Today, May 25th, there are two interesting Space anniversaries.
One fact.
"I believe that this nation should commit itself to achieving the goal, before this decade is out, of landing a man on the moon and returning him safely to the Earth."
— Pres. Kennedy, May 25, 1961
Read the text (PDF) | Listen 
One fiction.
"In recognition of the May 25, 1977, opening, series creator George
Lucas’ Lucasfilm production company and convention organizer Gen Con
are presenting “Star Wars Celebration IV” at the Los Angeles Convention
Center, which will be open to the public Friday through Monday."
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http://archives.cnn.com/2001/TECH/space/05/25/kennedy.moon/
Man on the moon: Kennedy speech ignited the dream
May 25, 2001 Posted: 12:50 p.m. EDT (1650 GMT)
By Richard Stenger
CNN
President Kennedy calls for a mission to send man to the moon during a joint session of Congress on May 25, 1961
(CNN) -- Forty years ago on this day, President John F. Kennedy
presented a bold challenge before a joint session of Congress: Send a
man to the moon by the end of the decade.
Some derided the dream as lunacy. Others viewed it as just another
strategic move in the Cold War chess match between the United States
and the Soviet Union.
Kennedy had just been humiliated in the Bay of Pigs fiasco in Cuba, a
communist ally of Moscow. In his speech, he called for many measures to
combat communism, requesting billions, for example, to stop red
insurgencies in Southeast Asia.
But in his address, Kennedy chose space as the main Cold War
battleground on which to marshal his forces. The Soviet Union opened
the final frontier when it sent the Sputnik satellite into orbit in
1957.
Four years later, cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin became the first man in
space. The Soviets were beating the Americans to every milestone off
the planet.
Feeling a sense of urgency in finding a way to overtake the Soviets in
the space race, Kennedy had huddled with Vice President Lyndon Johnson
and his science advisers to come up with a plan.
The president determined that safely landing a man on the moon would be
technologically daunting, but it was a goal that the United States
could reach before the Soviet Union.
"No single space project in this period will be more impressive to
mankind, or more important for the long-range exploration of space; and
none will be so difficult or expensive to accomplish," Kennedy said.
The president cautioned Congress that the cost would be significant,
more than $9 billion in 1960s dollars. Congress accepted the challenge.
Kennedy's vision guided NASA's human space flight program from the
beginning. Mercury, Gemini and Apollo missions were designed with his
objective in mind.
Despite skeptics who thought it could not be accomplished, Kennedy's
dream became a reality on July 20, 1969, when Apollo 11 commander Neil
Armstrong took a small step for himself and a giant step for humanity,
leaving a dusty trail of footprints on the moon.
A total of 12 Apollo astronauts would reach the lunar surface over the
next three years, collecting rocks, driving buggies and even practicing
a little golf.

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Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin set up a U.S. flag on the moon
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Meanwhile, the Soviet Union scrapped its lunar manned mission program
before one cosmonaut reached the moon.
While steeped in Cold War rhetoric, Kennedy's address also noted that
the push to explore space transcended national rivalries.
"But this is not merely a race. Space is open to us now; and our
eagerness to share its meaning is not governed by the efforts of
others. We go into space because whatever mankind must undertake, free
men must fully share."
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http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/18863675/
‘A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away ...’
30 years after its release, fans, actors celebrate anniversary of ‘Star Wars’

Lucasfilm Ltd. & TM / AP
Mark Hamill (shown with droid C-3PO in the original film) became a star after playing Luke Skywalker in the "Star Wars" movies.
By Carolyn Giardina
Hollywood Reporter
Updated: 4:51 a.m. HT May 25, 2007
LOS ANGELES - More than 20,000 “Star Wars” fans are expected to converge on downtown Los Angeles during the next few days to celebrate the film’s 30th anniversary.
In
recognition of the May 25, 1977, opening, series creator George Lucas’
Lucasfilm production company and convention organizer Gen Con are
presenting “Star Wars Celebration IV” at the Los Angeles Convention
Center, which will be open to the public Friday through Monday.
The
event — which kicked off Wednesday with a marathon screening of all six
films — includes live entertainment, cast-member appearances, film and
video presentations and an exhibit of movie props and costumes.
Carrie Fisher (a.k.a. Princess Leia)
will attend, but Lucas is out of the country, said Tom Warner, senior
director of marketing at Lucasfilm.
Warner
said the event will include a preview of a new video game, “The Force
Unleashed,” which will be available on multiple game platforms in early
2008. In the game, the player takes on the role of Darth Vader’s secret
apprentice.
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GABRIEL BOUYS / AFP/Getty Images
Peter
Mayhew, who played Chewbacca in the first three "Star Wars"
films, signs autographs during the opening day of "Star Wars
Celabration IV" in Los Angeles on Thursday. The five-day convention
celebrates the 30th anniversary of the Star Wars saga.
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“Star
Wars” was nominated for 10 Academy Awards in 1978 and won six. In 2005,
the American Film Institute named John Williams’ iconic score the most
memorable of all time. The film has shown up on additional AFI lists,
including the “100 Greatest American Movies” list, where it ranked No.
15.
“Star
Wars” marked a milestone in visual effects. Its makers pioneered
groundbreaking visual effects techniques, and the work inspired many of
today’s VFX talent. Among the weekend program events is a Saturday
session featuring the five visual effects supervisors from the 1977
classic through 2005’s “Star Wars: Episode III — Revenge of the Sith.” Scheduled to appear are Richard Edlund, John Knoll, Dennis Muren, Ken Ralston and Phil Tippett.
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Star Wars: The Old Republic Beta Test Observations
Star Wars: The Old Republic Beta Test Observations
29 November 2011
EventHorizon1984
It was a warm November 21st. An evening made memorable by the arrival of an email that started with the following sentence.
You are invited to test Star Wars: The Old Republic!
It was not a phishing email.
Before going further:
You may well ask what is Star Wars: The Old Republic? According to EA, BioWare, and LucasArts:
We believe the game will be a hit, and reach an initial half-million subscribers. With one million subscribers by the end of the first year.
Of course we could be wrong, and the dim sour grapes view from a major competitor could be correct.
Of course the Activision CEO Bobby Kotick may have other motives for his comments.
About that beta test...
The beta test began November 25th, and sadly ended the evening of the 28th. I liked it.
Obligatory game play screen shot.
While now allowed to comment in detail on the game, I won't (mostly). The game has a very cinematic feel and the details would be one giant Spoiler Alert, because each character you play is story driven.
Do you really want to know who's your Daddy?
Besides other gaming experts will describe in excrutiating details ALL the spoilers, and ruin the experience.
Having said that ...
This is a Windows only game.
The beta software was a download of approximately 19GB. Buying a box set will save you from the hours it will take to download a fresh complete digital copy. Abet you will need to download any recent updates. However digital pre-order owners may get access to the game up to five days in advance.
'Getting into the game required very little instruction. Gameplay was as they say, intuitive. The character controls were smooth and responsive*, with no appreciable lag. However this may change when the first hundred thousand players sign in. blah, blah.
There is "shooter" action aplenty to keep a gamer occupied. You may enjoy sending that first hand launched missile at an opponent, and see the body (bodies) fly. Or 'feel' the impact of your light sabre in a fight. Or chuckle at the sound and graphics of a "Dirty Kick" attack; "oooh that's gotta hurt". Or find your companion outplaying you, as she goes all out Xena Warrior Princess medieval on an opponent. No graphic game violence though.
When you're in a large area with a few dozen other players battling it out, don't get killed watching.
You will find movie references.
"That's 'cause droids don't pull people's arms out of their sockets when they lose." Han Solo
SPOILER ALERT
But what was most disturbing, was uncovering why the Republic fell.
A Marker on Coruscant. The bane of Isaac Clarke's life.
Ok, not really a spoiler or Marker.
Star Wars: The Old Republic is scheduled for release in North America on 20 December 2011, and Europe on 22 December 2011.
/*
"Well, you may have thought it was a game, but it was also a test. Aha, a test! Sent out across the galaxy to find those with the potential to be Starfighters. And here you are, my boy! Here you are! "
Centauri (Robert Preston), The Last Starfighter (1984)
/*
Disclosure - Multiple copies of Star Wars: The Old Republic have been pre-ordered. Some here are Electronic Arts, BioWare, Amazon, Origin, GameStop, and Blizzard customers.
* Game was tested on two different systems:
/*
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Posted on 29 November 2011 at 15:44 in Commentary, EventHorizon1984, Fantasy and Science Fiction, Film, Games, Space | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBack (0)
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