[FPSPACE] Linguistic analysis: Armstrong on the moon

[Dominic Phelan]

If you watch this CBS clip you'll notice that both Cronkite and astronaut Wally Shirra didn't really 'get' the phrase:

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=prqFuBp2DcQ


Cheers,

Dominic

 


Date: Mon, 8 Jun 2009 15:44:50 +0100
To: fpspace at friends-partners.org
From: dave.harland at ntlworld.com
Subject: Re: [FPSPACE] Linguistic analysis: Armstrong on the moon




At 08:03 -0500 8/6/09, Charles, John B. (JSC-SA211) wrote:
Content-Language: en-US
Content-Type: multipart/alternative;
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JimO,

I too heard it, live, at age 15, and wrote down what I heard: "one small step for man, one (etc.)." It didn't make grammatical sense immediately, but the best explanation I have heard is that it was a typically clipped phrase from a native central Ohioan.

I wonder how did Walter Cronkite say it in his immediate reiteration of the historical statement?


I rummaged through boxes in my attic and located the video 'Man on the Moon' with CBS coverage of Apollo 11. In fact, as Armstrong said that he was about to step off the LM, Cronkite was saying that a 38-year-old American was standing on the Moon - Cronkite had stated that Armstrong was 'on the Moon' once he had jumped off the ladder. Fortunately, Cronkite completed his remark about Armstrong's age just before Armstrong made his 'small step' statement. Unfortunately, immediately after this there is an edit in the video to audio and any remark Cronkite may have made concering Armstrong's statement are not on this particular video.


dmh







Concur re: the small step not being the long fall from the ladder.

JBC





From: fpspace-bounces at friends-partners.org <fpspace-bounces at friends-partners.org>
To: Kosmos327 at aol.com <Kosmos327 at aol.com>; fpspace at friends-partners.org <fpspace at friends-partners.org>
Sent: Mon Jun 08 06:28:25 2009
Subject: Re: [FPSPACE] Linguistic analysis: Armstrong on the moon

 
Sorry, I don't weigh highly some whiny Brit intellectual's conclusions.
Never have -- and I've heard lots from that cultural quarter.
 
I heard the comment live. My brain parsed the audio quality compared
to my experience listening to pilot air-to-ground conversations in USAF work.
 
When my future wife (with whom I'm soon to celebrate a 40th anniversary)
leaned over to me and asked, 'What did he say?', I repeated to her what
I had heard him say: "Tha'ts one small step for a man...."
 
Far more significant an error -- common around the world -- is the mistaken
belief that this was said as Neil jumped down off the ladder and down onto the
surface of the moon, rather than when he smoothly moved his left foot
off the footpad, where he stood, and pressed it in to the lunar soil.
 
Jim O
 

----- Original Message -----
From: Kosmos327 at aol.com
To: fpspace at friends-partners.org
Sent: Sunday, June 07, 2009 1:48 PM
Subject: Re: [FPSPACE] Linguistic analysis: Armstrong on the moon


I have to agree with this. And I find it peculiar that anyone would seriously suggest the phrase as actually spoken to be improper. It was definitely proper enough (and quite moving) at the time.
 
Regards,
 
David L. Rickman
 
 
In a message dated 6/7/2009 2:23:00 A.M. Eastern Daylight Time, jrespler at superlink.net writes:

He listened repeatedly till he convinced himself that he heard what he
wanted to hear.
It was quite clear that was actually said was
...step for man

No 'a'.

 





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