One Small Step For Man

If there is doubt in anybody's mind of the significance of 1969, take a look at the timeline in the NY Times. There was something for everyone. In the arts Led Zeppelin releases their debut record, thousands attend Woodstock, the first Godfather film is in theaters, The Brady Bunch begins a 5 year run on ABC and Monty Python's Flying Circus hits the BBC. Politically Golda Meir becomes Prime Minister of Isreal, Nixon is sworn in, the Chicago 8 go on trial and Ted Kennedy drives off the bridge at Chappaquidick. It was a banner year in sports especially for New Yorkers: The Mets, Jets and Knicks were all champions. Check out Art Shamsky's book, The Magnificent Seasons, which recalls the year through the words of the players who were part of it. Space exploration was at it's peak. The Apollo series continued with 9 and 10 and most famous of the launches, Appollo 11. It's 40 years ago that Neil Armstrong was the first person to land on the moon. I remember watching it on our black and white Zenith TV. Mort Roghanchi recently recalled his experience of viewing that landing as a teen in Tehran, Iran.

July is the 40th anniversary of Apollo 11 Landing on Moon. I was a 12 year old boy living in one of the poorest parts of Tehran/Iran. I can still smell the raw sewage flowing in the alleyway where we lived. We were the only people in the neighborhood with a TV. A black and white, German made TV called Grundig!!! It was around 3am. The whole town was lit and everyone in the neighborhood was at my house. We were all waiting to see the live pictures of the landing! The adults, I remember started praying for the safe landing and thank god for us Muslims praying, it did land safely!!! My uncle in the room said "This is all lies fabricated by the Americans and it says in the holy book (Koran) that it takes 30 years to go to the moon with a flying horse!!" Where in Koran it says that I am not sure, but they made to moon in less than two days!! I so vividly remember Mr. Armstrong climbing down the ladder with his left foot still on the ladder, bringing his right foot down to test the ground on the Moon to make sure he wasn’t going to sink!! Six weeks later I met the astronauts in Baharestan Square when they toured the world. They all were riding in a convertible with a police escort. I shook Mr. Armstrong's hand and followed the convoy before I was warned by the police to stay away! By that time Edwin Buzz Aldrin realized I was following the convoy, and he reached out and pat my head!! I will never forget this!!!!