On this day
June 18 in literary history
Literary history for June 18: 24 writers born, 19 writers who died and 1 literary events from 1588 to 2015. Born on this day: Christopher Largen, Angela Johnson (writer), Joe Ansolabehere.
Writers born on June 18
| Born | Writer | Known as |
|---|---|---|
| 1969 | Christopher Largen | American novelist (1969–2012) |
| 1961 | Angela Johnson (writer) | American children's book author and poet (born 1961) |
| 1959 | Joe Ansolabehere | American television writer and producer (born 1959) |
| 1957 | Richard Powers | American novelist (born 1957) |
| 1949 | Chris Van Allsburg | American writer and illustrator (born 1949) |
| 1946 | Russell Ash | British writer (1946-2010) |
| 1942 | Roger Ebert | American film critic and author (1942–2013) |
| 1942 | Pat Hutchins | English children's writer and illustrator (1942–2017) |
| 1941 | Paul Mayersberg | English writer and director (born 1941) |
| 1939 | Jean-Claude Germain | Canadian playwright and writer (1939–2025) |
| 1932 | Geoffrey Hill | English poet (1932–2016) |
| 1926 | Philip B. Crosby | American businessman and author |
| 1926 | Tom Wicker | American journalist and novelist (1926–2011) |
| 1920 | Aster Berkhof | Belgian writer (1920–2020) |
| 1914 | Efraín Huerta | Mexican poet (1914–1982) |
| 1913 | Sammy Cahn | American lyricist, songwriter, musician (1913–1993) |
| 1913 | Françoise Loranger | Canadian playwright, radio producer, theatrical writer and feminist |
| 1907 | Frithjof Schuon | Swiss philosopher, poet and painter (1907–1998) |
| 1903 | Raymond Radiguet | French novelist and poet (1903–1923) |
| 1863 | George Essex Evans | Australian poet (1863–1909) |
| 1862 | Carolyn Wells | American writer (1862–1942) |
| 1854 | E. W. Scripps (businessman) | American newspaper publisher (1854–1926) |
| 1834 | Auguste-Théodore-Paul de Broglie | French professor of apologetics and writer on apologetic subjects |
| 1812 | Ivan Goncharov | Russian novelist and official (1812–1891) |
Writers who died on June 18
| Died | Writer | Known as |
|---|---|---|
| 2015 | Phil Austin | American comedian and writer (1941–2015) |
| 2014 | Claire Martin (writer) | Canadian writer |
| 2013 | Michael Hastings (journalist) | American journalist and author (1980–2013) |
| 2012 | Lina Haag | Lina Haag, German author and activist (born 1907) |
| 2010 | José Saramago | Portuguese novelist (1922–2010) |
| 2008 | Tasha Tudor | American illustrator and writer (1915–2008) |
| 2007 | Georges Thurston | Black Canadian singer and author (1951–2007) |
| 2006 | Joseph Zobel | Martiniquai writer (1915–2006) |
| 2005 | Manuel Sadosky | Argentine mathematician, civil servant and author |
| 1997 | Lev Kopelev | Soviet author and dissident |
| 1989 | I. F. Stone | American investigative journalist, writer, and author (1907–1989) |
| 1982 | Djuna Barnes | American Modernist writer, poet and artist (1892–1982) |
| 1982 | John Cheever | American novelist and short story writer (1912–1982) |
| 1936 | Maxim Gorky | Russian and Soviet writer (1868–1936) |
| 1902 | Samuel Butler (novelist) | English novelist and critic (1835–1902) |
| 1860 | Friedrich Wilhelm von Bismarck | German general, diplomat, and writer (1783–1860) |
| 1749 | Ambrose Philips | 17th/18th-century English poet and politician |
| 1704 | Tom Brown (satirist) | English translator and satirist |
| 1588 | Robert Crowley (printer) | English stationer, poet, writer, and clergyman |
Literary events on June 18
| Year | Event |
|---|---|
| 1858 | Charles Darwin received a manuscript by fellow naturalist Alfred Russel Wallace on natural selection, which encouraged him to publish his own theory of evolution. |
Featured
Christopher Largen (1969) — Christopher Jon Largen was an American journalist, author, filmmaker, and social satirist. He was known for his work on health, public policy, and his activism against child abuse, and his contributions to independent media and documentary films.
Angela Johnson (writer) (1961) — Angela Johnson is an American writer of children's books and poetry, with over 40 books to her credit since beginning her writing career in 1989. Her children's picture books are simple yet poetic stories about African-American families, friendships, and common childhood experiences such as moving.
Joe Ansolabehere (1959) — Joseph Michael Ansolabehere is an American television writer and producer. With partner and friend Paul Germain, as the team Paul & Joe Productions, he is the co-creator of animated series Recess and Lloyd in Space.
Sources & data
- Compiled from Wikipedia’s “On this day” selections (CC BY-SA 4.0), filtered for writers and literary events.