New TVshow "The Right Stuff"

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bazderome

·May 5, 2020

New Tvshow upcoming for NASA nerds like me 😁

"The Right Stuff," National Geographic's Mercury 7 series based on the book by Tom Wolfe, will premiere this fall on the Disney+ streaming service. On Tuesday (May 5), NatGeo released a first look at "The Right Stuff", including its recreation of the first U.S. human spaceflight, 59 years after Alan Shepard's historic launch.

The Right Stuff takes a "gritty, anti-nostalgic look at what would become America's first reality show as the obsessive original Mercury Seven astronauts and their families become instant celebrities in a competition that will either kill them or make them immortal. The one-hour drama will follow the protagonists from the Mojave Desert to the edges of space, with future seasons carrying through to humankind’s greatest achievement: the moon landing."

 

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pdxleaf

·May 5, 2020·"I cut it TWICE and it's still short!"

Thanks for the heads up. Get my nerd on!

 

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nurseford25

·May 5, 2020

Looks interesting. I still think the movie holds up fantastically well so it will be interesting to see a more drawn out story.

 

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bazderome

·May 6, 2020

nurseford25

Looks interesting. I still think the movie holds up fantastically well so it will be interesting to see a more drawn out story.

And it's nice as it's a TVshow they will have way more time to go deeper into the story and each mission ! Not that the 3h12 movie was any short but there is so much to talk about 👍

 

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SpeedyPhill

·May 6, 2020

Time to share my large collection on the NASA astronauts... as test pilots before they were selected ?
The real Right Stuff (e.g. David Scott in a F-104 at the U.S. Air Force Aerospace Research Pilot School (ARPS)
👎 Don't know if such a topic would be welcome as not every photo shows a wristwatch 👎
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bazderome

·May 6, 2020

SpeedyPhill

Time to share my large collection on the NASA astronauts... as test pilots before they were selected ?
The real Right Stuff (e.g. David Scott in a F-104 at the U.S. Air Force Aerospace Research Pilot School (ARPS)
👎 Don't know if such a topic would be welcome as not every photo shows a wristwatch 👎
.

More than welcome we are in the open discussion Subforum and I'm sure there is many people interested here (me included) 👍👍

 

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jsducote

·May 6, 2020

Thanks for the heads up, added this to my SickChill.

In case anyone hasn't already watched 'For All Mankind' -- DON'T. It's so bad that I feel personally offended they made it.

 

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SpeedyPhill

·May 6, 2020

O.K. don't shoot at the pianist... MoonwatchUniverse in this case... very long story short;
In 1985 I started officer-training as a candidate pilot but during flight-training was dismissed on medical reasons (night-vision).
However I later got my PPL via a civilian school promoting practical aviation training... before the rest of my Mil class got their wings.
During my Mil Academy years I collected the USAF TPS Test Pilot School year books as my thesis was going to be on VTOL aircraft applications for the different forces. Late 1980s the V-22 Osprey was up & coming... That's how I got most of these photographs 👍
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In October 1961 the USAF Flight Test Pilot School was redesignated ARPS - Aerospace Research Pilot School
Among the earliest pilots to end up in the space program were:
Donald Slayton (class 55-C), Virgil Grissom (class 56-D), Thomas Stafford (class 58-C), Edward White & James McDivitt (class 59-C), followed by Frank Borman, Michael Collins and James Irwin (class 60-C).
Here's a 1960 USAF photo showing James Irwin in a Lockheed F-104 Starfighter...
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bazderome

·May 6, 2020

That's some cool story @SpeedyPhill 👍 Keep the pictures coming it's not that often we see the pre NASA life of those Astronauts (I already follow your MoonWatchUniverse of course)

 

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SpeedyPhill

·May 7, 2020

Here' another F-104 Starfighter supersonic interceptor photo showing astronaut-candidate Neil Armstrong in the cockpit, Neil was selected in NASA group 2 " The New Nine " in September 1962... Armstrong had served as project pilot on century-series jets like F-100, F-105 and F-104
In fact, this was the Lockheed demonstrator TF-104G, a two-seater nicknamed " Free World Defender " with American civil registration N104L, which was used in 1963 by female testpilot Jacqueline Cochran to set two women's high speed records in 1963 !
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SpeedyPhill

·May 8, 2020

Introduced in June 1959, the Convair F-106 Delta Dart interceptor jet became availalble to aspirant-astronauts and the "Mercury Seven" would still use it for sufficiency flight training... We all know the January 1961 photo of the Mercury Seven astronauts standing next to F-106B
This aircraft is now the gate keeper at Edwards Air Force Base, on display in the Century Circle, together with F-100 Super Sabre
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Here are photos of Frank Borman (60-C) and James McDivitt (59-C) in the cockpit of a Convair F-106 Delta Dart (Photos: USAF)
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SpeedyPhill

·May 8, 2020

A preview for next month as we'll celebrate "" 55 years Gemini IV spacewalk "" and the first 4 Omega Speedmasters exposed to outer space.
It's interesting to see that Gemini IV astronauts Edward White and James McDivitt sat together in USAF Test Pilot School class 59-C
There standing 3rd & 4th from the left... (Photo: USAF)
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Longbow

·May 8, 2020

@SpeedyPhill, since you mentioned the V22 you might like the VTOL connection to these guys, especially Neil Armstrong in the Bell X-14A/B which was used to evaluate the Lunar Excursion Module flying qualities.

https://www.nasa.gov/image-feature/neil-armstrong-in-nasa-ames-bell-x-14-aircraft

Of course the world didn‘t stop for these guys after Apollo 11. There’s all sorts of interesting stuff to discover about Neil Armstrong, for example his involvement as a guest test pilot on the British Percival Aircraft Pembroke YA 558; which made the world’s first digital fly by wire landing in 1968.https://www.alamy.de/stockfoto-fred...1&vd=0&lb=&fi=2&edrf=0&ispremium=1&flip=0&pl=

 

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SpeedyPhill

·May 8, 2020

As VTOL was my thesis to become a 2nd Lt those stories are familiar to me, however in 1985 I had never heard of the vertical hanging or standing Tail Sitters like the Convair XFy-1 Pogo and the Ryan X-13 VertiJet...
Talking about Neil Armstrong, note the silver medaillon hanging at his left knee... the watch he wore was probably a Bulova 3818
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SpeedyPhill

·May 8, 2020

As fighter jets got well-established & operational, the 1950s is for me the most interesting & exciting period... (Photo: USAF)
The USAF-pilots, enlisted by the CIA to fly the U-2 reconnaissance aircraft really had balls as an overflight of the USSR was planned on July 4, 1956 while Soviet-Russian leader Khrushchev & top Soviet-Party leaders attended the 4th July reception at the American Embassy in Moscow...
Pilot Hervey Stockman departed Wiesbaden - Germany for a successful overflight of the USSR and returned after a nine hours flight.
Moreover, the next day, pilot Carmine Vito overflew the Soviet capital Moscow while his U-2 was detected by ground radar stations... another successful mission but Vito remained the only pilot to overfly Moscow !
More on " Balls & fighter pilots " in this topic:
https://omegaforums.net/threads/moonwalker-signed-baseballs.98423/

 

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Longbow

·May 8, 2020

SpeedyPhill

Talking about Neil Armstrong, note the silver medaillon hanging at his left knee... the watch he wore was probably a Bulova 3818

Since he was already wearing a wristwatch what was the purpose of the extra timepiece in this location?

 

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Foo2rama

·May 8, 2020·Nowhere near as grumpy as he used to be...

Well I know what I’m watching tonight.

 

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SpeedyPhill

·May 8, 2020

Longbow

Since he was already wearing a wristwatch what was the purpose of the extra timepiece in this location?

It was a medaillon, a good luck charm, not a timepiece !

 

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SpeedyPhill

·May 19, 2020

As mentioned before I have a weak spot for the sleek Lockheed F-104 "flying pencil", which fuselage was also used for the Lockheed U-2...
Here's a 1961 USAF photograph showing Frank Borman and his IP - instructor pilot putting on " Ejection seat spurs " before a flight...
It looks like Borman was already wearing a Rolex Oyster Perpetual wristwatch
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SpeedyPhill

·May 26, 2020

I guess interest is fading and I realize no watches are being shown in these photos... so Forum Admins feel free to stop me here !
Here's a Lockheed T-33 jet trainer used by the Gemini III backup astronauts Thomas Stafford and Walter Schirra... USAF TR-671
We know Wally Schirra was still using his personal Omega CK-2998 while Stafford received NASA-issued Omega Speedmasters #20 and #27
Our Australian viewers will notice the red/burgundy QANTAS airline bag in the hands of Wally Schirra ( Photo: NASA)
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