would put a man on the Moon before the end of the decade (the 1960s), Gilruth was "aghast" and unsure that such a goal could be accomplished. He was integral to the creation of the Gemini program, which he advocated as a means for NASA to learn more about operating in space before attempting a lunar landing. In 1962, he was awarded the President's Award for Distinguished Federal Civilian Service by President John F. Kennedy. Soon the Apollo program was born, and Gilruth was made head of the NASA center which ran it, the new Manned Spacecraft Center (MSC) (now the Johnson Space Center). Gilruth was inducted into the National Space Hall of Fame in 1969 and served as director of the MSC until his retirement in 1972. He was inducted as a member of the inaugural class to the International Space Hall of Fame in 1976. He oversaw a total of 25 crewed space flights, from Mercury-Redstone 3 to Apollo 15. In 1971, Gilruth, along with the Apollo 15 crew, was awarded the Collier Trophy. In 1992, Gilruth was inducted into the International Air & Space Hall of Fame at the San Diego Air & Space Museum, in 1994, he was inducted into the National Aviation Hall of Fame and in 2015, the Minnesota Aviation Hall of Fame as a posthumous induction. Death In 2000, Gilruth died in Charlottesville, Virginia, at the age of 86. Portrayals in dramas In the 1996 TV movie Apollo 11, Gilruth was played by William Mesnik. In the 1998 miniseries From the Earth to the Moon, he was played by John Carroll Lynch. In the 2016 film Hidden Figures, the character Al Harrison, played by Kevin Costner, is based largely on Gilruth. In the 2018 film, First Man, Gilruth is portrayed by Ciarán Hinds. In the 2020 TV series The Right Stuff, Gilruth is portrayed by Patrick Fischler. References External links Requirements for satisfactory flying qualities of airplanes, 1943 NACA report by Robert Gilruth Dr. Robert Gilruth, 1986 interview transcript from the National Air and Space Museum Dr. Robert R. Gilruth, 2000 tribute at NASA's Human Space Flight website Robert R. Gilruth 1913–2000, 2003 memoir at the National Academy of Sciences, written by NASA flight director Christopher Kraft From Minnesota to the moon, 2013 Star Tribune article by Cirrus Aircraft co-founder Dale Klapmeier honoring Gilruth's legacy 1913 births 2000 deaths NASA people Members of