Mysteries in the Archives

1961: Gagarin: First Man in Space (3x4)

Air date: Oct 06, 2012

Flaky and blurry images, which show nothing spectacular. However, the one who is filmed realizes one of the wildest dreams of the 20th century. On Wednesday, April 12, 1961, for the first time, a man traveled into space. He is a Soviet citizen; Name: Yuri Gagarin. Barely four years after the first Sputnik satellite was put into orbit, the cosmonaut's exploit confirms the lead of the Soviets over the Americans. It's a great victory in the space race and, in the middle of the Cold War, it's also tremendous propaganda for the communist regime and a snub for the United States. But how did Yuri Gagarin been chosen? By who ? And why him? Another question: who shot the quantities of footage of Gagarin filmed before the day of the flight and after? After the "Sputnik shock" the USA had to accept another embarrassment. The recovery of the lost film treasures sheds light on how, by whom and why Gagarin was chosen.