On this day
April 11 in literary history
Literary history for April 11: 26 writers born, 26 writers who died and 1 literary events from 1722 to 2015. Born on this day: Marta Breen, Sergei Lukyanenko, Mark Lawson.
Writers born on April 11
| Born | Writer | Known as |
|---|---|---|
| 1976 | Marta Breen | Norwegian non-fiction writer |
| 1968 | Sergei Lukyanenko | Russian author (born 1968) |
| 1962 | Mark Lawson | English journalist, broadcaster and author |
| 1960 | Jeremy Clarkson | English television presenter, journalist, author and farmer (born 1960) |
| 1957 | Tessa Dahl | British author (born 1957) |
| 1955 | Michael Callen | American writer, musician and AIDS activist (1955–1993) |
| 1949 | Dorothy Allison | American writer (1949–2024) |
| 1949 | Bernd Eichinger | German film producer, screenwriter, and director (1949– 2011) |
| 1944 | John Milius | American screenwriter and director (born 1944) |
| 1942 | Hattie Gossett | American poet (born 1942) |
| 1941 | Ellen Goodman | American journalist and writer |
| 1937 | Jill Gascoine | English actress and novelist (1937–2020) |
| 1934 | Mark Strand | Canadian-American poet, essayist, translator |
| 1930 | Anton LaVey | American writer and Satanist (1930–1997) |
| 1922 | Arved Viirlaid | Estonian-Canadian writer |
| 1917 | David Westheimer | American novelist (1917–2005) |
| 1906 | Dale Messick | American cartoonist (1906–2005) |
| 1905 | Attila József | Hungarian poet (1905–1937) |
| 1903 | Misuzu Kaneko | Japanese poet |
| 1900 | Sándor Márai | Hungarian writer (1900–1989) |
| 1896 | Léo-Paul Desrosiers | Canadian writer and journalist (1896–1967) |
| 1872 | Aleksandër Stavre Drenova | Albanian poet, writer and activist |
| 1866 | Bernard O'Dowd | Australian poet and activist |
| 1864 | Johanna Elberskirchen | German writer (1864–1943) |
| 1859 | Stefanos Thomopoulos | Greek writer and historian |
| 1722 | Christopher Smart | English poet (1722–1771) |
Writers who died on April 11
| Died | Writer | Known as |
|---|---|---|
| 2015 | François Maspero | French author and journalist |
| 2014 | Rolf Brem | Rolf Brem, Swiss sculptor and illustrator (born 1926) |
| 2012 | Roger Caron | Canadian robber and writer (1938–2012) |
| 2009 | Vishnu Prabhakar | Indian writer |
| 2009 | Corín Tellado | Spanish writer (1927-2009) |
| 2007 | Janet McDonald | American novelist (1953–2007) |
| 2007 | Kurt Vonnegut | American author (1922–2007) |
| 2005 | André François (cartoonist) | French cartoonist (1915–2005) |
| 1999 | William H. Armstrong (author) | American children's writer (1911–1999) |
| 1997 | Wang Xiaobo | Chinese novelist and essayist (1952–1997) |
| 1992 | Eve Merriam | American poet (1916-1992) |
| 1987 | Erskine Caldwell | American novelist (1903–1987) |
| 1987 | Primo Levi | Italian Holocaust survivor and writer (1919–1987) |
| 1985 | John Gilroy (artist) | English artist and illustrator (1898–1985) |
| 1984 | Edgar V. Saks | Estonian historian and author |
| 1981 | Caroline Gordon | American novelist (1895–1981) |
| 1980 | Ümit Kaftancıoğlu | Turkish writer and radio producer |
| 1977 | Jacques Prévert | French poet and screenwriter (1900–1977) |
| 1977 | Phanishwar Nath Renu | Indian writer and activist (1921–1977) |
| 1970 | John O'Hara | American novelist and short story writer (1905–1970) |
| 1962 | Ukichiro Nakaya | Japanese physicist and science essayist (1900–1962) |
| 1916 | Richard Harding Davis | American journalist, war correspondent, and fiction writer (1864–1916) |
| 1908 | Henry Bird (chess player) | English chess player and author (1829–1908) |
| 1906 | Francis Pharcellus Church | American publisher and editor (1839–1906) |
| 1861 | Francisco González Bocanegra | Mexican poet (1824–1861) |
| 1798 | Karl Wilhelm Ramler | German poet (1725–1798) |
Literary events on April 11
| Year | Event |
|---|---|
| 1973 | On the Art of the Cinema, a treatise on film propaganda in support of the ruling Workers' Party of Korea written by the future North Korean leader Kim Jong Il, was published. |
Featured
Marta Breen (1976) — Marta Breen is a Norwegian non-fiction writer, journalist, and organizational leader. Her books often center on women's history and feminism.
Sergei Lukyanenko (1968) — Sergei Vasilyevich Lukyanenko is a Russian science fiction and fantasy author, writing in Russian. His works often feature intense action-packed plots, interwoven with the moral dilemma of keeping one's humanity while being strong.
Mark Lawson (1962) — Mark Gerard Lawson is an English journalist, broadcaster and author. Specialising in culture and the arts, he is best known for presenting the flagship BBC Radio 4 arts programme Front Row between 1998 and 2014. He is also a Guardian columnist, and presented Mark Lawson Talks To... on BBC Four from 2006 to 2015.
Sources & data
- Compiled from Wikipedia’s “On this day” selections (CC BY-SA 4.0), filtered for writers and literary events.