|
Michael Collins was picked by NASA to be an astronaut in 1963. His first spaceflight was aboard Gemini 10 with John Young in 1966, and flew again on Apollo 11 in 1969, the first moon landing mission with crewmates Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin. Collins orbited the moon in the Command Module Columbia while Neil and Buzz went to the surface in the Lunar Module Eagle. After a day on the moon's Sea of Tranquility. Buzz and Neil rendezvous'ed with Collins and he took them back home to Earth. In addition to his astronaut experiences, Collins graduated from West Point, was a test pilot at Edwards AFB, became an Assistant Secretary of State, was the director of the National Air & Space Museum and attended Harvard Business School. He is also an excellent gourmet cook. Unanimously considered the finest author of the astronaut corps, he eschews ghost writers and co-authors, confident of his own literary skills. He has written four books, the critically acclaimed Carrying the Fire, as well as Liftoff, Mission to Mars, and a children's book, Flying to the moon. Collins is now happily retired after a stellar careers as test pilot, astronaut, diplomat, author and first director of the most-visited museum in the world. He now fishes, explores and paints the wilderness around his South Florida home. He is still happily married to his wife of 48 years, Pat. He steadfastly refuses the kind of personal appearance and speaking schedule that other astronaut colleagues maintain. Michael Collins' watercolors embrace the things he holds most dear: Landscapes of his Florida Everglades home; places he has visited on family vacations; the fish and wildlife native to Florida; and airplanes and jets he flew as a young test pilot. Rarely does he paint anything space-related. During his trip to the moon, he saw the lifeless, gray, battered surface beneath him: He remarked to Houston- "(the moon) can't compare to the jewel it orbits" and returned home with a deeper appreciation of Earth, its color and wildlife, and its special place in the universe. Mike has never appeared at an autograph show before, and probably never will again. He is only signing Friday. and Saturday will be in the art show with his watercolors. He is only doing Spacefest as a favor to us (Novaspace.) After a life in public he enjoys his retirement, fishing, and painting, and staying home. SPACEFEST 2009 AUTOGRAPH FEES (Fri only)
|