three, two, one, zero. we have commenced -- we have liftoff. we have cleared the tower. >> oh, there's the rumble in our building. it looks good. it looks like a good flight. this building is shaking under us. our camera platform is shaking. but what a beautiful flight. >> we interrupt this program to present another in a series of onboard television transmissions from the space cap you will brought to you by tang, the breakfast drink of champions. >> apollo 8, 175,450 miles from earth and about to be pulled in by the moon's gravity. the astronauts have now truly left the earth and its gravity. for this second telecast, frank borman has fixed the tv camera on a bracket below his window and has turned apollo 8 so it faces the earth. here is communications coming through from the apollo.