Dear Neil Armstrong: Letters to the First Man from All Mankind (Purdue Studies in Aeronautics and Astronautics)

In the years between the historic first moon landing by Apollo 11 on July 20,1969, and his death at age 82 on August 25, 2002, Neil Armstrong received hundreds of thousands of cards and letters from all over the world, congratulating him, praising him, requesting pictures and autographs, and asking him what must have seemed to him to be limitless — and occasionally intrusive — questions. Of course, all the famous astronauts received fan mail, but the sheer volume Armstrong had to deal with for more than four decades after his moon landing was staggering. Today, the preponderance of those letters — some 75,000 of them — are preserved in the archives at Purdue University in West Lafayette, Indiana. Dear Neil Armstrong publishes a careful sampling of these letters — roughly 400 — reflecting the various kinds of correspondence that Armstrong received along with representative samples of his replies. Selected and edited by James R. Hansen, Armstrong's authorized biographer and author of the New YorkTimes best seller First Man: The Life of Neil A. Armstrong, this collection sheds light on Armstrong's enduring impact and offers an intimate glimpse into the cultural meanings of human spaceflight. Readers will explore what the thousands of letters to Neil Armstrong meant not only to those who wrote them, but as a snapshot of one of humankind's greatest achievements in the twentieth century. They will see how societies and cultures projected their own meanings onto one of the world's great heroes and iconic figures. "In the years between the historic first moon landing by Apollo 11 on July 20, 1969, and his death at age 82 on August 25, 2012, Neil Armstrong received hundreds of thousands of cards and letters from all over the world, congratulating him, praising him, requesting pictures and autographs, and asking him what must have seemed to him to be limitless-and occasionally intrusive-questions. Of course, all the famous astronauts received fan mail, but the sheer volume Armstrong had to deal with for more than four decades after his moon landing was staggering. Today, the preponderance of those letters-some 75,000 of them-are preserved in the archives at Purdue University in West Lafayette, Indiana. Dear Neil Armstrong: Letters to the First Man from All Mankind publishes a careful sampling of these letters-roughly 400-reflecting the various kinds of correspondence that Armstrong received along with representative samples of his replies. Selected and edited by James R. Hansen, Armstrong's authorized biographer and author of the New York Times best seller First Man: The Life of Neil A. Armstrong, this collection sheds light on Armstrong's enduring impact and offers an intimate glimpse into the cultural meanings of human spaceflight. Readers will explore what the thousands of letters to Neil Armstrong meant not only to those who wrote them, but as a snapshot of one of humankind's greatest achievements in the twentieth century. They will see how societies and cultures projected their own meanings onto one of the world's great heroes and iconic figures"-- Provided by publisher

In the years between the historic first moon landing byApollo 11 on July 20, 1969, and his death at age 82 onAugust 25, 2012, Neil Armstrong received hundreds of thousands ofcards and letters from all over the world, congratulating him,praising him, requesting pictures and autographs, and asking himwhat must have seemed to him to be limitless-and occasionallyintrusive-questions. Of course, all the famous astronauts receivedfan mail, but the sheer volume Armstrong had to deal with for morethan four decades after his moon landing was staggering.

Today, the preponderance of those letters-some 75,000 ofthem-are preserved in the archives at Purdue University in WestLafayette, Indiana. Dear Neil Armstrong: Letters to the FirstMan on the Moon publishes a careful sampling of theseletters-roughly 400-reflecting the various kinds of correspondencethat Armstrong received along with representative samples of hisreplies. Selected and edited by James R. Hansen, Armstrong'sauthorized biographer and author of the New York Timesbest seller First Man: The Life of Neil A. Armstrong, thiscollection sheds light on Armstrong's enduring impact and offers anintimate glimpse into the cultural meanings of human spaceflight.Readers will explore what the thousands of letters to NeilArmstrong meant not only to those who wrote them, but as a snapshotof one of humankind's greatest achievements in the twentiethcentury. They will see how societies and cultures projected theirown meanings onto one of the world's great heroes and iconicfigures.

In the years between the historic first moon landing by Apollo 11 on July 20, 1969, and his death at age 82 on August 25, 2012, Neil Armstrong received hundreds of thousands of cards and letters from all over the world, congratulating him, praising him, requesting pictures and autographs, and asking him what must have seemed to him to be limitless—and occasionally intrusive—questions. Of course, all the famous astronauts received fan mail, but the sheer volume Armstrong had to deal with for more than four decades after his moon landing was staggering. Today, the preponderance of those letters—some 75,000 of them—are preserved in the archives at Purdue University in West Lafayette, Indiana. Dear Neil Armstrong: Letters to the First Man on the Moon publishes a careful sampling of these letters—roughly 400—reflecting the various kinds of correspondence that Armstrong received along with representative samples of his replies. Selected and edited by James R. Hansen, Armstrong's authorized biographer and author of the New York Times best seller First Man: The Life of Neil A. Armstrong , this collection sheds light on Armstrong's enduring impact and offers an intimate glimpse into the cultural meanings of human spaceflight. Readers will explore what the thousands of letters to Neil Armstrong meant not only to those who wrote them, but as a snapshot of one of humankind's greatest achievements in the twentieth century. They will see how societies and cultures projected their own meanings onto one of the world's great heroes and iconic figures. Dedication Contents Foreword Preface 1 First Words 2 Congratulations and Welcome Home 3 The Soviets 4 For All Mankind 5 From All America 6 Reluctantly Famous 7 The Principled Citizen Appendix: Secretaries, Assistants, And Administrative Aides for Neil Armstrong, 1969–2012 Notes About the Editor