HOUSTON – The movie, “Mission Control: The Unsung Heroes of Apollo” tells the story of Houstonians who put space in the American space program.
The movie’s premiere landed at Space Center Houston Tuesday night.
“It was a long time coming,” said legendary Apollo 13 flight director Gene Kranz.
He said the movie introduces you to the real people involved in the space program, not actors.
“Part of it is failure is not an option. And it's time to get back on track and get back into space and become explorers again," Kranz said.
While Kranz worked in mission control at the Johnson Space Center, astronauts like Col. Walter Cunningham of Apollo 7 relied on mission managers to get him to space and back to earth safely.
"Astronauts get the glory. But they don't realize how much work was going on not just by hundreds but thousands of people,” Cunningham said.
The film’s release happened as Space Center Houston worked to raise money to restore NASA’s Mission Operations Control Center.
CEO of Space Center Houston and President William Harris said, "This is really an important part of American history and really world history when we achieved this incredible milestone."