I was right out of college, living in Houston apt. with a lot of NASA people...some very close to the Mercury 7 and Gemini. I met several of them including Glenn and Armstrong.
At the time Glenn was the national hero, and one of mine. I met him and his family. I was very disappointed the first time I met him...not very friendly. One good thing about him...he probably was the best husband and father of the bunch...wife was very sweet. He wasn't one of the party boys.
I think some of them had trouble handling the celebrity that went with job. They were unknown pilots and suddenly were famous and recognized everywhere they went. I don't think NASA had a program to help them handle the instant fame. Glenn made the comment he couldn't balance his checkbook...people were keeping, not cashing his checks.
I did get a lot of autographed pictures of all of the original 7 and Gemini astronauts.
It was a fun time...especially to be young and living in Houston.
There was an old BBQ joint across the street from the entrance to Ellington Field. All of the astronauts ate there at one time or another.
Can't remember the name of it and don't know if it's still there or not.