Jim Lovell

James Arthur "Jim" Lovell, Jr. (born March 25, 1928) is a former NASA astronaut and a retired captain in the United States Navy, most famous as the commander of the Apollo 13 mission, which suffered a critical failure en route to the Moon but was brought back safely to Earth by the efforts of the crew and mission control. Lovell was also the command module pilot of Apollo 8, the first Apollo mission to enter lunar orbit. Lovell is a recipient of the Congressional Space Medal of Honor and the Presidential Medal of Freedom. He is one of only 24 people to have flown to the Moon, the first of only three people to fly to the Moon twice, and the only one to have flown there twice without making a landing. Lovell was also the first person to fly in space four times.

Early life

Born in Cleveland, Ohio in 1928, Lovell was the only child of his mother Blanche, who was of Czech descent, and his father, who died in a car accident in 1933. For about two years, he and his mother resided with a relative in Terre Haute, Indiana. Lovell's mother then moved them to Milwaukee, Wisconsin, where he graduated from Juneau High School and became an Eagle Scout.