Bill Paxton as Fred Haise, Sr.

Summary:

It had been less than a year since man first walked on the moon, but as far as the American public was concerned, Apollo 13 was just another "routine" space flight - until these words pierced the immense void in space: "Houston, we have a problem."

Stranded 205,000 miles from Earth in a crippled spacecraft, astronauts Jim Lovell (Tom Hanks), Fred Haise (Bill Paxton), and Jack Swigert (Kevin Bacon) fight a desperate battle to survive. Meanwhile, at Mission Control, astronauts Ken Mattingly (Gary Sinise), flight director Gene Kranz (Ed Harris) and a heroic ground crew radce against time - and the odds - to bring them home.

It's a breathtaking adventure that tells a story of courage, faith and ingenuity that is all the more remarkable because it is true!

Sounds:
 

Now That's Appeal:

Quotes from the Movie:

Whoops!:

	The fatal launch pad fire occurred on January 27, 1967, and the Apollo 11 moon landing on July 20, 1969. Both dates are displayed correctly onscreen, yet Walter Cronkite's opening narration says only 18 months elapsed between them.
	After the party, Lovell holds his thumb in front the gibbous moon. Then, telling Marilyn where to find "her" mountain, he says the Sea of Tranquility is "where the shadow crosses the white part." The terminator was in fact near the Sea of Tranquility on July 20, 1969, but the moon was less than half full; it's depicted in the scene as gibbous, with the terminator on the other side.
	The seas are the dark parts.
	In Houston the moon set that night at about midnight CDT, while the Apollo 11 astronauts were returning to their Lunar Module; hence it would not be visible after the party at the Lovells'.
	The moon is depicted as about 4 times its actual visual diameter, relative to a man's thumb at arm's length. It looks almost the same size relative to Lovell's thumb as the earth does in a later scene near the moon when he does the same thing in reverse.
	The fully illuminated side of the moon always points toward the sun and hence at night it must be closer to the horizon than the other side.
	It is impossible to see (or photograph) faint stars close to the moon because its light is bright enough to wash them out.
	An early scene is identified onscreen as occurring at the "Vehicle Assembly Building, Cape Kennedy, Florida, October 30, 1969." Cape Canaveral was indeed called Cape Kennedy in 1969, but the VAB was known as the Vertical Assembly Building until the Space Shuttle era.
	NASA's "worm" logo was not developed until 1975.
	Jim Lovell's license plate is wrong, and his car was blue, not red.
	A technician is wearing a Rockwell International logo on his coveralls. North American Rockwell became Rockwell International only in 1973 when they acquired Collins Radio.
	The Saturn V rocket is shown being rolled out to the launch pad only two days before launch, and dialogue confirms that this is the rocket for Apollo 13 and not 14. In fact Saturn V rockets were typically moved to the pad several months before the launch date.
	The paint pattern on the Saturn V matches neither the test configuration nor the launch configuration.
	The illness that Charles Duke came down with, and Ken Mattingly was feared to be getting, was German measles (rubella), not measles (rubeola) as stated several times in the film. Despite the similarity of names, these are different diseases and immunity to them is separate.
	The illness that Charles Duke came down with, and Ken Mattingly was feared to be getting, was German measles (rubella), not measles (rubeola) as stated several times in the film. Despite the similarity of names, these are different diseases and immunity to them is separate.
	The Izod Lacoste polo shirt that Lovell is wearing when talking about Swigert replacing Mattingly did not exist in 1970.
	The NASA VIP passes for the Apollo 13 launch were actually pinkish orange in color and had a portrait (vertical) orientation, not white and oriented the other way.
	In the launch sequence, we see a countdown that ends with ignition of the first stage engines; we see the Saturn V take off about 20 seconds later, and as Lovell points out, the clock starts counting forward then. In fact ignition and takeoff would be only a few seconds apart, with the countdown reaching zero at the nominal time of takeoff, not at ignition; the clock would then immediately begin counting upward.
	The downward view toward the rocket rising from the pad shows cars in the parking lots. During an actual launch, the pad was completely evacuated and the lots would have been empty.
	Houston confirms that the BPC (Boost Protective Cover) is cleared before it is jettisoned by Lovell.
	The slam-bang impact at the end of the first stage burn was completely unexpected, not routine as portrayed. Small retrorockets atop the first stage should have fired immediately after separation to slow the spent stage down. Instead they fired one second before separation.
	Thrusters make no sound when observed from outside the capsule in space.
	Rockets burning hydrogen/oxygen (Saturn V second and third stages), or the hypergolic fuels used on all Service Module and Lunar Module engines and thrusters, have essentially invisible plumes in a vacuum, not the bright white plumes depicted.
	Trans-Lunar Injection (TLI) burns were made parallel to the earth's surface, on the far side of the earth from the moon, not while pointed directly at the moon as shown.
	In April 1970, Lovell's daughter can be seen holding the Beatles' "Let it Be" album, which wasn't released until May 1970.
	Lovell's cassette player did actually play the 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968) theme "Also Sprach Zarathustra," not "Spirit in the Sky."
	When the TV broadcast from the spacecraft on April 13 is cancelled, Blanch Lovell waves her copy of TV Guide magazine and complains "It's that damn TV Guide again." TV Guide actually listed normal programming for that day, though with a warning that it might be preempted.
	Just after the explosion, when Lovell is saying "we've got multiple caution and warnings, Houston," the MET clock (Mission Elapsed Time in hours, minutes, and seconds) is plainly visible reading 091:34:10. When next seen less than a minute later, it has backed up to 056:55:12.
	Both times are wrong; the accident occurred at about 055:55:00 MET.
	Ken Mattingly is shown drinking Budweiser from 16-ounce aluminium cans, which weren't available in 1970.
	Jules Bergman of ABC News mentions that the Lunar Module's descent engine will be used to abort the mission, before Kranz makes this decision.
	The astronauts are shown looking at Mare Tranquilitatis, then crossing from sunlight into shadow, followed by loss of signal, all within seconds. In fact at loss of signal they had been in the moon's shadow for some time and were nowhere near Mare Tranquilitatis.
	The spacecraft then returns to sunlight before acquisition of signal, implying that more than half of the moon's surface is in sunlight.
	While passing over Tsiolkovsky crater on the moon's far side, the astronauts also speak of sighting Fra Mauro and Mare Imbrium, both nearly halfway around the moon.
	Just after acquisition of signal, Houston tells the astronauts that their speed is "approximately 7,062 feet per second" and their altitude above the moon is 56 nautical miles. That speed is 500 ft/s below lunar escape velocity at that altitude, hence impossible on a free return trajectory. In fact, any free return trajectory symmetrical about the moon-earth line would put them at over 100 nautical miles altitude at acquisition of signal.
	A TV scene at Mission Control shows Houston Astros player Jimmy Wynn hitting a home run on April 13, 1970. The Astros were shut out by the Los Angeles Dodgers 2-0 that day.
	"Mr. Coffee"-type drip pots weren't in use at the time.
	An ashtray used by Gene Kranz disappears.
	Mission Control members often communicate without pressing their headset push-to-talk switches.
	The television that Blanch Lovell watches the final splashdown on is a Sharp model that was not made until the late 1980s.
	In the last shot of the spacecraft before reentry begins, it seems to be entering the atmosphere much too steeply. As explained in the film, its angle should be only about 6 degrees below horizontal.
	The explosion was not caused by a "damaged coil" as stated in the closing voiceover. The actual cause went back 5 years to when the designers decided to use 65 V power instead of 28 V on the spacecraft: they neglected to specify upgraded components inside the oxygen tank. (As it turned out, everything stood up to normal usage, hiding the error. Before Apollo 13, though, there was a problem draining that particular tank and its heater was used for hours to dry it out. A thermostat should have prevented overheating, but apparently arced and shorted out instead; the overheat was intense enough to cause the insulation on the wiring to fail, but was not noticed. The affected wires must have touched later on, so that arcing started a fire inside the oxygen tank, hence the explosion.)
	In the opening sequence with Apollo 1, the crew uses a black keyboard (Block II). The keyboard on Apollo 1 was white (Block I).
	Ken Mattingly is bald in real life or at least during the Apollo 13 incident, he didn't have any hair.
	During the re-entry simulation with Swigert, Fred Haise communicates with Houston after they confirmed radio blackout.
	All nine swing arms are shown moving away from the Saturn V during the launch sequence. Only five arms would still be attached to the rocket prior to launch. These "in-flight" arms would have swung away, in unison, at the first motion of the Saturn V.
	In some cold scenes in the LEM, breath is visible. The warm breath rises, which wouldn't happen in a weightless environment.
	Jack Swigert comments that Houston had the crew burn too much Delta-Vee before they fire the engine.
	When Mattingly goes to bed and takes the phone off the hook, the position of the receiver is different when he is woken up.

Photos from the movie:

The showroom is not ready for your viewing pleasure as of yet,
please give me some time to finish putting it together, thanks!

"Apollo 13" Showroom

Movie Information:

140 minutes, USA, 1995
Motion Picture Association of America Rating - PG
Language and emotional intensity

Director:	Ron Howard
Stars:	Bill Paxton Tom Hanks Kevin Bacon Gary Sinise Ed Harris Kathleen Quinlan Mary Kate Schellhardt Emily Ann Lloyd Miko Hughes Max Elliott Slade Jean Speegle Howard Tracy Reiner David Andrews (I) Michele Little (I) Chris Ellis (I) Joe Spano (I) Xander Berkeley Marc McClure (I)
Screenplay by:	Jim Lovell (Book, Lost Moon) Jeffrey Kluger (Book, Lost Moon) William Broyles Jr. Al Reinert
Excutive Producer:	Todd Hallowell (I)
Producer:	Brian Grazer
Associate Producer:	Michael Bostick Aldric La'Auli Porter Louisa Velis
Composer:	James Horner
Cinematography:	Dean Cundey
Film Editing:	Daniel P. Hanley Mike Hill (I)
Casting:	Janet Hirshenson Jane Jenkins
Production Design:	Michael Corenblith
Distributors:	Universal Pictures US
Production Companies:	Imagine Entertainment US Universal Pictures [aka MCA/Universal Pictures] US

Business Data:

Budget	$62m (USA)
Opening Weekend	$25m (USA)
Gross	$192,500 (Czech Republic) $7.157m (Italy) $162m (Non-USA) $3.05m (Switzerland) $15.912m (UK) £10.48m (UK) (19 November 1995) $172.071m (USA) $334.1m (worldwide)
Admissions	1,911,470 (France) (2 January 1996)
Rentals	$92.642m (USA)

Trivia:
Borrowed from Internet Movie Database

	Kevin Costner was the original choice to play the role of Jim Lovell.
	Footage of the Saturn V was generated specifically for this film; no Saturn V stock footage was used.
	The cast and crew flew between 500 and 600 parabolic flights in NASA's KC-135 airplane to achieve real weightlessness. Each of the flights got them 23 seconds of zero gravity. All of these flights were completed in 13 days.
	CAMEO(Lovell, Marilyn): an extra in the grandstands at the launch.
	CAMEO(Jim Lovell): Captain of the USS Iwo Jima.
	CAMEO(Jean Speegle Howard): director Ron Howard's mother plays Blanche Lovell.
	Marilyn Lovell really did lose her ring down the drain.
	The real Marilyn Lovell eventually found the ring that she lost down the drain.
	CAMEO(Rance Howard): director Ron Howard's father, playing a priest.

Golden Globes, USA:

Year	Result	Award	Category	Recipient(s)
1996	Nominated	Golden Globe	Best Director - Motion Picture	Ron Howard
1996	Nominated	Golden Globe	Best Motion Picture - Drama
1996	Nominated	Golden Globe	Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Motion Picture	Ed Harris
1996	Nominated	Golden Globe	Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role in a Motion Picture	Kathleen Quinlan

Academy Awards, USA:

Year	Result	Award	Category	Recipient(s)
1996	Won	Oscar	Best Sound	Rick Dior David MacMillan (I) Scott Millan Steve Pederson
1996	Nominated	Oscar	Best Actor in a Supporting Role	Ed Harris
1996	Nominated	Oscar	Best Actress in a Supporting Role	Kathleen Quinlan
1996	Nominated	Oscar	Best Art Direction-Set Decoration	Merideth Boswell Michael Corenblith
1996	Nominated	Oscar	Best Effects, Visual Effects	Leslie Ekker Michael Kanfer Robert Legato Matt Sweeney
1996	Nominated	Oscar	Best Music, Original Dramatic Score	James Horner
1996	Nominated	Oscar	Best Picture	Brian Grazer
1996	Nominated	Oscar	Best Writing, Screenplay Based on Material from Another Medium	William Broyles Jr. Al Reinert

American Cinema Editors, USA:

Year	Result	Award	Category	Recipient(s)
1996	Nominated	Eddie	Best Edited Feature Film	Daniel P. Hanley Mike Hill (I)

American Society of Cinematographers, USA:

Year	Result	Award	Category	Recipient(s)
1996	Nominated	ASC Award	Outstanding Achievement in Cinematography in Theatrical Releases	Dean Cundey

British Academy Awards:

Year	Result	Award	Category	Recipient(s)
1996	Won	BAFTA Film Award	Best Achievement in Special Effects	Leslie Ekker Michael Kanfer Robert Legato Matt Sweeney
1996	Won	BAFTA Film Award	Best Production Design	Michael Corenblith
1996	Nominated	BAFTA Film Award	Best Cinematography	Dean Cundey
1996	Nominated	BAFTA Film Award	Best Editing	Daniel P. Hanley Mike Hill (I)
1996	Nominated	BAFTA Film Award	Best Sound	Rick Dior David MacMillan (I) Scott Millan Steve Pederson

Casting Society of America, USA:

Year	Result	Award	Category	Recipient(s)
1996	Nominated	Artios	Best Casting for Feature Film, Drama	Janet Hirshenson Jane Jenkins

Chicago Film Critics Association Awards:

Year	Result	Award	Category	Recipient(s)
1996	Won	CFCA Award	Best Picture	Jane Jenkins

Chicago Film Critics Association Awards:

Year	Result	Award	Category	Recipient(s)
1996	Won	CFCA Award	Best Picture	Jane Jenkins

Directors Guild of America, USA:

Year	Result	Award	Category	Recipient(s)
1996	Won	DGA Award	Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Motion Pictures	Carl Clifford (I) Ron Howard Jane Paul (I) Aldric La'Auli Porter

Hugo Awards:

Year	Result	Award	Category	Recipient(s)
1996	Nominated	Hugo	Best Dramatic Presentation

MTV Movie Awards:

Year	Result	Award	Category	Recipient(s)
1996	Nominated	MTV Movie Award	Best Male Performance	Tom Hanks
1996	Nominated	MTV Movie Award	Best Movie

PGA Golden Laurel Awards:

Year	Result	Award	Category	Recipient(s)
1996	Won	Motion Picture Producer of the Year Award	Motion Picture Producer of the Year	Brian Grazer Todd Hallowell

Screen Actors Guild Awards:

Year	Result	Award	Category	Recipient(s)
1996	Won	Actor	Outstanding Performance by a Cast
1996	Won	Actor	Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Supporting Role	Ed Harris

Southeastern Film Critics Association Awards:

Year	Result	Award	Category	Recipient(s)
1996	Won	SEFCA Award	Best Director	Ron Howard
1996	Won	SEFCA Award	Best Picture
1996	Won	SEFCA Award	Best Supporting Actor	Ed Harris

Writers Guild of America, USA:

Year	Result	Award	Category	Recipient(s)
1996	Nominated	WGA Screen Award	Best Screenplay Based on Material Previously Produced or Published	William Broyles Jr. Al Reinert

Young Artist Awards:

Year	Result	Award	Category	Recipient(s)
1996	Nominated	Young Artist Award	Best Family Feature: Drama

Script:

"Apollo 13"
Script Coming Soon

Connections:

References:	2001: A Space Odyssey (1968)
Referenced in:	Scream (1996) Fathers' Day (1997) Rocket Man (1997) "From the Earth to the Moon" (1998) (mini) Armageddon (1998) Chairman of the Board (1998) American Pie (1999) Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me (1999) Toy Story 2 (1999) Mission to Mars (2000) How the Grinch Stole Christmas (2000)
Spoofed in:	Spy Hard (1996) Warriors of Virtue (1997) Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery (1997) Dante's Peak (1997) George of the Jungle (1997) Plump Fiction (1997) Titanic (1997) Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me (1999) Nutty Professor II: The Klumps (2000)
Features:	"Bewitched" (1964) "I Dream of Jeannie" (1965) "Dick Cavett Show, The" (1969)
Featured in:	Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me (1999)

Help with this page:

Please use the following links to send any ideas, comments or help for this page

Send me your COMMENTS about this page.
Send me your ADDITIONS to something already on this page.
Send me your ideas for NEW ADDITIONS to this page.
If you have found ERRORS on this pages, please let me know.