Jim Lovell Net Worth

What was Jim Lovell's net worth?

Jim Lovell was an American astronaut, naval aviator, test pilot, and businessman who had a net worth of $5 million at the time of his death in August 2025. Jim died on August 7, 2025, at the age of 97.

Jim Lovell was best known as the commander of the Apollo 13 mission in April 1970, a spaceflight that became one of NASA's most dramatic rescues after an onboard explosion crippled the spacecraft en route to the moon. Over his career, Lovell logged more than 715 hours in space across four missions—two Gemini flights and two Apollo flights—making him one of the most experienced astronauts of NASA's early space programs. He was one of only three men to journey to the moon twice, although he never set foot on its surface. A former Navy test pilot, Lovell was also part of Apollo 8, the first mission to orbit the moon, and Gemini 7, which achieved the first rendezvous of two crewed spacecraft. His calm leadership during Apollo 13's life-or-death crisis became legendary, later immortalized by Tom Hanks in the 1995 film "Apollo 13" and recounted in his memoir "Lost Moon." After leaving NASA in 1973, Lovell enjoyed a successful business career and remained an enduring figure in American space history.

Early Life

James Arthur Lovell Jr. was born on March 25, 1928, in Cleveland, Ohio, the only child of Arthur and Blanche Lovell. His father, a salesman for a coal furnace company, died in a car accident when Jim was young, and he and his mother later settled in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. From an early age, Lovell was fascinated by rocketry and space travel. As a teenager, he experimented with homemade rockets, once building one with a friend that exploded in midair.

Lovell attended the University of Wisconsin–Madison for two years before transferring to the United States Naval Academy, where he graduated in 1952. Commissioned as an ensign in the U.S. Navy, he became a naval aviator and eventually a test pilot, honing the skills that would make him an ideal candidate for the space program. In September 1962, he was selected as part of NASA's second group of astronauts, joining a cohort that would pioneer the Gemini and Apollo missions.

Gemini Missions

Lovell's first trip to space came in December 1965 as pilot of Gemini 7 alongside commander Frank Borman. The mission lasted more than 330 hours and achieved the first-ever rendezvous of two manned spacecraft when Gemini 6A drew alongside them in orbit—a crucial step in the technology needed for lunar missions.

He returned to space in November 1966 as commander of Gemini 12 with pilot Buzz Aldrin. The four-day mission completed 59 orbits of Earth and tested new techniques for spacewalking, bringing the Gemini program to a successful close. By the end of his second flight, Lovell had spent more time in space than any other astronaut.

Apollo 8 and the First Moon Orbit

Lovell's third spaceflight was Apollo 8 in December 1968, where he served as command module pilot alongside commander Frank Borman and lunar module pilot William Anders. The mission marked the first time humans traveled beyond Earth's orbit to orbit the moon.

Apollo 8 completed 10 lunar orbits, during which the crew broadcast live television images to Earth and read from the Book of Genesis on Christmas Eve. During one orbit, Anders captured the now-iconic "Earthrise" photograph, showing the Earth emerging over the moon's horizon. Lovell famously described the moon as "essentially gray, no color… looks like plaster of Paris." The mission was a major milestone in the space race, proving that NASA could send astronauts to the moon and return them safely.

Jim Lovell (via NASA – Public Domain)

Apollo 13 and the Space Rescue

Lovell's fourth and final mission was Apollo 13, launched on April 11, 1970. Lovell was commander, with Fred Haise as lunar module pilot and Jack Swigert as command module pilot. The goal was to land on the Fra Mauro highlands of the moon, but nearly 56 hours into the flight—about 200,000 miles from Earth—an oxygen tank in the service module exploded.

The blast crippled the spacecraft's power and life-support systems. Swigert made the first call to mission control—"Houston, we've had a problem"—which Lovell then repeated for clarity. The crew and NASA engineers quickly shifted to survival mode, using the lunar module as a "lifeboat" to provide oxygen and power. Designed for two men for two days, the lunar module was stretched to support three astronauts for four days, with lights and heat shut off to conserve resources.

Temperatures dropped to near freezing, and the crew rationed water and improvised repairs using duct tape and other supplies. Rather than risk a direct turn back to Earth, mission control had the spacecraft loop around the moon for a slingshot trajectory home. Lovell's precise navigation burns ensured the spacecraft remained on course. On April 17, 1970, Apollo 13 splashed down safely in the Pacific Ocean, 610 miles southeast of American Samoa, in one of NASA's most celebrated rescues.

Life After NASA

Lovell retired from NASA and the U.S. Navy in March 1973 as a captain. He entered the business world, serving as president and CEO of the Bay-Houston Towing Company in Texas, later holding executive positions in telecommunications. He also ran Lovell Communications, a Chicago-area consulting firm.

In the 1990s, Lovell co-authored "Lost Moon: The Perilous Voyage of Apollo 13" with journalist Jeffrey Kluger. The book was adapted into the 1995 Ron Howard film "Apollo 13," in which Tom Hanks portrayed Lovell. Lovell himself made a cameo as the captain of the USS Iwo Jima, the ship that recovered the Apollo 13 crew.

For years, Lovell and his family owned and operated Lovell's of Lake Forest, a restaurant filled with memorabilia from his NASA career, which closed in 2015.

Awards and Legacy

Lovell received numerous honors during and after his career, including the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1970 from President Richard Nixon, the Congressional Space Medal of Honor in 1995 from President Bill Clinton, and multiple NASA Distinguished Service Medals.

He remains one of only three people to have traveled to the moon twice, and one of the few astronauts to have served on four missions across both the Gemini and Apollo programs. His calm leadership during Apollo 13 has become a case study in crisis management, teamwork, and resilience.

Personal Life

Lovell married Marilyn Gerlach in 1952, and the couple had four children: James III, Jeffrey, Barbara, and Susan. In "Apollo 13," Marilyn was portrayed by Kathleen Quinlan. Marilyn Lovell died in 2023. At the time of his death in 2025, Lovell had 11 grandchildren and eight great-grandchildren. He spent his later years in Lake Forest, Illinois.

Though he never walked on the moon, Jim Lovell's career epitomized the courage and ingenuity of NASA's early astronauts. His role in bringing Apollo 13 safely home transformed a potential tragedy into a lasting symbol of human problem-solving under extreme conditions.

Real Estate

In 1999, the Lovells paid $2.795 million for a home in Lake Forest, Illinois. They sold the home for a little under $3 million to a neighbor.

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