SHOW NOTES:
*Hear Alan discuss the influence Pete Conrad had on his career before NASA.
*Alan settles into test pilot school at Pax River.
*Did being a hotshot pilot mean that Alan was coming out of his shell as an introvert?
*Alan describes his relationship with Apollo 12 crewmates Pete Conrad and Dick Gordon.
*Want to offer Alan a bunch of money to hang out for a couple of days? Hear whether or not he's likely to accept.
*Alan's first wife, Sue, was an extrovert ... and Bean was not.
*Alan decides to apply to become an astronaut.
*What did Alan think the ink blot looked like during the psychological test? Go ahead. Ask him.
*And then there was the story he told about a picture the doctor showed him ...
*Alan's work on an ejection-seat project helps propel him into the astronaut office.
NEXT EPISODE:
The incredible story of four-time Space Shuttle astronaut Dr. David Hilmers, who was in North Korea as Hurricane Harvey bore down on his home in Houston.
Great four-part podcast with Alan Bean. I enjoyed it immensely, and parts of it were hilarious! This man does not beat around the bush or mince words. What really impressed me in Part 4 of the interview was Alan's discourse on being an introvert. He could have been describing me. I was compelled to listen to this installment several times, and each time I found myself nodding my head in agreement. Please pass along my gratitude to Alan Bean for bringing this personality trait out in the open; I'm certain that a lot of folks think of introverted people as "antisocial," but that isn't the case at all.
ReplyDeleteI found MYSELF nodding in agreement with Alan as we talked. I'm much more comfortable either alone or with one or two friends, than I am in a room full of people I don't know. My wife and one of my twin sons are very much the opposite, with the other twin is more like me. Go figure ...
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