Artemis II and a Book About the Great Apollo 8

Genesis: The Story of Apollo 8

― The First Manned Flight to Another World ―

by

Robert Zimmerman

Dell Publishing

1998

With the Artemis II mission scheduled to start today, I thought it would be a good time to take a look back at Apollo 8, a mission I remember well. To this then seven-year-old, watching the Saturn V rocket light up for the first time was exciting.

There is one important difference between the Artemis II and Apollo 8 flights: Today's launch will, hopefully, lead to a free-return trajectory; a swing about our moon then back to Earth. In December of 1968, the Apollo 8 spacecraft entered lunar orbit, and after 10 rings around the moon, its service module engine lit up to bring the command module's astronauts, Frank Borman, James Lovell, and William Anders, back home.

Genesis: The Story of Apollo 8 is an absorbing read. Author Robert Zimmerman goes into great detail about the politics, engineering, and humanity of a daring lunar mission... one paving the way for the manned lunar landings, starting with Apollo 11.

Perhaps there will be a book written one day with the straightforward title: "Back Around the Moon - The Story of the Artemis II Moon Flight"

If there are no delays, Artemis II should lift off at 6:24pm (EDT) today.

Today's astronauts are: NASA's Reid Wiseman (Commander), Victor Glover (Pilot), Christina Koch (Mission Specialist), and the CSA’s Jeremy Hansen (Mission Specialist).

Godspeed to them all!

Blog Post: I Was a Fool!

Okay! I can no longer keep up this charade. Posing as a Liberal all these years has been painful, and has taxed my constitution to unbearable heights — elbows up! I'm really a Conservative, one who hoped could change meatheaded, granola-crunching, cappuccino-sucking Liberals.

Cognitive-freedom, at last!

Book: Midway (Sanford) ― Film Tie-In Novelization

Midway

by

Donald S. Sanford

A Bantam Book

June 1976

Midway (1976) was much anticipated by this military brat. I picked up that film's tie-in novelization at CFB Borden's PX (Post Exchange) as soon as it hit the stands, which was before the flick was released. I never ran out to see it: my guess is reading the book didn't prompt me to then see Midway the movie when that side of the story hit the big screen — at Borden's "Terra Theatre". Interesting note: a buddy of mine decided not to buy the book when he realized it wasn't a historical recounting of The Battle of Midway, but a novelization, with "the movie's dialogue" and such.

 Midway was an easy enough read. I still have not seen Midway.

Behind the Arriflex IIB 35mm Motion Picture Camera

Shooting a Dick Tracy lookalike.

Behind the Mitchell Mk II 35mm Motion Picture Camera

I loved that camera. It's primarily an "effects" camera due to the fact that it is un-blimped... too noisy for audio recording. The camera, and geared head, "wheels", were owned by Film Opticals of Canada, Ltd., the company I worked for at the time as an optical compositor.

Blog Post: Toronto is Warm Today

About an hour ago I returned home from running a couple of errands. Wow... Toronto is warm right now: 17 Celsius (63 Fahrenheit)

My RCAF Hoodie was almost too warm. The projected high for the day is 19 (66).

Off to my 'reading room'!....

Picturing: Emirates A380 on Approach to Pearson

Some great views can be had when one walks under one of an airport's approach lanes. An Emirates Airbus A380 flew overhead; it's such a big flying machine that it looks as though it's floating as much as approaching.

Toronto Pearson International Airport, YYZ, is up ahead....

Website Stats: From the Last 24 Hours

Last Wednesday I got all excited and posted my websites website traffic from "now". I'm interested in statistics, especially when they pertain to a little guy like me. We do live in a big world, which this morning's data peek reminded me of.

This time, however, I'm noting web traffic here from the "Last 24 hours".

1)  Singapore: 973

2)  United States: 541

3)  Vietnam: 505

4)  India: 132

5)  Brazil: 131

6)  Mexico: 103

7)  Hong Kong: 83

8)  Bangladesh: 79

9)  Pakistan: 68

10) Venezuela: 56

Picturing: A Red Metal Bird on Finch (Toronto)

While up in the northern part of Toronto yesterday I snapped a picture of this lovely new arrival of red-enameled steel: a Finch?

I'm pretty slow sometimes. Minutes after taking this snap I remembered I was on Finch Avenue.

Hello!... Little Birdy!

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Canon SX720 HS camera data:

ISO speed: 80

F-stop: f/4.0

Exposure time: 1/640

Sunday Fun: For the Love of Movies, Eh?

TVO (TV Ontario), through its extensive interviews done for its great film shows, Saturday Night at the Movies and Magic Shadows, both hosted by the late great Elwy Yost, has a lot of raw and archival material to build more programming. They have done just that.

"Canadians are funny, eh?" is the first installment of For the Love of Movies. It was first broadcast last evening on the TVO network, then uploaded to TVO's "Docs" YouTube channel.

"In this episode we explore the serious business of comedy. Canada's greatest export might be laughter – from the physical comedy of Jim Carrey, the characters of Mike Myers, or the timeless genius of Martin Short, Dan Ackroyd, John Candy, Catherine O'Hara, and Eugene Levy. Second City launched legends, and Norman Jewison's sharp, satirical touch brought challenging stories to the big screen with wit and warmth. As masters of improv, character comedy, and satire, learn how Canada's comedic talents have carried laugher across the globe."

There is no need for me to review Episode 1, but I will recommend it... highly.

Postscript: "Canadians are funny, eh?" spends a few minutes on the 1966 feature film, The Russians Are Coming!, The Russian Are Coming!. Norman Jewison, that picture's director, mentions that, for him, Russians' screenings in Moscow were the beginning of Glasnost. Immediately, and understandably, an onscreen graphic pops up explaining what that term means.... 

"Glasnost - a soviet policy of more transparency in political and social issues, introduced in the late 1980s."  Actually, it should read: "... introduced in the mid 1980s." (Who did that research?)

Looping The Ecclesiastical Hierarchy

Do I believe in God?

No.

Why would I when he doesn't believe in me?

Humour: Unfortunately

She dumped me.

"I'm leaving you for another man."

I was crushed.

"Just kidding!"

I felt much better.

"I'm leaving you for another woman."

Website Stats: From the Last Two Hours

Statistics bore many people. But while I was taking in some website traffic data minutes ago, I noticed the spread of hits; as in what countries the traffic is coming from... from the last two hours, that is. Boring, perhaps, but interesting:

1)  United States: 186

2)  Singapore: 108

3)  United Kingdom: 40

4)  India: 25

5)  Hong Kong: 24

6)  Canada: 13

7)  France: 8

8)  Vietnam: 8

9)  Romania: 7

10) Poland: 6

The hits are constant, so whatever I key-in above will be dated by the time I post it.

Question: What Movie Did I See?

After taking in a movie matinee at Toronto's "Bloor Cinema" (now the "Hot Docs Ted Rogers Cinema") one beautifully sunny day in April of 2000, I called my brother:

"I just saw the best f*cking movie ever made!"

"What did you see?"

Yes, what did I see?

A clue, although it would function more as trivia since it wouldn't mean a lot to the reader: I first saw it when I was a kid living in (West) Germany. The screening took place at CFB Baden-Soellingen's "Astra" theatre, a few years after the flick in question was first released. My Grade-3 schoolmates and I enjoyed our day at the movies. (From a seat behind me: "He won't shoot him.") Little did I know my rating would fly sky-high years later, and involve a modicum of essential profanity.

Athot for the Day: That Certain Contest

I think I fell on prosperity's lap.

A Happy 95th Birthday to William Shatner!

Canadian actor William Shatner is, quite simply, the coolest man in this galaxy. Happy Birthday to a fellow Montrealer. Leonard Nimoy was right when he said that "Jeff" Hunter was a fine actor, which he did show somewhat as Captain Christopher Pike in the pilot "The Cage", but when Shatner came on board as captain of the Starship Enterprise, Star Trek really came to life. Did it ever!

Star Trek's second pilot episode, "Where No Man Has Gone Before".

Images of Shatner as Captain James T. Kirk in "The Man Trap", the first Star Trek episode aired: September 8, 1966, NBC; but broadcast two days earlier on Canada's CTV network....

* * *

Editorial: I'm not the first person to say this, but there's something "interesting" about a Canadian, and a proud one at that, illustrating, and in the best William Shatner way, what the Constitution of the United States really means; at least, what it should mean, to 'Americans'. Today such words should carry extra meaning.

From "The Omega Glory"....

"This was not written for chiefs. Hear me! Hear this! Among my people, we carry many such words as this from many lands, many worlds. Many are equally good and are as well respected, but wherever we have gone, no words have said this thing of importance in quite this way. Look at these three words written larger than the rest, with a special pride never written before or since. Tall words proudly saying 'We the People'."

"That which you call Ee'd Plebnista was not written for the chiefs or the kings or the warriors or the rich and powerful, but for all the people!"

"Down the centuries, you have slurred the meaning of the words, 'We, the people of the United States, in order to form a more perfect union, establish justice, ensure domestic tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general welfare, and secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity, do ordain and establish this constitution'."

"These words and the words that follow were not written only for the Yangs, but for the Kohms as well!...."

"... They must apply to everyone or they mean nothing! Do you understand?"

Athot for the Day: The Fur Will Fly!

I just realized that George Lucas adapted "Jedi Mind Trick" from "Kitty Mind Trick".

The Perfect Gift for a Conservative: a Globe (Globus)

TOPGLOBE

20 cm ("8") Globe

EXERZ

UK No.1 Educational Globe Supplier

www.topglobe.co.uk

* * *

Darn: I just realized that the word "educational" is on the box.

Oh well, at least my heart was in the right place.

Quote: George Mikes on the Cat/Human Dynamic

"You can keep a dog; but it is the cat who keeps people, because cats find humans useful domestic animals."

No doubt cats call us "useful idiots". Actually, they probably call us "useless idiots".

Flyer Card: Dr Danielle Martin of University-Rosedale

Here in Canada we have three upcoming by-elections for ridings that have to be re-determined. They are: my own riding of "University-Rosedale" (Toronto, Ontario), "Terrabonne" (Quebec), which I've been to; and "Scarborough Southwest" (Toronto, Ontario).

Slipped inside my door yesterday was the above card. Dr Danielle Martin will be looking for a win in this Liberal fortress. Longtime Liberal MP Chrystia Freeland stepped down from her firm position after accepting a voluntary role advising Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Ms Martin will maintain the Liberal brand in "University-Rosedale". She has my full support.

These by-elections will all take place on Monday, April 13th. I will so be there!

Prime Minister Mark Carney rocks.

Postscript: The Liberal Party of Canada has to win just two of these ridings to cement a (thin) "majority" government. The two Toronto ridings are a pretty safe bet for the LPC, while "Terrabonne", no doubt, will be a very close contest.

Quote: Raymond Carver on Relaxing and Reading

“Woke up this morning with a terrific urge to lie in bed all day and read.”

I hear you, brother. While I couldn't lie in bed all day, I'd have to get up and at it, your greater point sits well with me.

RCAF Aircraft: CF-104 Starfighter

In March of last year I posted a piece on the RCAF (Royal Canadian Air Force) Canadair CC-106 "Yukon" transport aircraft. Here are a few memories regarding my "brat" past; memories about RCAF Station/CFB Baden-Soellingen (4 Wing), in then West Germany, that might be of interest to former, or current, military brats, and perhaps a few "civilians"....

In those days, the mid-late 1960s and early 1970s, the RCAF's main front-line jet fighter/interceptor was the CF-104 "Starfighter". Built under license (from Lockheed) by Canadair at its Cartierville Airport plant in the Montreal suburb of Saint-Laurent, the "one-o-four" went on to enjoy a long life with Canada's Finest Service; eventually being replaced by the CF-18.

With such a high-performance aircraft, especially one originally designed for high-altitude interception but re-geared for a low-level strike and reconnaissance role, there were bound to be more than a few accidents. During the years I lived in Iffezheim, West Germany, 'we' lost several 104s from 4 Wing. The most memorable incident happened in July of 1969 when two collided over the countryside. I remember vividly my father darting off for two weeks as part of the recovery/investigation team and, upon his returning, with redundant bags of sugar and other such foodstuffs, him recounting the commotion at the crash scene when they arrived: "It (a farmer's field) was crawling with Polizei." Apparently the two jets "locked wings" which sealed their fate; one pilot managed to eject while the other went down with his machine — some of what my dad described about the impact site was pretty gruesome.

There was another: Soon after I got to school one morning my teacher told the class that a Starfighter had crashed not long after we had been bused in. (My family and I lived off-base, and not in the local "PMQs" [Private Married Quarters]. I have long been thankful that my parents wanted to live with the Germans, and not in a semi-sheltered environment called "Kleinkanada". There were lots of Canadian kids in my neighbourhood — offspring of other smart parents.) If I remember correctly, that pilot managed to eject safely from his aircraft, despite the fact that he was in "take-off" mode... a dangerous time to try to eject.

Perhaps my fondest memory regarding the CF-104 Starfighter is of the machine's sound; that sound. One would hear the roar of jets in formation, and look up to see whether they were Canadian or German — the Luftwaffe, too, operated the Starfighter. One beautifully sunny day my Grade 2 school teacher walked us out to the airfield; why exactly I did not know — I'm sure Mrs. Gunnery said something, but I could not have been paying attention (surprise?). Upon taking position at our stations my school mates and I looked off over the flatness of the strip to the horizon. Suddenly there were several descending trails of black smoke which, of course, I was familiar with; moments later I noticed a series of landing lights seemingly suspended over the field. Suffice to say the 104s were flying very low, just over the deck, as they raced past us: What a noise! I love jets, and the racket they make, but really!

Quote: Me on Conservatives

"A Conservative is an oar looking for a rowboat."

Picturing: Alan Outside the Spadina Subway Entrance

Before ducking into that (TTC) station's west-side entrance, Al decided to take in some city art.

Sunday Fun: Strolling Bloor Street West of Spadina

Late this morning I met an old friend, and former Film Effects coworker, for lunch: beer and food at Paupers Pub; good ol' "Paupers". I had not visited that venerable "Annex" hotspot since before the Covid lockdown... that long ago. While Al and I chatted for a few minutes it suddenly occurred to me that all the seating has been reupholstered, freshened up. It looks great!

The above pic is my "tourist photo". It's a beautiful day here in Toronto. The temperature currently sits at 10 Celsius (50). Tomorrow's forecast is calling for 16 (61).

Picturing: JD Rouette Peaceful in Toronto on Sunday

I've known Jean-Denis Rouette since the summer of 1991. He had been sent my way by mutual Montrealer friends. He's a talented editor, a "working editor", and a collector of physical video media: DVDs and BDs (Blu-ray Discs). I have a few Criterion titles, but my collection would pale.

What makes "JD" so cool to me: he believes that Plan 9 from Outer Space (1957) is not the worst film ever made. That, beyond its own filmic and production shortcomings, it has something vital to say. (I agree, as would "Cult Movies" author Danny Peary.)

Perhaps my favourite story regarding my old friend: Jean-Denis is a big Orson Welles fan. We once got into a discussion about Citizen Kane (1941). Effortlessly we transitioned to The Six Million Dollar Man, a 1970s television series we both watched in our youth: from Welles' greatest picture to ABC's bionic man, specifically the "Bigfoot" episodes. When JD mentioned "Good Bigfoot", and we addressed it with the same reverence as we would Charles Foster Kane, I knew I had met an intelligent lover of the motion picture form.

Postscript: We dined at Peaceful Restaurant last Sunday. It gets a five-star review from me. JD was familiar with the small chain from when he lived in Vancouver. It figures that an out-of-towner introduces me to an establishment that's but a few minutes from where I live.

Peaceful Restaurant

515 Bloor St W

Toronto

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Canon SX720 HS camera data:

ISO speed: 1000

F-stop: f/3.3

Exposure time: 1/200

Flash Poem: The Cat's But

My cat asked for
my homage

But

If I failed to
comply
He would pay
homage to
me and my

___

2017

Simon St. Laurent

Picturing: Early Evening Full Moon Burning Bright

A view from Toronto, but seen elsewhere.

Picturing: A Powerful Canadian Button Message

When I boarded a TTC (Toronto Transit Commission) subway train car this afternoon and took my seat, I found I had a seat partner. One of my cameras boarded the transportation machine with me, and the natural thing to do was pose the "I Love Canada" button and snap away.

I too love Canada... more and more, with each passing day.

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Canon SX720 HS camera data:

ISO speed: 1600

F-stop: f/3.5

Exposure time: 1/100

Fun Fact: A Matter of Feline Linguistics

A Chinese cat knows more Mandarin/Cantonese than I do.

Picturing: A Special Gift from a Valued Client

Late this afternoon one of my lovely clients surprised me with a box of a half dozen delicious Jamaican patties. How did this come to be? Last week I joked with him and his wife that one can get extra customer service from me if I'm fed.

"As a matter of fact, I sometimes prefer food over money."

I also mentioned that I love Jamaican colas.

Guess what I got: that's right, two bottles of Jamaican cola... two different flavours.

Immediately I devoured two patties. My oh my were they good. I could have easily gone for more.

The point of this post, believe it or not, was not to impress my readers with how amazing my life is, but to shout-out the patties' source....

George's Tastee Bread Ltd.

600 Denison Street,

Markham, Ontario

* * *

George's Tastee Patties: 

A half moon of flakey pastry filled with ground grade "A" beef, and a perfect blend of Caribbean hot peppers and exotic spices.

Okay, okay, okay! I get it!

I'll take a case....

Sunday Fun: Going Back in Cinema Fun Time

Watching a home-programmed double feature of Steven Spielberg and J.J. Abrams movies is easy. We know what we're getting, even to the point of unwelcome nausea and gastric ejections.

One weekend a few years ago I went random, self-programming two disparate, in time and place (and style), narrative feature films.

Beyond the Time Barrier (1960 - Edgar Ulmer)
True Stories (1986 - David Byrne)


Beyond the Time Barrier I saw a few times in my childhood as it played often on television and at least once at my local movie theatre (the Astral in CFB Borden, Ontario). Watching it as an adult makes one appreciate its themes. For a child it was more about the interesting visual stylings, and chills. (Those horrific mutants.) The environmental theme is up front: testing of nuclear weapons 'back' in the early 1970s led to a horrible plague, all but decommissioning the human race. The survivors moved underground; the human birthrate eventually dropped to zero. There's more, all leading to a memorable ending — it stuck with me for decades. This time, Beyond the Time Barrier was better overall than what I had remembered it being, which is odd given that rewatching a fondly remembered matinee flick years, or decades, later often invites: "I remember it being better than that." The passage of time in this case actually helped. By the way, the X-80 rocket plane that flies star Robert Clarke to the astounding year 2024 is in fact a Convair F-102 Delta Dagger.

In the mid 1980s I was a bit of a fan of the band Talking Heads, so it made sense that when band leader David Byrne released his True Stories I would arrive at Toronto's (now gone) Uptown Theatre with bells on. I left slightly disappointed. About a dozen years ago I gave the film another shot, this time on VHS. The loosely connected stories about the quirky but human inhabitants of a fictitious Texas town called Virgil resonated more with this viewer that time around. Spinning the Criterion 2018 DVD release made me appreciate True Stories even more. And there're those always cool Talking Heads tunes. A few months back, the motion picture side of things came up in conversation with a couple friends of mine. They both had much the same reaction: a gentle shake of the head and a "I didn't like it". One added, "The music was really good, of course".

After my double feature finished I realized that both flicks were filmed in Texas. True Story.


Postscript: What's next? Perhaps Aguirre, the Wrath of God and The Endless Summer.

Quote: John Waters on the Age of Irony

"Irony ruined everything. Even the best exploitation movies were never meant to be 'so bad they were good'. They were not made for the intelligentsia. They were made to be violent for real, or to be sexy for real. But now everybody has irony. Even horror films now are ironic. Everybody's in on the joke now. Everybody's hip. Nobody takes anything at face value anymore."

John Waters is great at "social criticism with wit".

Picturing: Does That Say What I Think It Says?

As I walked down to my local coffee shop this morning, something caught my attention. Does that say what I think it says? Perhaps my wording would be less vulgar, but given my feelings toward all those self-described "Loves Jesus" charlatans we have among us today, I might articulate my pencil work as: "Fuck that, you hateful so-called 'Christians'."

Postscript: The original label-maker and poster probably does love Jesus, and sends love to all.

Athot for the Day: A Mind Full

Sometimes I think my cat has a PhD in Neurophilosophy. And at those times I know my smartest move is to just refill her bowl and disengage.

Sunday Fun: Sparkling Fun With More to Come

For Christmas one of my clients gifted me with a bottle of wine. I'm hardly alone on that count, but not popping the cork till a few minutes ago, I'm probably a rarity.

While I've known for years about Martini wines, I had never indulged in a bottle, due partly to the fact that I'm not a big drinker. My idea of wine is opening the odd bottle of Inniskillin Baco Noir or Pino Noir. Now I'll partake in a Martini Asti Sparkling. Product of Italy.

Since I got a fair bit of work done today, I figured it was time to treat myself.

POP!!!

What a noise! I almost jumped. But I did laugh out loud at the mini explosion in my kitchen.

A sip. It's good! A sweet taste. That was a bit of a surprise, but a pleasant one.

My uneducated guess says it'll go nicely tonight with a movie....

Postscript: My old friend Stéphane told me a story years ago about opening and ultimately devouring an entire bottle the night before while watching That Hamilton Woman. My palette and liver both won't accept a full bottle, however a "large goblet" will work. Oh!... Monty Python and the Holy Grail will make a fun drinking partner!

Athot for the Day: On That Special Day

It's Valentine's Day today...

Look busy!....

Pop-Up Post: Happy Birthday, Johnny Williams!

Minutes ago I learned that today marks composer John Williams' ninety-fourth birthday.

While he's not my favourite film composer to have ever practiced that craft, that would be the late great Jerry Goldsmith, by a large margin, the maestro's connection with populist filmmakers Steven Spielberg and George Lucas vaults him to the very top of the public register. Some of Williams' concert works are equally fine, but not as well known to the average person, for obvious reasons.

When John Towner Williams passes on we will be left with... Hans Zimmer.

How the art has fallen!

An extra special birthday wish to a modern motion picture legend....

I recorded the above from NBC Today on Monday, March 27th, 1989.

Me On PM Stephen Harper's Post-Defeat Speech

"There stood an unfortunate soul: a ministerial sad sack in an ill-fitting coat; Scurf of the Conservative Party of Canada."