(July 20) -- Walter Cronkite and the moon landing have been inextricably linked since this day in 1969. The Eagle's arrival on the lunar surface was made all the more memorable by the normally unflappable anchorman's utterly human reaction on live TV.
"Oh boy. Whew. Boy!" he exclaimed, removing his glasses and rubbing his hands together with glee.
As he did so often, "Uncle Walter" was speaking for millions of Americans.
New of his death broke Friday night and tributes continue to pour in, including this from our own Walter -- Politics Daily's Walter Shapiro.
Perhaps the best way to appreciate Cronkite's legacy is to watch him at work and listen to his own words. CBS has the highlights in this video.
On this 40th anniversary of the moon landing, former NASA administrator Michael Griffin is adding his voice to those urging America to reach farther into space. But in an op-ed for The New York Times, "The Right Stuff" author Tom Wolfe wonders whether Neil Armstrong's first step on the moon turned out to be "One Giant Leap to Nowhere."
Another 40th anniversary passed over the weekend with little media attention. Mary Jo Kopechne drowned when Sen. Ted Kennedy drove his car off a Massachusetts bridge. John Gizzi at Human Events examines lingering questions about Chappaquiddick.
Somehow, the inimitable "Uncle Jay" pulls all these threads together as he explains the news for us in this YouTube video.
The Daily Palin
Was the stress so bad that Sarah Palin's hair really started falling out? That was the word in The New York Times last week. But only her hairdresser knows for sure -- and now she's tweeting up a storm. Jessica Steele at the Beehive salon in Wasilla is declaring via Twitter that she never said such a thing to the Times.
Palin herself announced on Twitter yesterday that the family is packing up this week as she prepares to step down early as governor of Alaska. Here's her dispatch: "Todd & I r packing JNU house today; looking thru Piper's kindergarten schoolwork here reminds how quickly X flies; she enters 3rd grd in fall."
Tweeting aside, her speeches may seem a bit disjointed at times -- but True/Slant's Vickie Karp reports Palin's words sound like poetry to some.
