posted 08-13-2008 02:47 PM               

Here is the documentary description as provided by Monarch:

Step On Board One of History's Most Memorable Space Missions in Apollo 8: Christmas at the Moon

Christmas Eve 2008 marks the 40th anniversary of the first manned voyage to a celestial body--the historic mission of Apollo 8 to the Earth's moon. In December of 1968, the famed Apollo crew became the first humans to escape Earth's gravity and venture to the far side of the moon. Their mission paved the way for the Apollo 11 moon landing, fulfilling John F. Kennedy's goal of landing a man on the moon before the end of the 1960s.

The new American Public Television-distributed special Apollo 8: Christmas at the Moon, airing on public television nationwide beginning July 1, 2008, is the gripping story of this famous mission. Featuring interviews from mission and Space Center veterans as well as compelling archival material, this special captures the excitement, audacity and tension of the "Space Race" era.

After departing from Cape Canaveral on Dec. 21, 1968, the crew--Commander Frank Borman, Command Module Pilot James Lovell and Lunar Module Pilot William Anders--took three days to travel to the moon. The three orbited the moon 10 times over 20 hours, delivering a famous Christmas Eve television broadcast which featured the crew reading from the Bible's Book of Genesis. The broadcast became, at the time, the most-watched television program ever.

The special features in-depth interviews from astronaut Frank Borman, former NASA Space Center director Chris Kraft and other space program members, giving their first-hand accounts of their memories of the space race and the Apollo 8 mission.

Featuring archival material from both American and Russian sources, including footage from on board the capsule and mission control of Apollo 8, Apollo 8: Christmas at the Moon is a nostalgic and enlightening look at one of the American space program's most important moments.

Apollo 8: Christmas at the Moon was acquired from Monarch Films by American Public Television for syndication to public television stations nationwide.