It was the summer of '69

[heidi]

I don't know when I first learned about the left out "a", the word Neil Armstrong didn't say when he stepped out onto the moon. I think the first time I read about it in full was in a book called Big Secrets, back in 1985. The Snopes page explains it pretty well, but basically, Armstrong ws supposed to say "One small step for a man", but instead, he said "One small step for man...">

Initially, NASA and Armstrong said that the word "a" was obscured by static; Doctor Who took that little micromoment and blamed, well, Silence. Armstrong's words were not entirely his own - they had been rehearsed and specifically crafted for the occasion, and at the time he said he was sure that he'd said "a", but a few decades afterwards, he seems to now believe he misspoke. There was some static on the transmissions, and the recorders then were not as high-fidelity as they are now, but there is no hint of the "a" on the recordings.

It was so subtle in Doctor Who tonight - if you didn't already know that there was some dispute/history in the question of whether Armstrong said "a", if you didn't know that the question, at this point, is entirely based on a comparison of Armstrong's memory with what was recorded on earth, it would just seem like a neat little place for Moffat & Co to have slotted something in. But the fact that they put it there, I find enchanting.

(But I don't know of any houses in Central Florida that look like that orphanage. Maybe it was the same Florida as used by SPN in Mystery Spot.)

Comments

[morganmuffle]

I had heard all of that about the a but it didn't occur to me during the episode but I'm SO glad you pointed it out! It's one of those tiny details that they throw in sometimes and I bet it was deliberate.

[gigglingkat]

True story. I've lived in Broward County my entire life and it was 2 WEEKS after Mystery Spot aired that I realized they were supposed to be in FL.

Clex might still have that chat log somewhere.

They drive UP A MOUNTAIN to get to the Mystery Spot. A. MOUNTAIN.

DW did the better thing and set it at night in a storm. I DID notice that the image was set to account for the static - but had forgotten about the whole "did he say the a or not" debate. That one millisecond you can't quite remember what was shown and said, so your brain says it was static. BRILLIANT.

I think they also used the whole "subliminal message" to subtly suggest that the Doctor convinces Nixon he should tape everything and trust no one (except the Doctor). Nixon also abuses presidential power a couple of times to help the Doctor - something he'll keep on doing.

So that 20 minutes of static on the Watergate tapes - really the day the Silence attempt to take the White House again.

Also - the children's home warden - Renfrew - shades of Renfield much?

[thunderemerald.livejournal.com]

Whoa, I did not know about that. That is SO COOL.