A continuation of the Gemini project drawings! This was technically the first pair I drew to test the concept.

Based on the twins in the story the Children of Lir who were two sons who were turned into swans.

The actual twins looked like this (the idea was they were our "low budget" pair lol. But I liked the story, so I decided to draw them)

April 11 - Astronaut James A. Lovell and the Anniversary of the Launch of Apollo 13

On this day in 1970, Apollo 13 launched from Kennedy Space Center carrying Milwaukee’s own James A. Lovell along with John L. Swigert and Fred W. Haise, sending them off on what would become one of the most well-known space voyages in history. Despite the fame associated with this particular mission, very little in our collections actually pertain to events surrounding Apollo 13 and Lovell as its commander. Instead, our holdings reflect Milwaukee’s reactions towards Lovell’s lesser known, but equally momentous, earlier missions: Gemini 7 and 12 and Apollo 8. The above images are all from the records of Mayor Henry W. Maier’s office (Milw Sr 44, Box 105).

Much of the Lovell-related materials from the Maier collection pertain to celebrations and other events honoring the astronaut upon the completion of each mission. Following Gemini 7, the longest manned spaceflight to date, Milwaukee held a day-long civic celebration for Lovell and his family in February 1966. The first two images come from a program for an event to get Milwaukee school children interested in space and learning by getting to talk with Lovell themselves. Later in 1966, Lovell commanded the Gemini 12 mission with Buzz Aldrin, the second man to walk on the moon, as his pilot. Between these two Gemini missions, Lovell set a space endurance record of 425 hours and 10 minutes in space.

At the end of 1968, Lovell was part of the crew of Apollo 8, the first mission to enter lunar orbit. Upon his return, Lovell sent Mayor Maier a telegram (the third image), thanking Milwaukee for their support and emphasizing the importance of cooperative efforts in the race for progress. The following month, February 1969, the proposed Wisconsin Regional Space Center was renamed the James A. Lovell Regional Space Center. Unfortunately, the renaming wasn’t enough to save the center, which closed its doors before the end of the year. The fourth image above comes from the program for that event.

The final image gives insight as to why there is less information in the Maier papers about Apollo 13. It is a draft of a telegram to Lovell from the Mayor and Robert Jendusa, the president of the Milwaukee Common Council. They express their relief at the successful return of Lovell and his fellow astronauts from their “suspense-filled space voyage aboard Apollo 13.” They also state that they will respect Lovell’s wish for a quiet return to Milwaukee without civic celebrations, while also lavishing praise on the astronaut for his actions and the “added glory” he brought to other astronauts as well as to Milwaukee.

For more materials about Astronaut Lovell and Milwaukee’s celebrations for his achievements, come in and see the Mayor Henry W. Maier Administration collection (Milw Sr 44, Boxes 105 and 170). These boxes hold planning materials for civic events, speeches, correspondence, and newspaper clippings related to Lovell.

The Fall

ARISE, ARISE!

This October we are celebrating 60 years of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) as part of National Archives Hashtag Party #ArchivesInSpace.

In our digital collections is a half-hour interview with James Lovell, a NASA administrator and astronaut who lived in Milwaukee during his youth. The interview was conducted by WTMJ-TV’s Jim Peck and aired on May 6, 1972. Some topics covered include Lovell’s participation in several missions, in addition to the accomplishments of NASA’s space program and its upcoming projects. Lovell joined NASA in 1963 and his missions included Gemini 7, Gemini 12, Apollo 8, and Apollo 13. He was commander of Apollo 13. The spacecraft’s oxygen tank was damaged on the way to the Moon but made it back safely to Earth with its crew.

In the above gif, Lovell gives his response to “What question are you asked the most as you travel around?” He replied with, “Well, the question that perhaps is asked the most is just how does it feel? After I meet somebody they’ll say, ‘Gosh, you were up there. So how does it feel?’ And it’s sort of hard to relate. Because it is a very good feeling, you know. You’re just floating around. Gives you sort of a feeling of superiority to lift up the heaviest weight and have everything just float and pick it up from space. Sometimes it is a little bit hard to readjust back on Earth when you get back.” This exchange occurs between 26:59-27:31 in the video.

James Lovell’s interview is part of a video series titled Conversation that was produced by UWM from 1970-1972.