ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1997, Roanoke Times
DATE: Friday, February 21, 1997 TAG: 9702210073
SECTION: NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL PAGE: A-5 EDITION: METRO
DATELINE: NEW CONCORD, OHIO
SOURCE: Associated Press
Thirty-five years to the day after becoming the first American to orbit the Earth, John Glenn announced Thursday he would not seek a fifth term in the U.S. Senate.
The 75-year-old Democrat said age was his only reason for retiring.
``Although my health remains excellent and my passion for the job burns as brightly as ever, another term in the Senate would take me to the age of 83,'' he said.
``For that reason - and for that reason alone - I have decided that I will not be a candidate for re-election to the Senate in 1998.''
Glenn said at his alma mater, Muskingum College, that he intends to continue working on education and other issues until leaving the Senate in 1999.
Glenn and his wife, Annie, teared up several times during his speech. He then declined to answer reporters' questions before heading to a private reception across campus in the Ohio city where he grew up. He scheduled a news conference for today.
The former astronaut orbited the Earth three times on Feb. 20, 1962. Two Russian astronauts had already orbited the Earth, but Glenn's achievement gave the United States a much needed boost in the space race and made him a national hero.
He was elected to his first of four terms in the Senate in 1974, and became an expert on nuclear weaponry and a dogged advocate of nonproliferation.
But his wooden speaking style and failure to capitalize on the release of the movie ``The Right Stuff'' - based on the Tom Wolfe book that told the story of America's early space achievements in epic style - led to an unsuccessful run for the presidency in 1984.
White House press secretary Mike McCurry, who worked on the senator's presidential campaign, called Glenn ``truly a fine person as well as an American hero and an American patriot.''
Glenn entered the nation's consciousness in 1957 after setting the first transcontinental supersonic speed record from Los Angeles to New York.
He has continued to make aviation history. In December, he set a record by flying his twin-engine Beechcraft Baron from Ohio to Washington in 1 hour, 36 minutes.
LENGTH: Short : 50 lines ILLUSTRATION: PHOTO: (headshot) Glennby CNB