Lucas sat with Neil Armstrong on the suite’s outdoor seats and looked around taking in the grandiosity of the situation while sipping his Hudy Delight.
“Only one loss between the two pitchers… and 12 wins. Both early Cy Young candidates in their leagues. Definitely a pitching banquet ahead of us”, said the old man.
“Ah, oh, yeah,” sputtered Lucas.
“Are you okay?”
“Yes, yes, I’m okay, it’s just that I’m a little overwhelmed by this whole… surreal experience,” said Lucas feeling a bit embarrassed.
“It’s only regular season,” said the old man with a smirk.
“Yeah, well, for you maybe, ‘cus you’re not sitting next to a historical figure watching the game.”
“Oh, that. Well, after today, maybe you’ll make history too. And on that note, thanks for accepting the invitation. It took me many years to finally decide on this course of action. Something that I’m sure you’ll understand once you hear what I have to say.”
The man took a long sip of his beer before continuing.
“On your response to my initial letter you asked me several things. Where would you like to start?”
“Why me? What are you looking for?” asked Lucas.
“Well, first things first. You’re a communications professional. I visited your website and liked what I saw. You’re also a knowledgeable person in the topic of the Space Race of the sixties, so you’re better suited to understand the context of what I’m going to tell you. As for what I’m I looking for? I want people to know the truth and I can’t tell them myself.”
“So you want me to tell people? I thought this conversation was supposed to be kept confidential.”
“This conversation never took place. What you do with the information you get is entirely up to you,” said the old man. “But don’t tell that to the people who accompanied you.”
“Who? What people?”
“The two agents following you. I spotted them when you approached me outside the suite. They were walking like 50 feet behind you. A middle-aged couple who looked like John and Jane Midwest. I’m sure they will be talking to you after the game.”
Instinctively, Lucas looked over his shoulder after hearing this, but all he could see through the glass window was Al, the suite attendant who immediately approached them to ask if they needed anything.
Neil Armstrong politely dismissed the courteous attendant who went back inside to wait upon a group of six that had just entered the suite.
“Relax Lucas.”
“It’s just that I had been on the lookout for a tail , and finding out that they fooled me pisses me off.”
“Let’s take one step at a time, they will not cause a scene. That’s why I chose this public venue for our little chat. Al and the six friends I had on standby in case something like this happened are our insurance that the agents won’t come inside the suite.”
Lucas looked back into the suite and a few of the guys waved at him smiling.
“This is so surreal,” said Lucas mostly to himself.
“Well, with that out of the way, what do you think we start at the beginning?” said the old man. “As you know there are a lot of conspiracy theories regarding the Moon landings of the late sixties and early seventies. Some going as far as to state that it was all a fake. Well, the truth, as it usually does, lies somewhere in the middle between what the conspiracy theorists say and NASA’s official version of the events.
“Let’s be clear about one thing Lucas, man did land on the Moon. Whoever claims otherwise is a fool. Where NASA’s official story starts to deviate from the truth is with regards to when the landings took place. On the other hand, conspiracy theorists are closer to the truth when it comes to the tools used by NASA to achieve such deviation.
“You must remember that in the sixties the Cold War was at its peak and beating the Soviets to the Moon was a political endeavor more than a scientific one. So, after the tragedy of Apollo 1 and the calendar setbacks that it entailed, officials at NASA and the government began to seriously worry that Kennedy’s promise would not be fulfilled and that the Soviet Union would beat the U.S. to the Moon. An occurrence that would have dealt a crushing political blow to America’s world leader image and role.
“That’s why shortly after the conclusion of the 1967 congressional hearings on the Apollo 1 accident, a handful of government and NASA top brass got together and laid out the main components of a secondary protocol for all Apollo missions that required it. The operation’s objective was to convey the idea that the U.S. had landed a man on the Moon even if they hadn’t. It was a monumental misinformation endeavor and, as with many other Space Race era plans, it had to go through several stages in order for it to be successful.”
“When was this protocol added to the Apollo program?” asked Lucas.
“After the assassination of Bobby Kennedy in June 6, 1968. While the media attention was centered on that story, President Lyndon B. Johnson gave the order to put the secondary protocol in motion.”
Meanwhile on the playing field…
The Indians started the first inning well, putting men on first and second with no outs but ended in disappointment with a strikeout followed by a double play to end the top half of the frame. The Reds drew first blood by scoring a run in their bottom half of the inning.
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