

One more week to go, sailor.

Yeah, I know.

What?

-I mean, yes, sir. -That's right.

[Shane] They shoulda let you land, then we woulda been first.

[chuckles]

Yeah. Well, that wasn't my mission, buddy.

Hey. Here's your lunch, okay?

-Let's get going. -Thank you.

Hey, you have a good day, okay?

-Yeah. Bye, Dad. -Bye-bye.

Love you, sweetie. Have a good day.

-Thank you. -Okay.

So, how do you think it's gonna affect the program?

I don't know. Deke's called an all-hands meeting this morning.

So, I guess we'll find out then.

I hope they still fly Apollo 15.

Yeah. [kisses]

Me too.

Hey, do you want me to save this or toss it?

Toss it.

Okay.

Ah...

Save it.

[song intro]

[bell rings]

["Put a Lid on It" playing]

[song ends]

[chattering]

-Morning, Poppy. -Morning.

-Morning, sir. -Morning.

Apollo 11 is scheduled to fly in two and a half weeks.

Neil, Buzz, Mike and their backup crew will continue training as planned.

Beyond that, there's been no word from the top.

So, training for Apollos 12 to 20 will also continue as planned... but not today.

I was at the Cape with the rest of the Mercury astronauts when Jim Webb came down and told us the Russians put the first man in space.

Webb wanted us to put a good face on for the press.

So we did, but not for a while.

First, we had to be pissed off, and we were.

Gus could hardly speak. And Al...

Glad Al Shepard's not here today.

Al was really pissed. Even Glenn.

Yes, believe it or not, gentlemen, John Glenn actually said the word "f*ck."

[laughter]

So before we go back to work, it's time to be pissed!

All training evolutions for today have been canceled.

I suggest you all take the weekend to go out, get drunk, kick your dog, gnash your teeth, howl at the moon, or do whatever suits your purpose.

Come Monday morning...

we're back to work.

That is all.

So, Outpost?

Last one buys.

[song begins]

[Jimmy Ruffin's "What Becomes of the Brokenhearted" plays]

[laughs]

Ah!

[all singing along] ♪ Who had love that's now departed ♪

♪ I know I've got to find ♪

♪ Some kind of peace of mind ♪

♪ Maybe ♪

♪ I'm searching though I don't succeed ♪

♪ But someone look There's a growing need ♪

♪ All is lost There's no place for beginning ♪

♪ All that's left is an unhappy ending ♪

♪ Now what becomes of the brokenhearted ♪ Pam.

♪ Who had love that's now departed ♪

[laughs]

♪ I know I've got to find Some kind of peace of mind ♪ All right. Fine.

-[all chanting] Pam! Pam! -All right!

Come on up, Pam.

-Set it off. Set it off. -[all shouting, chanting]

-Pam, throw it. -No!

[all cheering, shouting]

-One more round? -[all] Yeah!

[man] The president wants answers, and he wants them now.

We at NASA were given no indication the Soviets were so close to a landing.

The intelligence provided by the CIA was faulty and inaccurate.

Hold on now. Wait a minute.

Langley's not taking the fall for this.

We did report two launches of the Soviet N-1 rocket.

One launch in January, and then one this past week.

Both launches were duly noted in our intel reports to you.

You said they were unmanned tests.

We said we had a 95% confidence level the January vehicle was unmanned.

But we only had 80% confidence on the second launch.

Only 80%.

[man 2] The president must understand that our technology is vastly superior to the Russians'.

The N-1 is a crude and unsophisticated vehicle compared to the Saturn V.

All the president cares about right now is getting an American on the moon as soon as possible.

Can you move up the launch of Apollo 11?

The vehicle could be ready, but the phase of the moon would not be correct.

The phase of the moon? Come on.

He's right.

If the phase of the moon is not correct, there won't be enough light on the surface.

And we cannot land in darkness.

sh*t.

Our program is much more robust, more capable in every way.

We will not only match the Soviets, we will surpass them.

NASA is prepared to extend manned exploration beyond the moon.

Mankind's journey into the cosmos has only just begun.

-[clamoring] -Yes?

Deke, just last month you sent Apollo 10 all the way to the moon for what you called a "dress rehearsal" for the landing.

But Ed Baldwin and Gordo Stevens actually piloted the lunar module down to within eight miles of the surface.

They were so close.

Why didn't they just land?

If they had, we'd have beaten the Russians by a full month.

Landing wasn't in the mission plan.

Apollo 10 was intended to test equipment and procedures for the actual landing.

And it was a complete success.

But they could've landed, right?

They could've been first.

An American, Edward Baldwin, could have been the first man on the moon.

No, this is not true.

There was insufficient fuel for such an attempt.

And the spacecraft weighed too much for a landing.

It was never considered. Never.

Yes?

[chattering]

[rock 'n' roll playing on jukebox]

[man] How we doin'?

George, good to see ya.

-How ya feelin'? -Hey.

How we doing today, fellas? Huh?

Not at all? You don't have a comment at all about any of this?

No comment.

-Zero? -Zero comment.

-That's... -What's there to talk about?

[reporter] I couldn't think of a thing.

All right, I'll buy the next round, okay? Thanks.

What's up, big man?

-Hey, how we doing today? -Good, man.

Good to see you again. Good to see you.

-It's kinda shitty. -Kinda shitty. Right.

That's what I've been hearing from everyone else.

Can you give me something?

You don't need that.

Well, what about you two?

Any thoughts from the crew of Apollo 10 on this dark day?

Not a one. We're just here blowing off some steam.

Come on. You guys were pretty close.

Got eight miles above the surface.

So close you just reach out and grab a handful of moondust.

[reporter] And then NASA decides to bring you home.

That must sting.

Don't matter.

[mutters]

That was our mission. It was a practice run.

Dress rehearsal.

Wasted opportunity?

Wouldn't go that far.

Well, you were there. Are you saying there wasn't an opportunity to land?

Not in the mission plan.

Yeah, okay. Fair enough. But in retrospect, should it have been?

I mean, knowing what you know now, wouldn't the smart move have been for Apollo 10 to land on the moon?

It's not a matter of smarts.

Yeah.

Yeah, I guess not. NASA's full of smart people.

[sighs] Of course, I guess it's a moot point since there wasn't enough fuel on board, and the LEM was too heavy to land anyway.

Bunch of bullshit.

Snoopy was heavier than Eagle.

Had a little less fuel.

But all that means is we woulda had a little narrower safety margin if we'd gone for the landing.

-Ain't that right, Ed? -That's a fact.

[Gordo] I gotta hit the head.

[reporter sighs]

So, Ed, if you had the right equipment and you had the opportunity, and NASA is full of smart people, what I can't figure is... why they didn't have the guts to let you land.

-[scoffs] -Huh?

You got some balls, man.

I'm just saying.

I mean, NASA's always been known for its willingness to push the envelope.

I wanna just reach down there.

Scoop up a handful of moondust.

Not anymore. [sighs]

Come on. I've been around you guys a lot.

You like being on the bleeding edge of things.

[Ed] Abort Descent Stage.

Three, two... one...

We used to.

We used to be like that.

I mean, hell, in Mercury and Gemini, we hung it out there over the edge every single time we went up.

But those days are over.

You're right. We don't have guts at NASA anymore...

since the fire.

The Apollo 1 fire.

Okay, I loved those guys, all right. I...

Gus and Roger and Ed...

I think about them every day. I mean, we all do.

They were good men.

[sighs] That's the thing. Good men die in test planes all the time.

But we don't change the whole culture of flight test 'cause good men die.

We still get up there and push the envelope every single day, and maybe, maybe today's the day you don't come back.

We all know that. It's always there.

But we get up there anyway, and we keep taking the risks.

But we stopped taking risks at NASA.

And that's why we lost the moon.

Thanks, Ed.

[match strikes]

[father] Aleida!

[speaking Spanish]

It's time to go!

[speaking Spanish]

[speaking Spanish]

[alarm beeping]

[astronaut on radio] Houston, Eagle. We have a program alarm.

It's a 12-02.

Copy that. 12-02.

[CAPCOM] Stand by, Eagle. We're checking.

In the meantime, yaw the antenna around minus niner, yaw plus 18.

Copy. Minus nine, plus 18.

GUIDO, what's the story with that alarm?

Uh, checking on it, Flight. Get right back to ya.

[beeping continues]

GUIDO, this is Margo. I think I recognize that alarm.

It's okay. They can still land.

Margo, you're outta your lane. This is a GUIDO issue.

I know the code.

Twelve-02 is a program alarm for the AGC signaling "Executive overflow, no VAC."

The computer is rebooting itself, but it's not a problem.

Houston, we need a reading on the 12-02.

-GUIDO! -Still don't have it, Flight.

Okay, I'm calling it.

Abort the landing.

Eagle, Houston, abort. Repeat. Abort landing.

[footsteps approaching]

The fault is yours.

Why? Because I wasn't in my lane?

Because you hesitated.

I wanted to double-check my answer.

You knew the answer, you hesitated, and the landing was aborted.

You're always telling me that I have to respect the chain of command.

-Yes. -Well, in this situation, I felt the chain of command--

No, not "feel." This is not a place for feelings.

Something is or it is not. That is science.

It's about fact.

You had the facts on your side, but you felt intimidated.

Yes?

-Yes? -Yes.

Well, that is the problem.

You want to be a flight controller, to be FIDO on a real mission?

Then you must only do that which advances the work.

Understand?

[inhales deeply]

Yes, Herr Doktor.

Good.

Tell your father I'm sending something for his birthday, but he won't get it until after.

I will.

[sighs]

[Deke] "We were right there.

So close you felt like you could reach out and grab a handful of moondust.

All it would've taken was some guts.

But we don't have guts at NASA anymore.

That's why we didn't b*at the Russians to the moon."

You are in the sh*t now, my friend.

How deep?

Above your eyeballs.

Von Braun wants you reassigned to the Apollo Applications Project effective immediately.

Are you taking me off Apollo 15?

You took you off 15.

Von Braun wanted you outta the program completely, but I wouldn't let him go that far.

Apollo Applications.

Apollo Applications is Siberia with a desk.

I didn't say anything in that article that you and I haven't talked about in this very office.

-Jesus Christ. -We have gotten too timid since the fire.

We should be leaning forward instead of worrying about every little g*dd*mn--

Pull your head outta your ass, Ed!

Look around!

You wanna cry about Apollo 15? Let me tell you something.

There may not be an Apollo 12, much less 15.

What the hell are you talking about?

The country's in shock, Eddie.

Like Pearl Harbor shock.

American people thought we had this thing in the bag, then the Russians come along and snatch it away at the last minute.

Congress is talking about hearings, the president is looking for someone to blame, and you just served up the whole g*dd*mn agency for a necktie party.

They really might cancel everything after 11?

That's usually what happens when the race is over.

Winner collects their prize, loser goes home.

[newscaster] Senator Edward Kennedy of Massachusetts announced today that he was canceling a weekend party on Chappaquiddick Island in order to return to Washington and confer with congressional leaders on the need for hearings into how the United States lost the race to the moon.

[Nixon] You know what Teddy's really doing, don't you?

That g*dd*mn pissant's gonna use these hearings to grandstand against the administration.

[man] Yep...

[Nixon] Gonna get up there and say how NASA was bolder under his brother...

How they've lost their edge under Nixon...

[man] Uh-huh.

[Nixon] This is the opening of the campaign, Kennedy for President in '72 -- just you watch.

[man] God help us all.

[cheering, applause]

I guess I'll start packing.

Right?

I mean, if you can't fly for NASA, you'll go back to the navy.

I don't know what I'm gonna do yet.

Well, are you gonna sit behind a desk?

-Hell no. -Exactly.

So, you'll go back to the navy, which means we're moving.

The next question now is where.

[sighs] I don't know, are you gonna ask for Pax River?

I mean, Maryland's fine.

It beats Texas, I suppose.

I'm sure that Shane will grow to love it.

Look, I doubt they're gonna have an open slot on the flight test just waiting for me to waltz in.

Okay, and if that's the case...

you'll ask for carrier duty then, right?

Commander of your own fighter squadron?

Which means, based on your past, they will send you back to Seventh Fleet, which means we'll be based out of Pearl.

I mean, housing isn't great, but it's Oahu, so you can't complain, right?

Not that you'll see much of Oahu, because you'll be commanding your squadron on your carrier on Yankee Station, flying strike missions over Vietnam.

It's what I do, Karen.

That is a g*dd*mn useless thing to say.

[Ed sighs]

I didn't know it was gonna blow up like this.

[stammers] Why? Because you were just two guys in a bar talking and telling it like it is?

-Something like that. -To a reporter!

I thought there was supposed to be this code.

The pilot's code that says you're not supposed to talk about your feelings.

Like, how you might feel about not landing on the moon, or, I don't know, how you feel about the whole damned space program.

The code says you're not supposed to talk about those things.

That's what you said. Not with your buddies, not with your family, not with your wife.

-This has nothing to do-- -I mean, who knew?

Who knew that all it took was a couple of drinks in a dive bar for you to break that code?

I'm gonna learn to drink with the guys.

Yeah, 'cause then I can find out how my husband really feels about his job.

Or I'll just read about it in the newspapers with everyone else!

[door opens]

Right?

[door closes]

[sighs, sniffs]

[sighs]

[Ed groans, sighs]

Your neck?

Yeah. Couch is too damn small.

I like it that way.

Why is that?

So there's no other choice.

[chattering]

[door opens]

[chattering stops]

The hell y'all looking at?

You never seen a lowly pudknocker from Apollo Applications?

[chuckles]

Look, uh, I know there was some dumb son of a bitch that sh*t his mouth off in the press and made the whole agency look bad.

But I also know that the crew of Apollo 11 is gonna make everyone forget about all that.

Because Neil, Buzz, Mike, they're the kind of guys who don't fold when things get tough.

They're the kinda guys that might get knocked down... but then they just pick themselves up and get back to work.

[sighs]

So, I'm here to help you boys get back to work.

Any way I can.

From Siberia...

I bring you adjusted fuel and payload calculations for the S-IVB.

I think Siberia...

sits over there.

[laughter]

[chattering resumes]

[door opens]

Two weeks to launch, gentlemen.

This will be our last meeting before 11 heads for the Cape, so I want final checklists on my desk.

[Deke] So, will he make the call?

[administrator] I don't know.

Ziegler said the president wants to call the astronauts on the moon, but I think they're leaving themselves some wiggle room.

But it's another chance to demonstrate the superiority of our technology.

The Russian audio was terrible.

We will call a man on the moon from a telephone. I mean, it's amazing.

I told them. You know what Ziegler said?

"The president doesn't usually call the silver medalist."

[engineer] Got it!

[wind whooshing]

It wasn't easy, but I got it.

Just glad we remembered.

Just as well. It was always extra weight.

[jets approaching]

[jets pass overhead]

Pilots.

We should have stuck with the monkeys.

[administrator chuckles]

[newscaster] Almost a month has passed since the historic landing of a Soviet cosmonaut on the moon shocked the world.

During that time, the crew of Apollo 11 has continued to train and prepare for their own historic landing on the lunar surface.

While the Nixon administration has made no public commitment to any landing beyond this one, multiple anonymous sources in the White House have said that if Apollo 11 were to end in failure, the entire program would probably be canceled.

["It's Your Thing" playing]

This is Apollo Saturn Launch Control.

The crew are aboard the spacecraft, the hatch is closed, and everything seems to be proceeding satisfactorily.

In just a few moments, there will be a scheduled hold in the count at exactly T-minus two hours.

[flight director] Built-in hold in five, four, three, two, one.

Holding.

The count has been held at T-minus two hours.

Flight Director Gene Kranz is now giving last-minute...

Jim, I want you to bring in the backups and lock the doors.

-Cut the video and the mics. -You got it, Flight.

Till a few weeks ago, I thought I knew what today was all about.

I thought it was about being first.

Turns out the stakes are much bigger than that.

Today is about the future of our country.

The future of the world.

Because if we fail in our mission today, the United States will turn away from space, turn away from the future.

Bogged down by w*r, poverty, hatred.

And the future?

Well, the future will belong to the Soviet Union.

They will be the ones reaching into space for all of mankind.

Now, I want you all to think about that for a moment.

What that means for the future, to look like the "Marxist-Leninist way of life."

But if we succeed, if we succeed in putting Apollo 11 on the moon, we're still in this thing.

Still in the race.

The future will be ours to fight for and to win.

We put a man on the moon today, I guarantee we are not stopping there.

We'll go to Mars. Saturn.

The asteroids, the stars, deep space.

The galaxy.

And then, then we're getting answers to the big questions.

Are we alone? Is there life out there?

I am proud to be a member of this team, and I know that we will succeed today in our mission... in putting two Americans on the moon.

Because in this room, in this agency, in this country...

failure is not an option.

Kennedy Launch Control, we are go for launch.

Copy, Houston. We are resuming the countdown.

[chattering]

[radio newscaster in Spanish] Flying for almost four days, the American spacecraft known as the Eagle is on course toward the lunar surface.

The spacecraft carrying Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin is now now flying on its own power.

It should start its descent in approximately one hour.

[newscaster on TV] Why don't you give us an idea of the landing stage of the lunar module in the Eagle?

After separation, the LEM will perform a pitch-up maneuver, then the two spacecraft will back away from one another...

Don't get too rowdy with the boys, okay?

Try to behave.

Well, hey, Shane. Have a seat. Welcome.

-Hey. Come on in. -Thanks.

-Can I take your purse? -No. I'll set it down.

...a short burn, which will send them down towards the surface.

...attempting this dangerous landing.

Cheers.

To Snoopy and what might have been.

You ever think about what you would have said if it'd been you?

-What's that? -If you were the first man on the moon.

Probably something better than

"I'm here for the Marxist-Leninist way of f*cking life," I'm sure.

Never thought about it.

Come on. Never?

-Never once. -Oh.

I thought about it a lot.

-Oh, yeah? -Mmm.

So, what would you have said, Gordo?

-Thanks, Pam. -Anytime, Ed.

Well, first I thought, you know, maybe quote one of the classics.

Aristotle, Plutarch, Voltaire.

Dean Martin.

But then I thought, no, it should be about today. Now.

You know, the whole world seems like it's tearing itself apart.

w*r, death, hate.

Chicago, last year.

Man, Chicago last year.

I never seen anything like that before.

I love that city. I went to school there. I had a bunch of friends, you know?

And to be back there on those streets where I went to school and see it all go down like that?

You know, the cops just b*ating on those kids?

You remember? You know?

Just crushing their heads with their batons and just blood everywhere and they--

I just never seen that before.

To see the hate in their eyes.

You know, they wanted to k*ll those kids. They wanted to crush them.

Right? Like they were just bugs.

And I thought to myself, "You know, maybe, maybe a man being up on the moon...

might make people like that just lift their eyes for a moment and look past that hate and see something bigger.

Bigger like...

hope."

So, what would you have said, Gordo?

-Hmm? -What would you have said?

Um...

Uh...

I would've said...

I'm Gordo Stevens and I come in peace.

Three times a night.

[Gordo laughs]

-[Ed] You're a stupid idiot. -[Pam laughs]

You're a stupid, stupid man.

You had me.

[laughing continues]

[CAPCOM] Eagle, Columbia, Houston.

All systems are looking good for going over the hill.

Ten seconds to LOS.

[astronaut on radio] Roger that.

[astronaut 2 on radio] Roger that, Houston. Talk to you on the other side.

[man on PA] Loss of signal of Apollo 11. Reacquisition in 48 minutes.

Good time for a head call.

[grunts]

It's pretty disturbing, but it was really good.

-Mmm. -You know, it sticks with you.

Jon Voight is amazing.

[sighs] What did Gordo think of this movie?

Oh, he was just upset that it wasn't that kind of X-rated film.

Of course he was.

Marge. It's so good to see you.

Well, well, well.

The queen has arrived.

-I thought you said she wasn't coming. -I assumed she wasn't.

If I had known Deke's wife was gonna show up, I would've had the butler bring out the good silver.

-Hello, Karen. -Hello.

-Tracy. -Marge.

Are you busy right now?

Not at all.

Good. Excuse us.

-Napkin. -Thanks.

[Fred on TV] It's a small spacecraft for three grown men to live in full-time.

-Should we sit down? -[Karen] Sure.

[door closes]

[Marge sighs]

Everyone believes it would be in the best interests of the agency... and the country for Edward to make a public denial, stating emphatically that he was grossly misquoted by that reporter and strongly disassociating himself from those remarks.

I also think, in that instance, Deke would be able to persuade Dr. von Braun to reinstate him on 15.

-[chuckles] It's not that simple, Marge. -Mmm.

Eddie would never get up and lie.

He went to Annapolis. Right?

Duty, honor, country. Those things matter to him.

You don't have to go to Annapolis to have integrity, Karen.

No, I don't mean to imply that, but I know my husband--

Duty, honor, country.

I believe in those things.

[extinguishes cigarette]

Sometimes... you have to pick two.

[radio newscaster in Spanish] This is a very exciting time.

Just one month ago, Russian cosmonaut Alexei Leonov became the first man to step foot on the moon.

Now, American astronauts Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin hope to do the same.

Much preparation has been made for this moment.

Millions of people around the world await their landing.

Once they are on the moon's surface...

Your father says he misses you.

-[Margo sighs] -He says you don't call. You don't write.

You should go home and see him.

I'll call.

Have you no wish to go home?

No sentimental attachments to Huntsville?

To paraphrase a great man, -"Alabama is not a place for feelings." -[laughs]

Your tongue will get you in trouble one day, Margo.

So I've heard.

[man on PA] One minute to reacquisition of signal from Apollo 11.

One minute to reacquisition.

All the work was for this moment.

We are about to land a man on the moon.

Come.

Godspeed, Eagle.

Eagle has begun its final descent...

Final approach!

Come on now, Neil.

You got this, buddy! Right down the pipe!

Okay. Gather round, gather round. Come on, kids. Come on.

-[Karen] Come on. Sit down, Shane. -They're heading for the landing.

Isn't this exciting?

...two men to descend from orbit to the moon's surface and then back up again.

Cheers.

It is a marvel of modern engineering.

[radio newscaster speaking Spanish]

[guide, in Spanish] There it is.

There is a crossing half a mile to the east.

This way.

-Turn that off! -[radio switches off]

Silence from now on!

[astronaut 2 on radio] Beta ARM. Altitudes are a little high.

Houston, I'm getting a little fluctuation in the AC voltage now.

Roger. Looks good to us. You're still looking good at three.

Coming up three minutes.

[Neil on radio] Our position checks downrange show us to be a little long.

AGS has gone about two feet per second greater than it should be.

Roger. That still looks good to us. You are go. You are go for landing.

Roger. Understood. Go for landing.

Three thousand feet.

Eight hundred feet.

Eight hundred feet. Into the AGS, 47 degrees.

[CAPCOM] Eagle, looking great. You're go.

Thirty-five degrees.

Thirty-five degrees. 750. Coming down to 23.

Copy.

Three hundred feet, down three and a half, 47 forward.

Altitude velocity light.

Watch your shadow out there.

I see the shadow.

Wait. Got some boulders up ahead.

Right in our path.

I'm going long, looking for a better site.

Thrusting forward.

One hundred feet, three and a half down, nine forward.

Five percent.

Control, how much fuel does he have left?

Twenty seconds, Flight.

Seventy-five feet.

Rocks everywhere. Still looking for a spot to set down.

He's outside the safety margin.

Should we abort?

Neil knows the situation. It's his spacecraft now.

Lights on. Twenty feet.

Kicking up some dust.

-Lot of dust. -Drifting right.

Watch that one!

Watch it!

We've lost telemetry.

No bioreadings!

Lost contact.

AGC is negative. And no data from the onboard computer.

Flight, I've got nothing here.

-I've lost the whole board! -No signal!

Settle down, people. Settle!

CAPCOM, see if you can raise the LEM.

Eagle, Houston. Do you read?

Eagle, this is Houston. Do you read?

Eagle, this is Houston, do you copy?

Eagle, Houston. Do you read?

CAPCOM, see if Columbia can reach them.

Columbia, Houston. We've lost contact with the Eagle. See if you can raise them.

Roger that, Houston.

Eagle, Columbia. Do you read? Over.

Eagle, this is Columbia. Can you copy my transmission? Come back.

Eagle, this is Columbia.

How do you read?

Eagle, this is Houston. Do you copy?

Over.

Is it possible the spacecraft exploded?

Unlikely.

If the LEM had exploded, we would have seen some precursor events in the telemetry stream before we lost signal.

They're outta fuel, so they're definitely down.

Maybe it was just communications.

And all telemetry? No.

These are independent systems.

They could not fail simultaneously unless there was a catastrophic event.

So they crashed?

Most likely.

[Kranz] The skin on the Eagle is so thin, you could punch a hole in it with a screwdriver.

At least they were in their suits.

So, they could've survived a breach of the LEM's hull.

If they are alive, what's our contingency plan?

There is no contingency plan.

There is no way to effect a rescue from the lunar surface.

Columbia will pass over Tranquility in 54 minutes.

There's a telescope on board.

Maybe Mike can see something from orbit.

Eagle, this is Houston. Do you copy? Over.

[Mike on radio] I'm coming up on the Sea of Tranquility now.

I'm following the surface terrain.

I think the landing site should be coming up soon.

Can't see anything yet. Nothing.

Can't see-- Wait. There.

Don't know if you can see this.

I don't see anything.

Mike's got a better view through the scope.

We're just looking at a shitty TV screen.

[gasps] I see Eagle.

I'd say she's about six to eight miles southwest to the targeted landing site.

Seems to be in a pretty rocky area.

Can't see any movement or activity.

He wouldn't be able to from that altitude.

At least we know where they are.

Eagle, this is Houston. Do you copy? Over.

[newscaster] Thousands have gathered in cities across the world, waiting with bated breath for any word on the fate of Apollo 11 and its crew.

But as more time passes, hope is beginning to fade.

In Rome, Pope Paul led the faithful in prayers for the return of the men, quoting the Ninth Psalm, "The Lord is a stronghold in times of trouble."

To recap: It's been over four hours since radio contact with the Eagle was lost...

Karen, you and Louanne head over to the Aldrin house.

Betty and Jackie, to the Collins.

Linda, you come with me over to the Armstrongs.

There's gonna be a lot of press out there, but you just push past them and say "No comment."

Everyone else, stay here with Tracy and the kids and hold down the fort, please.

Stay by your phones.

I think it's gonna be a long night.

Let's go.

Mr. President, after running various simulations it is our judgment that the likelihood of the astronauts having survived a crash of this nature

...is very low.

[Nixon sighs] It's... such a tragedy.

[Paine] There is a statement that was prepared for you in just this eventuality.

[Nixon] Yeah, I've read it.

I'll... alert the networks that I want airtime to address the nation.

"In ancient days..."

--better ancient times, I think.

"In ancient times..."

"men looked at stars and saw their heroes in the constellations."

"In modern times we do much the same..."

"but our heroes are epic men of flesh and blood..."

"and these men will remain the foremost in our hearts."

"For every human being who looks up at the moon in the nights to come..."

"will know that there is some corner of another world..."

"that is forever mankind."

Okay, that's great. We'll do it just like that.

[both speaking Spanish]

There's nothing left for us to do in the back, so they let us go.

There is an old superstition.

Never drink to a success before it happens.

Not very scientific, but good advice.

Doctor, we have a problem.

Mike, I think we all understand how you feel, but...

All due respect, Houston, I don't think you do understand.

I decided a long time ago that if something like this were to happen, that I wasn't coming home alone.

I'm staying right where I am.

Columbia, out.

[stammers] He doesn't get to make that decision.

Give him a direct command. An order.

The man's 200,000 miles away. How you gonna enforce it?

I am not calling the president and telling him that Michael Collins refuses to come home alone.

Find his wife. Get her to talk to him.

Oh, Jesus Christ. Please tell me we are not gonna bring this man's wife in.

[static on radio]

[astronaut on radio, indistinct]

Houston. Tranquility Base here. Do you read? Over.

Tranquility Base, Houston. Neil, is that you?

That's affirmative, Houston.

Just wanted to let you know that the Eagle has landed.

She might have clipped a feather or two on the way down, but she's still here, and so are we.

[cheers, shouting]

[all cheering]

[screams, cheers]

[laughing]

[cheering continues]

[CAPCOM] Copy that, Tranquility.

You just made a whole lot of people very happy down here.

[Neil] Glad to hear it, Houston.

We're pretty happy up here too, to tell you the truth.

[Buzz] I think I got this camera working, Neil.

[CAPCOM] We have a picture, Eagle.

[Neil] Not one of my better landings.

But like we used to say in the navy, any landing that you can walk away from is a good one.

We had a rough start, but we've decided to pick ourselves up and get back to work.

Well, we did it.

We're on the moon.

Now we gotta get 'em home.

[Jimmy Ruffin's "What Becomes of the Brokenhearted" plays]

[music continues]