{"id":133701,"date":"2025-08-10T06:43:13","date_gmt":"2025-08-10T06:43:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/133701\/"},"modified":"2025-08-10T06:43:13","modified_gmt":"2025-08-10T06:43:13","slug":"tom-hanks-honors-apollo-13-astronaut-james-lovell-god-speed-you","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/133701\/","title":{"rendered":"Tom Hanks Honors ‘Apollo 13’ Astronaut James Lovell: ‘God Speed You’"},"content":{"rendered":"

\u201cThere are people who dare, who dream, and who lead others to the places we would not go on our own,\u201d Hanks wrote Friday<\/a>. \u201cJim Lovell, who for a long while had gone farther into space and for longer than any other person of our planet, was that kind of guy.<\/p>\n

\u201cHis many voyages around Earth and on to so-very-close to the moon were not made for riches or celebrity, but because such challenges as those are what fuels the course of being alive – and who better than Jim Lovell to make those voyages,\u201d he continued.<\/p>\n

The voyage was initially intended to be a lunar landing, but when an oxygen tank exploded on board, the crew was forced to abandon the mission<\/a>. As commander, Lovell saved his crew by using the lunar module as a near-freezing lifeboat back to Earth.<\/p>\n

Hanks noted in his tribute that Lovell just so happened to die during one particular moon phase, and concluded Friday: \u201cOn this night of a full Moon, he passes on – to the heavens, to the cosmos, to the stars. God speed you, on this next voyage, Jim Lovell.\u201d<\/p>\n

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The actor wasn\u2019t the only Oscar winner to commemorate Lovell. \u201cApollo 13\u201d director Ron Howard<\/a> shared a carousel of photos Friday on Instagram with a tribute of his own, writing in the caption that merely knowing Lovell \u201chas been a tremendous honor.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHis combination of intellect, courage and commitment to duty made him one of the most remarkable individuals I\u2019ve ever met,\u201d Howard wrote<\/a>. \u201cHis support of our movie-making efforts inspired authenticity and elevated our process in so many ways. Thank you, sir, for your service to our country and to humankind.\u201d<\/p>\n