Wow, has it already been fifty years ago since the launch of Gemini III? Those were the very first steps on our way to landing on the moon. For me it seems like it was just yesterday.
Poor Gus Grissom died later in the awful Apollo fire (God bless his soul), but John Young ended up living a very successful life as an astronaut undertaking many more missions (he's now 84 believe or not).
Gemini IV impressed me so much that I drew a picture of the Gemini capsule floating in space above the Earth and sent it to astronauts Ed White and Jim McDivitt. Below the letter they sent back to me:
Some interesting links:
What a wonderful treasure to still have Kiffin! Now a days it would have been an email or some other kind of electronic message
Hello
I was in my teens when Gemini 4 went up that day and I watched it in high school in 1965.
It sure was a great adventure the afternoon when Ed White stepped out of his spacecraft and walked for over 20 minutes.
The following year in July I received a letter from Ed white thanking me for a drawing I did of him and McDivitt.
I still have this letter as well. So there we are, we both have something in common.
I was really upset the day in Jan 27 1967 when Ed White, Roger Chaffee and Gus Grissom were killed in the Apollo fire.
I received a condolence letter from Allan Shephard in March 1967 thanking me for my responding to the families during this sad lost.
Wow, that's quite a coincidence that we both sent drawings! Thanks for the comment telling me about this. Was your letter similar to mine? Interesting how in those days we received an authentic typed out letter with a real-life handwritten signature. Nowadays I guess you'd be lucky to get an email or a tweet.
Yes it was a drawing and my older brother told me I should send it to Ed White in Houston Texas and I first said they may not like getting letters and drawings. But I mailed it and got the response. I was very excited upon getting the letter of thanks plus he wished me a successful career in the artist world.
The other letter from A Shephard was of a sad one but a value to me in a total different way, emotional I guess I could say.
Can you imagine one that has been out of a spaceship and the other been on the moon. Real great. I treasure these letters as they have traveled across this country with me (Canada) 6 times.
I'm glad to hear from you and thank you for writing back to me. With Much Regards Joseph