Neil Armstrong, dead at 82, graced front pages after moon landing

Neil Armstrong took America to the moon on July 20, 1969 when the astronaut landed there in Apollo 11 with “Buzz” Aldrin and famously declared “one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind.” Roger Ailes describes the historic communication from space:

“I was in the Oval Office when Neil Armstrong landed on the moon because I was called in to coordinate the coverage,” Ailes recalls. “I got to thinking, We have a feed from the moon. We’ve got a feed from the Earth. I can set up the first interplanetary shot in history.”

NBC, which broke the story, initially misidentified Neil Armstrong online. NBC said the mistake was online for seven minutes. There is now a correction on the story. (Screenshot by TVWeek).

The split screen solution made broadcast history. The following day, the moon landing rose on the country’s front pages and again on the 40th anniversary in 2009. A selection of those pages appears below (some cropped), along with Sunday’s front pages honoring Armstrong, who died Saturday at the age of 82. || Related: In TV coverage, “his death was like his life: strangely muted” (AP) | The best design decisions & worst mistakes on Armstrong front pages (Charles Apple) | People tweet memories of moon landing (Sarah Stokely/Neal Mann) | Photos to use (and avoid) for Sunday front pages featuring Neil Armstrong (Charles Apple) | Nixon speechwriter William Safire had a eulogy prepared in 1969, in case of a space disaster (via Jim Roberts) || Correction: This post originally stated that Michael Collins, who was also on the Apollo 11 mission, landed on the moon. He did not. Collins remained in orbit.

This image appears courtesy of Wikipedia

Front page appears courtesy of The New York Times

The Boston Globe published select pages showing its coverage of the moon landing

The Denver Post tweeted a photo of its moon landing front page

The Huntsville News

The front page of the Omaha World-Herald had an unusual headline: “First Men Set Foot on Alien World after Soaring U.S. Eagle Roosts At ‘Tranquility Base’ on the Moon.” Thanks to Megan O’Connor for the photo.

The Evening Standard appears courtesy of the BBC

The Guardian appears courtesy of the BBC

The Financial Times appears courtesy of the BBC

The Times of London appears courtesy of the BBC

Neil Armstrong’s hometown paper, The Wapakoneta (Ohio) Daily News, ran this front page when he returned to Earth (via Steve Silberman, via Nina Diamond)

The Daily Times, in Texas, from the 40th anniversary of the moon landing, appears courtesy of the Newseum.

The Brownsville (Texas) Herald, on the 40th anniversary of the moon landing, appears courtesy of the Newseum

The Tyler Morning Telegraph, on the 40th anniversary of the moon landing, appears courtesy of the Newseum

The Salt Lake Tribune, on the 40th anniversary of the moon landing, appears courtesy of the Newseum

The Huntsville Times, on the 40th anniversary of the moon landing, appears courtesy of the Newseum

California’s Ventura County Star, on the 40th anniversary of the moon landing, appears courtesy of the Newseum

New York’s Post-Standard, on the 40th anniversary of the moon landing, appears courtesy of the Newseum

Pennsylvania’s Beaver County Times, on the 40th anniversary of the moon landing, appears courtesy of the Newseum

North Carolina’s Gaston Gazette, on the 40th anniversary of the moon landing, appears courtesy of the Newseum

am New York, on the 40th anniversary of the moon landing, appears courtesy of the Newseum

Hawaii’s Star-Bulletin, on the 40th anniversary of the moon landing, appears courtesy of the Newseum

The News & Messenger, in Virginia, on the 40th anniversary of the moon landing, appears courtesy of the Newseum

Trib p.m., in Pennsylvania, on the 40th anniversary of the moon landing, appears courtesy of the Newseum

Virginia’s News Advance appears courtesy of the Newseum

The Kentucky Enquirer appears courtesy of the Newseum

Portugal’s Publico appears courtesy of the Newseum

The Forum, in North Dakota, appears courtesy of the Newseum

The Chicago Sun-Times appears courtesy of the Newseum

Austria’s Neue appears courtesy of the Newseum

Indiana’s Journal & Courier appears courtesy of the Newseum

North Dakota’s Bismarck Tribune appears courtesy of the Newseum

California’s Record appears courtesy of the Newseum

Brazi’s Correio appears courtesy of the Newseum

Italy’s Il Giornale di Vicenza appears courtesy of the Newseum

Minnesota’s Duluth News Tribune appears courtesy of the Newseum

Illinois’ Journal Star appears courtesy of the Newseum