Walter Cronkite the ‘Untutored Scientist’ Reveled in Space Program

We are approaching the exact minute, 40 years ago, when man landed on the moon. It was at 4:17pmET, July 20, 1969 that Apollo 11′s lunar module, named Eagle, went where no man had gone before.

Walter Cronkite, who passed away Friday, had a passion for America’s manned space program.

When asked by TVNewser in 2007 to name his greatest journalistic achievement, Cronkite said it “was the challenge for this untutored ‘scientist’ (who couldn’t figure out how a pulley worked in high school physics class) to succeed in covering space flights, and to report on the complexities of the space program.”

The impact for Cronkite of the 1969 lunar landing left him nearly speechless — “Whew! Boy!” he said with a smile anchoring live coverage of the Apollo 11 mission. More from the legendary broadcaster on covering the mission, after the jump…

• Related: WebNewser reports B&C Goes Back in Time for Apollo’s 40th Anniversary

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