Smilin' Jim is now with most of his two original astronaut cohorts, the original Mercury Seven crews, and the Gemini crews.
Travel well, and travel light -- out there, man. In retirement, we had occassionally chatted with him at his restaurant in Lake Forest. What a prince of a human being. He will be missed here in northern Illinois -- and around the rest of this tiny blue orb. Here's NASA on it all:
. . .[Here's to celebrating the amazing life of] Jim Lovell. He passed away Aug. 7, in Lake Forest, Illinois. He was 97 years old.
“NASA sends its condolences to the family of Capt. Jim Lovell, whose life and work inspired millions of people across the decades. Jim’s character and steadfast courage helped our nation reach the Moon and turned a potential tragedy into a success from which we learned an enormous amount. We mourn his passing even as we celebrate his achievements.
“From a pair of pioneering Gemini missions to the successes of Apollo, Jim helped our nation forge a historic path in space that carried us forward. . . to the Moon, and beyond. . . .
"As the Command Module Pilot for Apollo 8, Jim and his crewmates became the first to lift off on a Saturn V rocket and orbit the Moon, proving that the lunar landing was within our reach.
As commander of the Apollo 13 mission, his calm strength under pressure helped return the crew safely to Earth and demonstrated the quick thinking and innovation that informed future NASA missions. . . ."
Here's to a race. . . very well-run, Capt. Lovell. We thank you for all you did for our nation, over these past 72 plus years. [Plus, because he was a fine Navy F-4 Phantom fighter pilot in Vietnam, before being selected as a Gemini astronaut.] Onward.
नमस्ते
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