On This Day - What Happened On August 11 - Encyclopedia Britannica

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1956 Jackson Pollock killed in automobile accident American painter Jackson Pollock, a leading exponent of Abstract Expressionism who received great fame and serious recognition for his radical poured, or “drip,” technique, died this day in 1956 in an automobile accident. Take our quiz about famous artists © Hans Namuth

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Pervez Musharraf president of Pakistan bornAugust 11, 1943Delhi, IndiadiedFebruary 5, 2023 (aged 79)Dubai, United Arab Emirates(Anniversary tomorrow)© Stocklight/Shutterstock.com 1965 Viola Davis American actress 1961 David Brooks American journalist and commentator 1950 Steve Wozniak American electronics engineer 1943 Pervez Musharraf president of Pakistan 1933 Jerry Falwell American minister See All Biographies On This Day

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2014 American comedian and actor Robin Williams, who was known for his manic stand-up routines and his diverse film performances, died by suicide. Sort fact from fiction in our quiz about A-list actors© Joe Seer/Shutterstock.com 1994 The Major League Baseball Players Association began a labour strike following the games of August 11, and the dispute eventually led to the cancellation of the remainder of the season, including the World Series. Test your knowledge of baseball© Mike Liu/Shutterstock.com 1984 At the Olympic Games in Los Angeles, Carl Lewis became the third track-and-field athlete to win four gold medals in one Olympics, joining fellow Americans Alvin Kraenzlein (1900) and Jesse Owens (1936). Take our quiz about track and fieldEric Risberg—AP/REX/Shutterstock.com 1973 At a back-to-school party in the Bronx, New York, DJ Kool Herc (Clive Campbell) introduced the technique of playing the same album on two turntables and extending the drum section (which became known as the breakbeat); the night is widely recognized as the birth of hip-hop. How much do you know about hip-hop?Noam Galai/Getty Images 1965 Race riots erupted in the Watts district of Los Angeles, resulting in the deaths of 34 people. Read more about this and other significant riots in U.S. history© Bettmann/Getty Images 1964 The Beatles' first feature film, A Hard Day's Night, had its U.S. premiere in New York City; released during the height of Beatlemania, it is now widely considered a classic.Sort fact from fiction in our Beatlemania quizProscenium Films 1942 American actress Hedy Lamarr and composer George Antheil received a patent for an electronic device that minimized the jamming of radio signals; it later became a component of satellite and cellular phone technology. Read our list of seven celebrity inventors, including Hedy LamarrEncyclopædia Britannica, Inc. 1934 The first prisoners arrived at Alcatraz, a maximum-security, theoretically escape-proof federal prison set on Alcatraz Island in the treacherous waters of San Francisco Bay. Learn more about the people, places, and events that shaped the 1930s© Darren Patterson/Dreamstime.com 1929 In a game against the Cleveland Indians, Babe Ruth of the New York Yankees hit his 500th career home run, becoming the first baseball player to reach that milestone. See where Babe Ruth ranks on our list of the 10 greatest baseball players of all timeUPI/Bettmann Archive 1924 The first newsreel of U.S. presidential candidates, which included footage of Calvin Coolidge, John W. Davis, and Robert La Follette, was filmed. Test your knowledge of U.S. presidential elections 1921 Alex Haley, an African American writer best known for The Autobiography of Malcolm X (1965) and Roots: The Saga of an American Family (1976), was born in Ithaca, New York. Take our quiz about famous authorsAP Images 1919 The Weimar constitution was formally declared, establishing Germany as a republic. How much do you know about German history?Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. SIGN UP FOR History's Biggest Headlines Discover the fascinating events that shaped the world, straight from our editors. SIGN UP Thanks for signing up for Today in History. Your first newsletter will arrive soon! SIGN UP By clicking "Sign Up" you are agreeing to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.