On this day in 1955, citizens of Earth got a glimpse at what it would be like to fly to the moon when Man and the Moon made its debut on the Disneyland TV series. The show begins by tracing man’s fascination with the moon, from the first superstitions and legends, to the invention of the telescope. It also shows how prominent the moon factors into our culture, from the works of William Shakespeare to the words of popular nursery rhymes. There’s even a parody on an old Tin Pan Alley popular song called “Ah See the Moon.” This segment of the show is brimming with visual puns and whimsical sight gags. Scientist Dr. Wernher von Braun, who would later play a lead role in the building of the Saturn V rocket that propelled man into space and on to the moon, proved to be the “star” of the show as he explained, using models, simulations, and dramatic enactment with actors, sets and props, how man would eventually get to the moon.
