“Fantastic!”: July 21, 1969, man on the moon and Le Parisien above the moon

Twenty thousand days and almost as many issues of Le Parisien separate us from the historic July 21, 1969. marking the “beginning of a new era” and even the end of the “age of the wheel”, according to an editorial by Louis Lamarre.

The first words, the first photograph, the minute-by-minute report on the moon landing, the international reaction, the explanatory infographics: nothing has “aged” in the treatment assigned that evening by the editors to an event that would undoubtedly not be treated fundamentally differently today. Internet coverage is, of course, an aside.

Feat at 3:56…on newsstands hours later

Everything that makes up the strength of a Parisian is laid out on one and three double-page spreads: in a decidedly educational tone, albeit somewhat exalted – but who dares blame them – the journalists detail the progress of the mission, with an exceptional level of detail given the late timing of events!

Because if the morning paper is never as hot and good as the evening news, let’s remember that this event lasted well beyond closing time: the Eagle module with Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin definitely landed at 21:20 French time. , but Armstrong set foot on our satellite at 3:56 a.m., in Mondovision and at a time when the newspaper was already coming out of rotos!

And yet, on the front page of the large format (Le Parisien was published in large format between 1966 and 1973 as a tabloid) a photo of Armstrong on the moon does appear with the headline “Armstrong walked on the moon.” at 3:55 am. No fuss in the name – down to the mythical “Kururiko!” We still have a long way to go! blocking newspaper headlines the day after Ariana’s first flight in December 1979 – but getting a little more attention in a short piece hailing nothing short of “the greatest moment in human history.” And to mark this occasion: a “special” red stamp and an invitation to preserve this historical document. From what act?

On the other hand, a more daring “fantas-tick!” “”, a quote attributed to Michael Collins, the third astronaut to serve as space taxi, as well as a photo in anticipation suggest that the closure occurred much earlier in the night. The only thing the two front pages have in common is that our astronauts share the bill with Eddy Merckx, winner of the Tour de France.

Let’s open this edition to rewind time and imagine that this must be a real editorial mystery. The enthusiastic editorial hails the very first “human connection established between our world and other planets.”, and defends the style of the astronauts who accomplished this feat, which was considered too sober at the time: “ Don’t be surprised by their silence. This is simply a situation where test pilots encounter a machine whose insidiousness they are unaware of. »

Next follow several stories, minute by minute, telling, in the manner of those “lives” that we publish today on our website, about the three main stages of the operation. The first, presented only in large format, is a middle-of-the-night addition of Neil Armstrong’s famous “Great Leap Forward of Man.” And yet, no mention of his formula, which was subsequently passed down to posterity: instead there is another option: “3:55 am: Armstrong states: I feel the ground with the tip of my toe, it is very hard, my foot leaves no imprint, it looks like coal. It’s easier here than in simulators. No problems with walking. »

Stories, transcripts, images

The second story, present in both formulas, is about the moon landing a few hours earlier. Endless Waiting and Release, Buzz Aldrin: “Here is the foundation of Peace. The eagle has landed. » You can almost hear the applause in the control center in Houston, Texas. The third story, which we assume was written earlier in the day, goes back to the previous evening and tells of the final phase of the moon’s approach.

The surroundings of these three blocks are purely Parisian: infographics explaining the various gestures of the astronauts, a collection of exceptional devices installed around the world to observe the event, and a very interesting little article explaining to viewers why he landed on the moon. was not filmed: the astronauts had, in short, other things to do. It is also a pleasure to re-read the television program interspersed with the Apollo mission and the daily horoscope of three American astronauts – “Come to the appointment” for Armstrong, “Ask others to help you” for Aldrin and “Good afternoon to meet the expert you need” – Collins said.

Unsurprisingly, Le Parisien would do it again the next day with a front-page ad in conventional terms. “There would be water on the Moon,” even daring “90% chance that there is life there,” and talking about two hours of astronauts wandering around our satellite, as well as the mysterious disappearance at the same time of the Soviet Luna 15 probe. – Cold War atmosphere. Let us also note a small “legal point of view” dedicated to the nationality of the Moon, again very much included in the DNA of the Parisian…

From Gagarin to Pesquet, the ubiquitous Parisian

We conclude these historic editions with the impression that the editorial staff of Le Parisien, in those few magical days of the summer of 1969, did what it has always done best: adapted, transformed, to rise to the heights of exceptional news – we can easily imagine that many columnists, who had never covered scientific topics, took it up.

Space exploration has never been a regular column in Le Parisien, but our newspaper has always been able to be at its best on the main dates of this epic, unlike any other. Yuri Gagarin took over the entire front page and three inside pages on April 13, 1961, the day after his historic flight. Jean-Loup Chrétien also came into the spotlight on June 25, 1982, the day after his successful liftoff made him the first Frenchman, and even the first Western European, to travel in space.

Most recently, our newspaper has extensively covered Tom Pesquet’s missions, the incredible Rosetta mission, and the launch of the Perseverance mission to Mars in February 2021. The subjects were always treated with soul, passion, but also with pedagogy. At Le Parisien, the space is always at the level of human height.