Moon Landing Anniversary

Since today is the fortieth anniversary of the first moon landing, I thought I would do a small tribute.

The parents of Neil Armstrong, the first man on the moon, appeared on "I've Got A Secret" on September 17, 1962, the day their son became an astronaut,. Interestingly, Neil's mom was asked how she would feel if her son became the first man on the moon, a full seven years before he turned out to be.


The Straight Dope takes a look at whether or nor Armstrong muffed his first words on the moon.

http://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/820/did-astronaut-neil-armstrong-muff-his-historic-one-small-step-line



Bart Sibrel,, who believed that the moon landings were a hoax, aggressively confronted Buzz Aldrin, the second man on the moon, in a hotel. Aldrin, 74 at the time, responded by punching Sibrel in the face. No charges were ever filed.

Origin of "The Star Spangled Banner"

Here is the last of my holiday posts.

Although The Star Spangled Banner was the unofficial national anthem of the U,.S. for many years , it didn't become the official national anthem until 1931. The melody was taken from an 18th century drinking song, The Anacreaon Song". The Anacreon was a club, based in London, of amateur musicians.

Here are the lyrics to "The Anacreon Song"

http://www.potw.org/archive/potw234.html


One of my favorite songs that mentions Independence Day is "Tears of Rage" .I prefer the Dylan version,,backed by The Band to the Band's version from "Music From Big Pink".