You know, I spend most of my free time watching documentaries and obsessing over the Apollo program, while avoiding petty gossip and sniffing around for drama around me. Yet the deeper I dig into the Apollo program, the more fascinated I become with the "juicy bits" of drama that took place over the course of the program.
There is a lot of nuance in the dynamic between the astronauts and the CAPCOM during a televised EVA. McCandless may have overstepped his bounds here by being too assertive, but most people will probably chalk this up to nothing. The "Icy Commander" Al Shepard is ironically the one who chimes in with a somewhat comic line first.
I never heard this as snapping. McCandless was irreverent even as CAPCOM during the Apollo 11 moonwalk, though the historic nature of that EVA meant he was somewhat subdued. Also, Shepard poked hard at the other astronauts, but generally only respected the guys who pushed back. McCandless obviously had that kind of relationship with Shepard (and through him, Mitchell), where he would actually *bait* Shepard. He nearly talked over Al's first words from the surface at the beginning of this EVA by tossing in "Not bad for an old man" just as Al was starting His Historic Quote. McCandless also baited Shepard with absurd mnemonics for the camera magazines. The 16mm movie camera magazines were referred to with doubled letters, I believe mags AA through EE were loaded in the LM. When Shepard reported he was attaching magazine Echo Echo (his term), McCandless responded with "Roger, magazine Esmerelda Ecuador." Shepard was obviously thinking hard about how to one-up his CAPCOM when Mitchell, in this case, broke in with the tension breaker of "There's no way you can win that game (the absurd magazine names), Al. He's got a list of them sitting right next to him." In the context of McCandless' style as a CAPCOM, on earlier flights as well as on this one, this is just how Bruce joked around. Now, it may also be why it took like 18 years from his selection as an astronaut to when he finally flew on the Shuttle, since the wise guys who mouth off to the bosses rarely get the plum assignments. But it was just how he was all the time. That, and I imagine he might have flown earlier in the Shuttle program had he not decided to specialize in the MMU jet backpack development. For that, he did get to be the first human to separate from his vehicle completely untethered, so it's not like he got shut out of the work he really wanted to be doing. Now, you wanna hear a CAPCOM who ought to have been slapped down a few times for not doing his job well, go listen through the Apollo 17 EVAs. Bob Parker was not only the worst kind of needling humorist, he also regularly had problems following the conversation between himself and the LM crew. I know the CAPCOMs had to be listening to multiple loops at once, but if you're not good enough at it to be able to hear a majority of the questions and comments directed to you from the guys whose little pink behinds are all the way out on the line, up there on the Moon, then maybe someone else ought to be doing the job. That was a much bigger problem, both potential and actual, than McCandless being flip with Shepard and Mitchell. IMHO.
@@DougVanDorn ok. I believe the kids these days would call it a "clap back". Doesn't necessarily have to be malicious or even hostile. Just a snarky response. Which is what I meant.
@@DougVanDorn well said. McCandless was a great CAPCOM. He and Shepard were Naval aviators and Naval aviators do not have a problem "taking the pi**" out of each other. He was in the Group 5 class of astros and there were only so many seats to go around in Apollo and Skylab. If McCandless wasn't well respected, Deke Slayton and others would have made his life hell and he would probably would have left NASA way before the Shuttle program began.
I like this kind of dialogue. Pretty sure it must have been more of this on all Apollo missions. May I suggest a documentary with all the work around the Saturn V missions, such as the construction of the launch and transport pad, the rocket stacking, etc
That's a good idea! I was thinking of re-making the "Early Apollo" video and just produce an all-encompassing video that spans the research, development, and test phases of Apollo including all official flights up to Apollo 6.
@@JacksonTyler I think a detailed documentary of the Saturn five all up test before and after would be really great. Is that technically Apollo 4, or 5??.. that shaved off like 16 months minimum and stunts the program if it fails especially after Apollo 1.
I've re listened to this about a dozen times and it's not that bad at all. Capcom comes off a little too assertive and trying to correct them too much, but it's more just a serious "possibly autistic" personality against a more laid back one. No real tension.
Suppose you're on the Moon, in one of those EVA suits. You're standing with one foot on sunlit ground, and the other in a shadowed spot. On balance, are you comfortable?
The most heated of arguements Ive EVER heard!!! I love it haha
You know, I spend most of my free time watching documentaries and obsessing over the Apollo program, while avoiding petty gossip and sniffing around for drama around me. Yet the deeper I dig into the Apollo program, the more fascinated I become with the "juicy bits" of drama that took place over the course of the program.
Humans will be humans
There is a lot of nuance in the dynamic between the astronauts and the CAPCOM during a televised EVA. McCandless may have overstepped his bounds here by being too assertive, but most people will probably chalk this up to nothing. The "Icy Commander" Al Shepard is ironically the one who chimes in with a somewhat comic line first.
I’ve watched all of you’re content on apollo as well as Mercury and Gemini and it is superb!!! Best I’ve seen.
Thanks for posting more of your stuff. I love it!
Your docs are fantastic, the patch of this one is great !
With a 2-second delay going, and 2-second delay coming back, conversing between Earth and Moon was awkward.
Joe Engle said during a lecture- you never tell a test pilot he's wrong. That's a sure way to piss them off whether they're in the right or not lol.
Capcom was definitely out of line here. Al and Ed absolutely had the right to snap back at him.
I never heard this as snapping. McCandless was irreverent even as CAPCOM during the Apollo 11 moonwalk, though the historic nature of that EVA meant he was somewhat subdued. Also, Shepard poked hard at the other astronauts, but generally only respected the guys who pushed back. McCandless obviously had that kind of relationship with Shepard (and through him, Mitchell), where he would actually *bait* Shepard. He nearly talked over Al's first words from the surface at the beginning of this EVA by tossing in "Not bad for an old man" just as Al was starting His Historic Quote.
McCandless also baited Shepard with absurd mnemonics for the camera magazines. The 16mm movie camera magazines were referred to with doubled letters, I believe mags AA through EE were loaded in the LM. When Shepard reported he was attaching magazine Echo Echo (his term), McCandless responded with "Roger, magazine Esmerelda Ecuador." Shepard was obviously thinking hard about how to one-up his CAPCOM when Mitchell, in this case, broke in with the tension breaker of "There's no way you can win that game (the absurd magazine names), Al. He's got a list of them sitting right next to him."
In the context of McCandless' style as a CAPCOM, on earlier flights as well as on this one, this is just how Bruce joked around. Now, it may also be why it took like 18 years from his selection as an astronaut to when he finally flew on the Shuttle, since the wise guys who mouth off to the bosses rarely get the plum assignments. But it was just how he was all the time. That, and I imagine he might have flown earlier in the Shuttle program had he not decided to specialize in the MMU jet backpack development. For that, he did get to be the first human to separate from his vehicle completely untethered, so it's not like he got shut out of the work he really wanted to be doing.
Now, you wanna hear a CAPCOM who ought to have been slapped down a few times for not doing his job well, go listen through the Apollo 17 EVAs. Bob Parker was not only the worst kind of needling humorist, he also regularly had problems following the conversation between himself and the LM crew. I know the CAPCOMs had to be listening to multiple loops at once, but if you're not good enough at it to be able to hear a majority of the questions and comments directed to you from the guys whose little pink behinds are all the way out on the line, up there on the Moon, then maybe someone else ought to be doing the job. That was a much bigger problem, both potential and actual, than McCandless being flip with Shepard and Mitchell. IMHO.
@@DougVanDorn ok. I believe the kids these days would call it a "clap back". Doesn't necessarily have to be malicious or even hostile. Just a snarky response. Which is what I meant.
@@DougVanDorn well said. McCandless was a great CAPCOM. He and Shepard were Naval aviators and Naval aviators do not have a problem "taking the pi**" out of each other. He was in the Group 5 class of astros and there were only so many seats to go around in Apollo and Skylab. If McCandless wasn't well respected, Deke Slayton and others would have made his life hell and he would probably would have left NASA way before the Shuttle program began.
I like this kind of dialogue. Pretty sure it must have been more of this on all Apollo missions. May I suggest a documentary with all the work around the Saturn V missions, such as the construction of the launch and transport pad, the rocket stacking, etc
That's a good idea! I was thinking of re-making the "Early Apollo" video and just produce an all-encompassing video that spans the research, development, and test phases of Apollo including all official flights up to Apollo 6.
@@JacksonTyler I think a detailed documentary of the Saturn five all up test before and after would be really great. Is that technically Apollo 4, or 5??.. that shaved off like 16 months minimum and stunts the program if it fails especially after Apollo 1.
Great footage 🇫🇮📡
Really a shame that the Apollo 14 EVA was so tenuous. Shepard deserved better….
I really wish they hadn't taken your Mercury Documentary down... I'd have loved to have seen it.
It's back up.
I've re listened to this about a dozen times and it's not that bad at all. Capcom comes off a little too assertive and trying to correct them too much, but it's more just a serious "possibly autistic" personality against a more laid back one. No real tension.
sweet
Suppose you're on the Moon, in one of those EVA suits. You're standing with one foot on sunlit ground, and the other in a shadowed spot. On balance, are you comfortable?