NOVA; To the Moon; Interview with Glynn Lunney, NASA engineer and flight director during the Gemini and Apollo programs, part 2 of 4

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This record is featured in “To the Moon Interviews.” This record is featured in “GBH Archives Open Vault.”
Series
NOVA
Episode
To the Moon
Raw Footage
Interview with Glynn Lunney, NASA engineer and flight director during the Gemini and Apollo programs, part 2 of 4
Producing Organization
WGBH Educational Foundation
Contributing Organization
WGBH (Boston, Massachusetts)
AAPB ID
cpb-aacip-15-513tt4gt6p
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Description
Program Description
This remarkably crafted program covers the full range of participants in the Apollo project, from the scientists and engineers who promoted bold ideas about the nature of the Moon and how to get there, to the young geologists who chose the landing sites and helped train the crews, to the astronauts who actually went - not once or twice, but six times, each to a more demanding and interesting location on the Moon's surface. "To The Moon" includes unprecedented footage, rare interviews, and presents a magnificent overview of the history of man and the Moon. To the Moon aired as NOVA episode 2610 in 1999.
Raw Footage Description
Glynn Lunney, NASA engineer and flight director during the Gemini and Apollo programs, is interviewed about the Gemini and Apollo programs. The interview begins with Lunney's reasons why the Gemini program was so integral to the Apollo program, what went into the Gemini program, and Lunney's reaction to President John F. Kennedy's "to the moon" speech. Lunney also explains the details of the Gemini 7-6 mission and Wally Schirra and Tom Stafford's roles during the mission. Gemini 7-6 rendezvoused for 14 days, and Lunney explains some of the medical fears of having astronauts in space for that long, and assesses Jim Lovell and Frank Borman's performances during the mission, and mentions their smell after emerging from the capsule. Lunney discusses being a flight director at a very young age, and explains Russian space exploration as a motivator for American exploration. For Lunney, Apollo was insulated and isolated from the general upheavals of the 1960s, and Lunney explains his feelings when Gemini ended. Lunney discusses the effect of the Apollo 1 fire, its effect on the Apollo program and Wally Schirra, and the in-flight difficulties during Apollo 7. The interview ends with Lunney's expressions of his love for his job. The very end of the interview has audio from Sy Liebergot's interview (from tape 52050, ID barcode52050_Liebergot_01) on Apollo 8 and Apollo 13.
Created Date
1998
Asset type
Raw Footage
Genres
Interview
Topics
History
Technology
Science
Subjects
American History; Gemini; apollo; moon; Space; astronaut
Media type
Moving Image
Duration
00:28:36
Embed Code
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Credits
Interviewee: Lunney, Glynn, 1936-
Producing Organization: WGBH Educational Foundation
AAPB Contributor Holdings
WGBH
Identifier: cpb-aacip-045e11157ec (Filename)
Format: Digital Betacam
Generation: Original
Duration: 0:28:37

Identifier: cpb-aacip-7ecbe80fb06 (unknown)
Format: video/mp4
Generation: Proxy
Duration: 00:28:36
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Citations
Chicago: “NOVA; To the Moon; Interview with Glynn Lunney, NASA engineer and flight director during the Gemini and Apollo programs, part 2 of 4 ,” 1998, WGBH, American Archive of Public Broadcasting (GBH and the Library of Congress), Boston, MA and Washington, DC, accessed August 26, 2025, http://americanarchive.org/catalog/cpb-aacip-15-513tt4gt6p.
MLA: “NOVA; To the Moon; Interview with Glynn Lunney, NASA engineer and flight director during the Gemini and Apollo programs, part 2 of 4 .” 1998. WGBH, American Archive of Public Broadcasting (GBH and the Library of Congress), Boston, MA and Washington, DC. Web. August 26, 2025. <http://americanarchive.org/catalog/cpb-aacip-15-513tt4gt6p>.
APA: NOVA; To the Moon; Interview with Glynn Lunney, NASA engineer and flight director during the Gemini and Apollo programs, part 2 of 4 . Boston, MA: WGBH, American Archive of Public Broadcasting (GBH and the Library of Congress), Boston, MA and Washington, DC. Retrieved from http://americanarchive.org/catalog/cpb-aacip-15-513tt4gt6p