12:38 PM Italian time: Apollo 12: Pete Conrad sets foot on the Moon and utters the famous phrase: “Whoopie! Man! That may have been a small one for Neil … but it’s a long one for me!” referring to the step he took to descend the last step of the LM; this phrase was the result of a bet with journalist Oriana Fallaci, who didn’t believe astronauts could freely choose what to say at crucial moments, and so Oriana and Pete concocted this mockery of Pete’s short stature; Oriana didn’t believe he had the courage or the ability to do it: “You’ll never do it!” Pete: “How about 500 bucks?”
