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German film (Frau im Mond) directed
by Fritz Lang and released in 1929. Although it was never a box office hit,
being a silent movie when the new "talkies" were all the rage, it was
technically accurate and visionary for its time. This was largely due to Hermann
Oberth's
contribution as technical consultant. Indeed Frau im Mond's Moon rocket was
virtually identical to the one Oberth he had already described and illustrated
in his Die Rakete zu den Planetenraumen. Oberth had also come to an
agreement with Fritz Lang to build and fly a real rocket as a publicity stunt
when the film opened. However, although Oberth and a young colleague by the name
of Wernher von Braun
got as far as testing their rocket engine in the lab, it was never destined to
fly. One of the details of Frau im Mond would have a particular lasting
influence. As the Moon rocket nears the moment of launch, a loudspeaker
announces: "Five ... four ... three ... two ... one ... zero ... FIRE!" Lang had
invented the countdown - if only for dramatic effect - now so familiar in
mission controls around the world.
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