Day Tripping: October 31
Lonely Orbitor
Michal Collins was born in 1930 in Rome, Italy, the son of a US Army officer. After his own military training, he joined the US Air Force for two reasons. First, he was fascinated with where aeronautics was evolving in the 1950s. Also, he didn’t want to be accused of nepotism by joining his father’s branch of the service.
Collins was a natural pilot, advancing quickly, eventually testing delivery of nuclear weapons from aircraft. He was chosen in the second group of American pilots to join the space program in 1963.
Collins was the astronaut who remained in the Apollo 11 command module while Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin first landed on the moon. When the crew returned triumphantly to Earth, Collins was asked what he thought about orbiting alone while his mates made history.
“I just kept reminding myself that every single component in this spacecraft was provided by the guy who submitted the cheapest tender.”
The following year after the historic flight, Michael Collins was appointed Assistant Secretary of State for Public Affairs. He then became Director of the National Air and Space Museum. Michael Collins died last April at the age of 90.
Today is:
D’uh!
Musical Ride
Spinal Tap reunited for their ex-manager’s funeral in 1991, where they announced a comeback, saying, “It was destiny and also because none of us were really making a great amount of money.”
Interesting Notes
The Great Harry Houdini died of gangrene in 1926 when his appendix burst from a punch to the stomach.
Gone But Not Forgotten
The first and arguably best James Bond, Scottish actor Sean Connery died in 2020 at 90.
Notable Births
1931 — Dan Rather said, “Ratings don’t last. Good journalism does.”
1950 — Jon Candy said, “You don’t pay an actor to act. An actor will do that for free because we love to act. You pay an actor to wait.”
K. Barrett Maria Rattray Maryam Merchant Dr. Mehmet Yildiz Tree Langdon Myriam Ben Salem Phil Truman Chelsea Mandler MAT Terry Mansfield Hollie Petit, Ph.D. Terry Trueman Dr. Preeti Singh John Gruber Bill Abbate James G Brennan ScienceDuuude Marcus Liam Ireland Claire Kelly Noorain Hassan, BMS Amy Pierovich David Acaster Nora Thewriteyard David Perlmutter Joe Luca Holly Kellums Michael Burg, MD Lucy Dan Dave Logan
All previous Day Tripping entries are available at the following links:
The Story Of Day Tripping Through History What’s Past Is Often Present
A comprehensive directory for Day Tripping
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