August 12, 1968

A Big Mac cost $0.49 that summer of 1968, and the Dow Jones sat at 944 — as American troops in Vietnam braced for what President Johnson warned could be a massive enemy attack, underscoring how the war continued to define the national mood even as everyday life carried on. On television, "Get Smart" was pulling in Emmy wins while Herb Alpert's "This Guy's In Love With You" held the top spot on the radio, giving the summer a soundtrack that had nothing to do with the news. On July 20, NASA's Apollo program was building toward its moon landing the following year, but that June the agency had already confirmed the full flight plan for Apollo 11, marking a concrete step toward what would become one of the defining achievements of the century.