“”The first word is still Houston to the public and always will be””
No, that is not accurate regardless of what the public thinks.
First word from the lunar surface were: “Contact” & “Shutdown” followed by other words below.
______________________________________________________
102:45:40 Aldrin: Contact Light.
102:45:43 Armstrong (on-board): Shutdown
102:45:44 Aldrin: Okay. Engine Stop.
102:45:45 Aldrin: ACA out of Detent.
102:45:46 Armstrong: Out of Detent. Auto.
102:45:47 Aldrin: Mode Control, both Auto. Descent Engine Command Override, Off. Engine Arm, Off. 413 is in.
102:45:57 Duke: We copy you down, Eagle.
102:45:58 Armstrong : Engine arm is off. Houston, Tranquility Base here. The Eagle has landed.
102:46:06 Duke: Tranquility. We copy you on the ground. You got a bunch of guys about to turn blue. We’re breathing again. Thanks a lot.
102:46:16 Aldrin: Thank you.
"No, that is not accurate regardless of what the public thinks."
Well yes Dragnet, I'm pretty sure that the public 'thinking' that the first word is Houston means that it is still the first word to the public, and my guess is that it will always remain so, at least as long as they think it is.
Besides, Bill Barry, NASA’s chief historian gives his position that because the checklist was part of a long-rehearsed procedural script, he is “inclined toward saying that the first ‘intentional’ words spoken on the moon were Armstrong’s report to Houston that they had landed.”
Just thought I’d mention that I was way behind the curve on the available Apollo 11 audio. I’ve been an occasional student of the Lunar Surface Journal, but I concentrated on the later missions with the better video. For Apollo 11, I was only familiar at all with the downlink audio. Listening to the downlink + control, and the onboard audio last night was quite illuminating. It really brings home the daring, and indeed the audacity of this mission.
So thanks to you and everybody for this discussion.