Today is Saturday, April 12, the 102nd day of 2025. There are 263 days left in the year.

Today in history:

On April 12, 1961, Soviet cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin became the first human in space, orbiting the earth once before landing safely via parachute after a planned ejection from his space capsule.

Also on this date:

In 1861, the U.S. Civil War began as Confederate forces opened fire on Fort Sumter in South Carolina.

In 1945, President Franklin D. Roosevelt died of a cerebral hemorrhage in Warm Springs, Georgia, at age 63; he was succeeded by Vice President Harry S. Truman.

In 1954, Bill Haley and His Comets recorded “Rock Around the Clock,” a song often cited as bringing rock 'n' roll music into the mainstream when it was popularized in the film “The Blackboard Jungle” the following

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