One Small Step for Science, One Giant Leap Away From Celebrity

Thursday is the 40th anniversary of the launch of Apollo 11 to the moon, where astronaut Neil Armstrong famously took a giant leap for mankind (that's us, too, ladies!) and a small step for man (just you fellows that time.)

How to celebrate this? Well, you could read up on the history of space travel! You could watch old footage of the moon landing! You could get some cardboard boxes, markers and tin foil and build an Apollo 11 replica of your own! Or, you could sweep up clippings of Neil Armstrong's hair into a little plastic bag and dig up his voided checks to be sold to the highest bidder! Oh, wait, someone's already done that.

The furor surrounding aerospace engineering's famously private rock star reminded me of last week's conversation about celebrity deaths and Michael Jackson's explosive fame. Like Jackson, Armstrong was globally recognized and pursued by some zealous, if scientifically minded, fans. Armstrong, however, stumbled upon that fame -- was pretty disgusted by it -- and so, in a large measure, withdrew from public life, which strikes me as a healthy response.

If you think, though, that this is the only time you will see the two distinctly different moon walkers paired together, I am delighted to direct you to the Iowa State Fair's Sarah Pratt. Pratt, who carves the fair's butter cow, recently announced plans to sculpt a butter statue of Armstrong and Jackson performing their respectively famous moon walks together. If approved, it will be shown alongside the cow.