Armstrong sat down with an autobiographer a few years ago to tell his story in the book, First Man. He did make an appearance this past weekend, and is at the White House today.

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Apollo astronauts Buzz Aldrin, left, and Neil Armstrong, right, participate in a panel discussion during the National Aviation Hall of Fame Spirit of Flight Award at National Museum of the USAF, Friday, July 17, 2009 in Dayton, Ohio.

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U.S. President Barack Obama (R) hosts Apollo 11 astronauts (L-R) Edwin "Buzz" Aldrin, Michael Collins and Neil Armstrong in the Oval Office at the White House July 20, 2009 in Washington, DC. Aldrin and Armstrong became the first two men to walk on the surface of the Moon as Collins orbited above 40 years ago today.

He showed up in '85 when Purdue had all the surviving astronauts appear with our marching band. It was cool to see him from not too far away, but during the national anthem, he had to stand there with his hand on his heart while dozens of photographers clicked away the whole time with cameras in his face. It was nuts and kind of rude. And it's like that every time he makes an appearance. So it's no surprise he picks and chooses his appearances. He did show up when Purdue named their latest engineering building after him a couple years ago.