October Sky is a 1999 film produced by
Charles Gordon and it stars Jake
Gyllenhaal, Chris Cooper and Laura Dern. It
is based on the true story of Homer Hickam
who was a coal miner's son living in Virginia.
As a result of the first Sputnik launch, Hickam
was inspired to take up rocketry against his
father's wishes.
Sputnik Launch
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The Sputnik launch took place on October 4th,
1957.
The Soviet Union successfully launched Sputnik I.
It was the first satellite to orbit the earth (taking
about 98 minutes to do so).
The Sputnik was the approximate size of a large
beach ball.
The Sputnik launch marked the start of the space
age and the space race between the United States
and the Soviet Union.
The Sputnik…
The Sputnik entered the
atmosphere on October 4th,
1957 and circled the earth
for 92 days. It re-entered
the earth’s atmosphere on
January 4th where it burned
on impact.
Movie Title
"October Sky" is an alternate title for
“Rocket Boys”, the title of the book on
which the movie is based. Homer
Hickam stated that in research done
by Universal Pictures, women over 30
would not go to see a movie titled
"Rocket Boys", so Universal Pictures
changed the title to be more inviting to
a wider audience.
The title may also be a reference to
the satellite Sputnik which was
launched in October.
Movie Awards…
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The film was nominated for 11 awards, of which it
won three, including the 2000 Critics Choice Award
for Best Family Film.
Jake Gyllenhaal was nominated in1999 for the
Teen Choice Award for Breakout Performance, and
the film itself was nominated for Teen Choice Drama
YouTube
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Homer Hickam: From “Rocket Boys” to
“October Sky”
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9M0i25oRXX8
Unit 2, Lesson 5
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Before watching the movie, read ‘Background to October Sky”
Assignment – Answer the following questions:
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What was "Sputnik"? Why did it shake the United States "to its roots"?
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Explain what life in a coal mining town was like.
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Identify three things that make underground mining so dangerous?
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What is the setting of October Sky - where and when does it take place?
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Is this movie inspirational in any way? If so, explain using examples from the story line.
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***Watch the movie and begin Lesson 6***