On this day
April 4 in literary history
Literary history for April 4: 33 writers born, 21 writers who died and 1 literary events from 968 to 2024. Born on this day: Ned Vizzini, Pamela Ribon, Malik Yusef.
33writers born
21writers died
1literary events
Writers born on April 4
| Born | Writer | Known as |
|---|---|---|
| 1981 | Ned Vizzini | American writer |
| 1975 | Pamela Ribon | American screenwriter, author and actress |
| 1971 | Malik Yusef | American spoken word poet, rapper and producer from Chicago |
| 1970 | Greg Garcia (producer) | American television writer, producer and director (born 1970) |
| 1964 | Đặng Thân | Vietnamese poet and writer |
| 1960 | Godknows Igali | Nigerian public servant, diplomat, author and scholar |
| 1956 | David E. Kelley | American television producer, writer and attorney (born 1956) |
| 1948 | Dan Simmons | American science fiction and horror writer (1948–2026) |
| 1946 | György Spiró | Hungarian writer |
| 1944 | Mary Kenny | Irish journalist, broadcaster and playwright |
| 1943 | Paulette Jiles | American writer (1943–2025) |
| 1942 | Kitty Kelley | Author of unauthorized biographies |
| 1942 | Elizabeth Levy | American novelist |
| 1935 | Trevor Griffiths | English dramatist (1935–2024) |
| 1932 | Johanna Reiss | Dutch-American writer (born 1932) |
| 1928 | Maya Angelou | American writer and activist (1928–2014) |
| 1927 | Joe Orlando | Italian-American illustrator, writer, editor and cartoonist (1927–1998) |
| 1925 | Emmett Williams | American poet (1925 - 2007) |
| 1923 | Gene Reynolds | American actor, producer, writer, and director (1923–2020) |
| 1914 | Marguerite Duras | French writer and film director (1914–1996) |
| 1902 | Louise Lévêque de Vilmorin | French writer (1902–1969) |
| 1902 | Stanley G. Weinbaum | American writer (1902–1935) |
| 1896 | Robert E. Sherwood | American writer (1896–1955) |
| 1892 | Edith Södergran | Finnish poet (1892–1923) |
| 1889 | Makhanlal Chaturvedi | Indian writer (1889–1969) |
| 1878 | Walter Conrad Arensberg | American art collector, critic and poet |
| 1853 | Remy de Gourmont | French writer (1858–1915) |
| 1846 | Comte de Lautréamont | Uruguayan-born French author (1846–1870) |
| 1829 | Owen Suffolk | English bushranger and writer in Australia |
| 1818 | Thomas Mayne Reid | British novelist and tutor (1818–1883) |
| 1785 | Bettina von Arnim | German writer (1785–1859) |
| 1646 | Antoine Galland | French orientalist, numismatist and translator (1646–1715) |
| 1572 | William Strachey | English writer (1572–1621) |
Writers who died on April 4
| Died | Writer | Known as |
|---|---|---|
| 2024 | Lynne Reid Banks | British writer (1929–2024) |
| 2015 | Klaus Rifbjerg | Danish writer (1931–2015) |
| 2014 | Muhammad Qutb | Egyptian Islamist writer and scholar |
| 2013 | Bengt Blomgren | Swedish actor, film director and screenwriter (1923–2013) |
| 2013 | Roger Ebert | American film critic and author (1942–2013) |
| 2013 | Noboru Yamaguchi (author) | Japanese writer |
| 2012 | Anne Karin Elstad | Norwegian author (1938–2012) |
| 2012 | Claude Miller | French film director, producer and screenwriter (1942–2012) |
| 2001 | Ed Roth | American artist, cartoonist and custom car painter |
| 1991 | Max Frisch | Swiss playwrighter and novelist (1911–1991) |
| 1991 | Graham Ingels | American illustrator |
| 1987 | C. L. Moore | American science fiction and fantasy writer (1911–1987) |
| 1987 | Chögyam Trungpa | Tibetan Buddhist master and writer (1939–1987) |
| 1987 | Agyeya | Indian poet and writer (1911-1987) |
| 1985 | Kate Roberts (author) | Welsh author (1891–1985) |
| 1977 | Andrey Dikiy | Russian writer and anti-Semitic theorist |
| 1967 | Al Lewis (lyricist) | American lyricist (1901–1967) |
| 1961 | Simion Stoilow | Romanian mathematician and author |
| 1912 | Isaac K. Funk | American Lutheran minister, editor, lexicographer, publisher and spelling reformer |
| 1774 | Oliver Goldsmith | Anglo-Irish writer (1728–1774) |
| 968 | Abu Firas al-Hamdani | Hamdanid dynasty prince and poet (932–968) |
Literary events on April 4
| Year | Event |
|---|---|
| 2020 | China holds a national day of mourning for martyrs who died in the fight against the novel coronavirus disease outbreak. |
Featured
Ned Vizzini (1981) — Edison Price Vizzini was an American writer. He was the author of four books for young adults, including It's Kind of a Funny Story (2006), which NPR placed at #56 in its list of the "100 Best-Ever Teen Novels" and which is the basis of the film of the same name.
Pamela Ribon (1975) — Pamela Ribon is an Academy Award-nominated American screenwriter, author, filmmaker, blogger, and actress. Her work includes the television series Samantha Who? and the animated films Moana, Ralph Breaks the Internet, and Nimona.
Malik Yusef (1971) — Malik Yusef el-Shabazz Jones is an American spoken word artist, poet, rapper, record producer, and director based in Chicago, Illinois.
Sources & data
- Compiled from Wikipedia’s “On this day” selections (CC BY-SA 4.0), filtered for writers and literary events.