Life magazine Moon Landing Issues before and after 1969 very unique

Auction No.:
12952
Current Bid:
$0.05
High Bidder:
Rick Huber
Bid History:
1 Bid [View History]
Location:
Spokane Vly, WA - United States
Started:
08/04/2020 04:22PM
Ends:
08/14/2020 09:22AM
Shipping:
Buyer pays shipping
Payment:
PayPal, Personal or Cashier's Check, Money Orders
Hits:
809

This auction is for (2) issues of Life magazine: July 4, 1969 and Aug 8, 1969.

The July 4 issue is very, very near the time of our first sojourn to the Moon, though Life did at least one other major issue prior to landing on the Moon, which was dated July 25. 
Like the July 25 issue, this one is heavily filled with Moon topics left and right. From lore to fact, to expectations, fears, and even advertisement gets in on the hype of astronauts soon landing there. It is really quite something to sit and read. 

For people like me who came way after this event in NASA history, this is our best bet to experience what the nation, and the world, was like when we sent those astronauts to one of mankind's greatest acheivements. Whereas anyone of us may read a field guide or text book, or even a chronological writing on the entirety of the lunar missions, these writings fail to capture what was immediately going on through scociety's thoughts as the event unfolds. Essays, writings, and biographies about the lunar mission have had time for the writer and those alive at the time to "recapture" their thoughts, introduce newfound knowledge in the field, and as a result you get a fun-to-read book, but that whole feeling of "wow, this is REALLY happening!" is lost.

So when you read through these issues, there was a lot humankind as a whole did not know what to expect. The USA was living a period of history in astronomy science that all other nations could only sit and dream about. You look at the photos in the first issues and read the statements and interviews and you relive that edge-of-your-seat feeling. Then you finish the August issue, now "knowing" our astronauts all returned in one piece and you feel in your soul "Yeah, we did it!". And seeing how advertisment in these pages was also affected by and then capitalized the event makes the experience all the more genuine. So to those who appreciate this type of historical reference will have a good time holding one of these Life issues in their hands.

Something also that should be noted is Life magazines were, well, big as life! They measure 13.6-inches x 10.5-inches and have much larger visuals over a standard periodical. They are easy to read and get lost on a literary adventure. 

Total weight of both issues before packing is exactly 14 ounces.

The July 4 issue is in very good condition overall and far from perfect. It has been a slight victim of "scrapbooking" in the sense that there are images cut out from the pages on page 9-and-10, page 11-and-12 is missing, page 17-and-18 is nearly gone, and page 43-and-44 have a section cut out. This does hurt the collectible value to a degree because, of course, this issue is now incomplete. 
However, there is MUCH to be read and enjoyed and the issue as a whole, to me, still feels completed. Do note that photos of these missing pages are shown in the images below for you to judge.

The August 8 issue has looks a little rougher but has faired WAY better and only one page, pages 47-and-48 has been mostly cut out. And this page has nothing to do with the lunar mission report. So it too has some compromised collectibility issue, but ALL of the Moon landing action is present in the pages.
Overall condition is great and the 3-staple bind is holding just fine.

All nations welcome to bid.

Time Placed User Bid Amount
08/14/2020 09:35AM Rick Huber $0.05