FROM THE EARTH TO THE MOON: WE INTERRUPT THIS PROGRAM {PART 8 OF 12} (TV)
Summary
Continued from T:53270. Part eight of this twelve-part docudrama series about the development of the U.S. space program as the country prepares to send men to the moon. Part eight, entitled "We Interrupt This Program," examines the media coverage of the Apollo 13 mission. As the Apollo 13 crew journeys toward the moon, the media seems disinterested in the mission. However, when Apollo 13 transmits a message of distress to Houston, the media jumps into action. Without access to pictures from space, the media must rely on grainy transmissions between the crew and mission control. Emmett Seaborn has a hunch about the problem and makes an important phone call just seconds before his live broadcast starts. A young sports reporter, Brett Hutchins, feels the perspectives of the astronauts' families would be more interesting then the technical jargon on the news. And Seaborn and the reporters complain they have been shut out of the situation and demand a room for the press pool at mission control. As Hutchins does what is necessary to develop his story about the astronauts' families, Seaborn manages to acquire secret information about the condition of the astronauts and the spacecraft. Ultimately, Seaborn and Hutchins have an ethical quandry about whether digging into the personal lives of private citizens is actually journalism. When the crew of Apollo 13 is ready to re-enter Earth's atmosphere, tension is running high. When communications return, everyone is relieved to hear the astronauts' voices, but Seaborn reminds his jubilant audience that there is no guarantee the parachutes will function upon splashdown. But as the cameras roll, the parachutes open and the crew survives. Seaborn becomes emotional on the air and rushes off to begin the exclusive interview he had been promised with the flight director. But when Seaborn arrives, Hutchins is waiting to interview the same person. Visibly shaken, Seaborn rejects Hutchins's offer to take the interview and walks away from the scene. Continues with T:53267.
This selection from the Alan Gerry Cable Collection has been made available by the Gerry Foundation, Inc.
Details
- NETWORK: HBO
- DATE: April 26, 1998 Sunday 9:00 PM
- RUNNING TIME: 0:48:50
- COLOR/B&W: Color
- CATALOG ID: T:53264
- GENRE: Drama, historical
- SUBJECT HEADING: Drama, historical; Apollo 13; Space exploration; Reporters and reporting; Astronauts
- SERIES RUN: HBO - TV series, 1998
- COMMERCIALS: N/A
CREDITS
- Tom Hanks … Executive Producer
- Tony To … Co-Executive Producer
- Graham Yost … Supervising Producer
- John Melfi … Supervising Producer
- Brian Grazer … Producer
- Ron Howard … Producer
- Michael Bostick … Producer
- Erik Bork … Co-Producer
- Bruce Richmond … Co-Producer
- Janace Tashjian … Co-Producer
- Terry Odem … Associate Producer
- David Frankel … Director
- Peter Osterlund … Writer
- Amy Brooke Baker … Writer
- Andrew Chaikin … Based in part on the book "A Man on the Moon" by
- Brad Fiedel … Music by
- Michael Kamen … Theme Music by
- Tammy Arnold … Cast, Sarah
- Rus D. Blackwell … Cast, Joel Kruger
- Brian Brightman … Cast, the Editor
- Dan Butler … Cast, Gene Kranz
- Jack Carroll … Cast, Reporter #3
- Colette Piceau Colangelo … Cast, Reporter #4
- Heather DeOreo … Cast, Doris
- Steve DuMouchel … Cast, Jeff Jordy
- Jeff Evans … Cast, the Director
- Billy Flanigan … Cast, Suit #2
- Harold Fletcher … Cast, Dr. Swigert
- Tim Goodwin … Cast, Mr. Radio
- Erich Hoffelder … Cast, Brett's Soundman
- John Hostetter … Cast, Ralph Cooper
- Clint Howard … Cast, Paul Lucas
- Key Howard … Cast, Reporter #5
- John M. Jackson … Cast, Hal Deacon
- Kathy Karol … Cast, Shirley
- David Kaufman … Cast, David Gibson
- William Larson … Cast, Seymour Rosen
- Michael Laskin … Cast, Larry Thompson
- Christopher Miles … Cast, TV #3
- Jay Mohr … Cast, Brett Hutchins
- Jeff Moldovan … Cast, Reporter #7
- Dennis Neal … Cast, Suit #1
- Don C. Noderer … Cast, TV #1
- Conor O'Farrell … Cast, James McDivitt
- Janet Peterson … Cast, Mrs. Swigert
- Ethan Phillips … Cast, Stanley Craig
- Ric Reitz … Cast, Reporter #8
- Brett Rice … Cast, Sam Langfitt
- Stephen Root … Cast, Chris Kraft
- John Rothman … Cast, Warren Moburg
- Paul Rouffa … Cast, Mr. AP
- Gerard Russell … Cast, Suit #3
- Nick Searcy … Cast, Deke Slayton
- Lane Smith … Cast, Emmett Seaborn
- Catherine Stork … Cast, TV #4
- Jan Taylor … Cast, TV #2
- Todd Thompson … Cast, TV #5
- Doug Truelson … Cast, Mr. UPI
- Cyndi Vicino … Cast, Reporter #2
- Dave Wagner … Cast, the Anchor
- George Wilson … Cast, Reporter #6