Posts: 35
From: Helotes, TX
Registered: Jul 2007

posted 01-19-2008 10:36 PM               

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Join with me in commemorating the accomplishments of astronauts Virgil I. "Gus" Grissom and John W. Young! With the help of Bill Hunt and the collectSPACE community I've put together a modern replica of the "Molly Brown" patch to honor their GT-3 mission -- the flight of the "Molly Brown."

A brief history courtesy Space Mission Patches:

According to John Young, during his Apollo training Gus Grissom had a batch of "Molly Brown" patches made. This patch commemorated his and Young's Gemini 3 mission, on which the radio call sign "Molly Brown" was used. This was the last mission to fly without a mission patch (assuming you count Gemini 4's American flag as a mission patch, as the Gemini 4 crew did). Grissom's "Molly Brown" patch shows a Gemini capsule serenely floating in the ocean, awaiting recovery -- in contrast to Grissom's Mercury flight, when his "Liberty Bell 7" capsule sank to the bottom of the Atlantic when the hatch prematurely jettisoned. There are photos of Young wearing this patch prior to Apollo 10, during his training for the Apollo 16 mission, and during the Shuttle era.

The patch offered here is a replica of the original but can be distinguished from the "real thing", mainly by the nose markings and some thread variations. The back is plain - no adhesive or plastic backing. These were made by AB Emblem at the North Carolina facility.

If you are interested, see details and consider purchasing.

Any proceeds above and beyond my expenses will be donated to the Gus Grissom Memorial in Spring Mill State Park, Mitchell, IN, for planned expansion of the exhibits there.

John Berry
gusmobile@earthlink.net

Posts: 35
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From: Cleveland, OH USA
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posted 01-21-2008 07:17 AM               

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Thanks John-- I just ordered two patches. Also I visited the Grissom memorial last summer and it is worth visiting if you are in the area. Besides the Molly Brown, there are some nice artifacts like one of Grissom's helmets and a wonderful wall of historic Mercury/Gemini astronaut era photos. It definitely could use some refurbishing and I would have loved to buy some Grissom souvenirs there but none were for sale. It also needs updating about the Liberty Bell 7 being found in the ocean by Curt Newport and Discovery Channel.

Best of luck with your outstanding efforts.

Posts: 18
From: Lancaster, California , USA
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Posts: 35
From: Helotes, TX
Registered: Jul 2007

posted 01-23-2008 11:48 PM               

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The response to the patch has been very gratifying. Thanks for the positive feedback and support of this project.

Credit where it is due -- Bill Hunt really made this possible by sending along a high-resolution photo of the patch and giving me his invaluable feedback on the sample patches -- Thanks Bill!

I wouldn't have done this if Luc from the Netherlands hadn't come up the idea of making quality repro's of Gemini patches -- I was looking for a Molly Brown patch but hadn't thought of making my own!

I got a chance to visit the Grissom Memorial over the holidays and it was great to see the real Molly Brown and the rest of the museum -- nice collection of artifacts.

By the way, our very own Steve Grissom, cS member, deserves the credit for the great collection upstairs -- some awe-inspiring things up there, including the flag that covered Lt Col Grissom's coffin. Sobering, but I was very thankful to be able to see those things. Nice job, Steve.

I've posted some pictures from my trip -- along w/ a look at my boy "Gus" - President and Chief Noise Maker at Gusmobile Memorabilia. He's modeling a t-shirt w/ the patch on it -- wear yours so someone will come up to you and say "Who the heck is Virgil?!"

(Marcy, I too wanted to buy some Grissom souvenirs at the Memorial but there weren't any... wonder if they'd like a few patches to sell?!)

Posts: 429
From:
Registered: Jul 2007

posted 01-24-2008 03:16 AM               

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John, I am indebted to you in two ways:

Thanks for the opportunity of obtaining such a high quality replica of the Molly Brown Patch.

Thanks for giving us the opportunity of sharing your visit to the Grissom Memorial. That will be on a future itinerary.

Posts: 211
From: Woodbridge, VA, USA
Registered: Nov 2000

posted 01-24-2008 04:46 PM               

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Very nice. I'm glad you were able to do this; I guess we can consider this the first installment of the Gemini repro patches??

I ordered two, also. I've always been a fan of Gus's, and have the Boomhower book, too.

Posts: 330
From: Cleveland, OH USA
Registered: Aug 2006

posted 01-24-2008 07:34 PM               

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Yes John--you'd think that if they wanted to raise money for refurbishment of the exhibits that they would sell some souvenirs. Perhaps due to the fact that it is in a state park they can't legally sell souvenirs?

And, yes, I was very much in awe seeing the flag that draped Grissom's coffin.

Posts: 330
From: Cleveland, OH USA
Registered: Aug 2006

posted 01-25-2008 01:37 PM               

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Hi John: I got my 2 Molly Brown patches in the mail today and they look great. Very fast delivery! Also--to those interested in the Grissom exhibit at Spring Mill State Park, there is also in Mitchell, IN:

In downtown Mitchell stands the Gus Grissom Monument, a scaled-down limestone carving of Gus's Gemini rocket.

It is maybe 5 minutes away from the park and well worth checking out too.

(I liked your "little" Gus photos at the museum.)

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posted 01-30-2008 02:46 AM               

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My patches arrived a couple of days ago. They are A1 quality. I urge collectors to give John their support in his venture. Additionally, he is one very nice and genuine guy.

Thanks a million, John.

Posts: 35
From: Helotes, TX
Registered: Jul 2007

posted 01-30-2008 08:10 PM               

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Thanks again for the kind words of encouragement. I have 26 of the "greeting cards" left so if that interests you, order now...

After that, I'll be selling the patches w/ simpler packaging. Looks like this patch will be the "appetizer" for the Gemini Quality Reproductions project that Luc is working on. See that thread in the Patches and Pin section.

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Posts: 35
From: Helotes, TX
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posted 02-05-2008 07:29 PM               

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LAST CALL! In about a week I'm going to put these out on ebay for "the masses" -- want to make sure that every cS member who wants one has one - or two - before I do that. See the link above for more details and/or to purchase.

Thanks everyone, for your outpouring of support for this little project.

Posts: 4599
From: England
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Posts: 654
From: Madrid, Spain
Registered: Oct 2005

posted 02-07-2008 05:56 AM               

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Mine arrived three days ago to Madrid.

Thank you John. It's a very nice repro and a very good way to begin the new collection of Luc (and you).

Posts: 1377
From: Denver, CO
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From: Mitchell, Indiana, USA
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Posts: 35
From: Helotes, TX
Registered: Jul 2007

posted 02-15-2008 09:25 PM               

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I suspect the public will be very glad to get a look at those items! Can't wait.

If you bought a patch or two from me, your order should have arrived by now. If you placed and order but haven't seen your patches, please contact me.

Posts: 35
From: Helotes, TX
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From: Irvine, CA
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Posts: 35
From: Helotes, TX
Registered: Jul 2007

posted 09-15-2008 10:29 AM               

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I have a few more of my 3.5" modern replica "Molly Brown" patches I had made up to commemorate Grissom and Young's Gemini flight. The cost is $10 for one, $19 for two.

I've covered my costs so everything collected (minus packaging and shipping) goes to the Grissom Memorial in Spring Mill State Park, Indiana. We've donated about $450 so far - Thanks for supporting this cause!

Here's the link for buying patches.

Thank you!

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From: Alabama, USA
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posted 04-08-2013 08:04 PM               

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Like above posters, I saw that these sites were down so I used an old PayPal link I had to order one of these last week. I had this one sort of on the back burner to get thinking they were readily available.

I have heard nothing from the site owner and PayPal reports that the payment went through, so I am sort of concerned that this site is in limbo and that I might not receive anything.

Anyone know what's up with this patch?

UPDATE: I received 2 patches (the original link was for 2 @ $19 and I didn't realize it before I sent the payment) with no problems. I didn't communicate with him in too much detail but I got the sense that he was not actively selling anymore but does have some left for the occasional order.

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From: Denver, CO
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