Post by Bonobo on Oct 7, 2010 8:08:28 GMT 1
Do you know that Poland was the only country in communist block which allowed the direct TV broadcast of the moon landing in 1969?
We were also the only communist country where people tried to honour the great event.
ILLEGAL MONUMENT
Few people know it, even in Poland, that for a short time in Krakow there was a monument to American astronauts who landed on the moon.
The monument was erected in Bronowice district, on the grounds of a local stadium, by local residents. It was 6 meters tall. It showed a symbolic figure of man whose arms are reaching for the skies. Very beautiful.
The construction took place in full conspiracy. Nobody knew about it, and when the local party boss saw it, he threw his hat onto the ground and started trampling on it with fury.
The builders tried to protect the monument announcing that it had been built to commemorate the 25th anniversary of People`s Republic of Poland.
Unfortunately, to no avail. The party secretary Gomułka, after he learnt about the monument from American agencies, ordered to pull it down. He had to because the Kremlin was furious. It didn`t help that Richard Nixon thanked Gomułka in a special telegram for building the monument.
Journalists who wrote an article about it in a local Krakow newspaper were fired. The manager of the stadium was even arrested for some time.
Two stories about the monument in Polish.
www.cyfronet.pl/rowery/pomnik.html
www.dziennik.com/www/dziennik/kult/archiwum/07-12-04/pp-07-16-05.html
We were also the only communist country where people tried to honour the great event.
ILLEGAL MONUMENT
Few people know it, even in Poland, that for a short time in Krakow there was a monument to American astronauts who landed on the moon.
The monument was erected in Bronowice district, on the grounds of a local stadium, by local residents. It was 6 meters tall. It showed a symbolic figure of man whose arms are reaching for the skies. Very beautiful.
The construction took place in full conspiracy. Nobody knew about it, and when the local party boss saw it, he threw his hat onto the ground and started trampling on it with fury.
The builders tried to protect the monument announcing that it had been built to commemorate the 25th anniversary of People`s Republic of Poland.
Unfortunately, to no avail. The party secretary Gomułka, after he learnt about the monument from American agencies, ordered to pull it down. He had to because the Kremlin was furious. It didn`t help that Richard Nixon thanked Gomułka in a special telegram for building the monument.
Journalists who wrote an article about it in a local Krakow newspaper were fired. The manager of the stadium was even arrested for some time.
Two stories about the monument in Polish.
www.cyfronet.pl/rowery/pomnik.html
www.dziennik.com/www/dziennik/kult/archiwum/07-12-04/pp-07-16-05.html
