John F. Kennedy’s Address at Rice University on the Nation’s Space Effort

Thanks to a cool app called Likewise, I uncovered a period miniseries produced by Tom Hanks two years before Band of Brothers. The drama is called From the Earth to the Moon and it covered the space race from the 60’s in an exquisite manner. It’s available on HBO Max and Prime Video. Here’s the trailer…

Every episode starts with quote from John F. Kennedy’s epic speech at Rice University in 1962 that sounds a little out of context:

We choose to go to the Moon. We choose to go to the Moon in this decade and do the other things, not because they are easy, but because they are hard…

It’s the ‘do the other things’ that sounded odd so last night I looked up and listened to the entire speech and it almost made me weep to hear a president that actually sounded presidential rallying the nation behind his vision for success in the space race. Here’s a link to the transcript and the speech in it’s entirety:

Yes, I struggle with Kennedy’s dark side; the affairs, etc. that have come to light since his passing, but my God, it’s impossible for me to deny the greatness he exhibited during his ‘brief, shining moment’. This is an heroic president and a nation at its best. Feel free to comment below…

Source: Address at Rice University on the Nation’s Space Effort | JFK Library