Charles DukeCharles Duke was born on October 3, 1935, in Charlotte, N.C. In 1957, he graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland, with a degree in naval sciences. Upon graduation, he entered the U.S Air Force, which sent him to Spence Air Base in Georgia and Webb Air Force Base in Texas for primary flight training. Duke was trained to fly the F-86 Sabre aircraft at Moody Air Force Base in Georgia. After completing training, he spent three years with the 526th Fighter Interceptor Squadron at Ramstein Air Base in Germany, serving as a fighter interceptor pilot.  His next assignment was the Aerospace Research Pilot School, for more training. After finishing there in September 1965, he remained as an instructor. He taught control systems and flying in F-101, F-104 and T-33 aircraft.In April 1966, Charlie Duke was one of the nineteen who NASA selected to be a member of the fifth group of astronauts. Duke was a part of the astronaut support crew for Apollo 10. He was Capcom for Apollo 11, the first moon landing. His voice was heard around the world by the millions who were following the news on radio and TV. His first words to Neil Armstrong, "Roger, Twank... Tranquility, we copy you on the ground. You got a bunch of guys about to turn blue. We're breathing again. Thanks a lot!" He was then named Lunar Module pilot for Apollo 16, along with Commander John Young and Command Module pilot Ken Mattingly. The mission was launched on April 16, 1972. Three days later on April 20, 1972, Duke and Young landed on the surface of the moon, while Mattingly orbited the moon in the command ship "Casper." They stayed on the lunar surface 71 hours and 14 minutes, a record, and spent 20 hours and 15 minutes exploring the moon on three separate excursions from the lunar module "Orion." From their Lunar Rover, they covered 16 miles and collected 213 pounds of moon rock. Duke was the tenth man to walk on the moon and the youngest of all twelve. Duke was also the backup lunar module pilot for the Apollo 13 flight. In December 1975, Duke retired from NASA. He entered the USAF Reserves and was promoted to Brigadier General in 1979. He left the reserves in June, 1986. Since 1976, Duke has been involved in many business ventures. He is a devout Christian whohas delivered hundreds of motivational and inspirational speeches. As one of only twelve men to walk on the moon, Charles Duke's autograph is always going to be desirable. That is not likely to change in the future, and in fact, as supply diminishes, values are almost certain to rise. Charles Duke sells his autograph from his own website. They can be purchased there for about the same price as most dealers would charge. Current prices from Duke's website: Signed Photos: $100
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