August 11
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1934: America’s escape-proof prison opens
On this day in 1934, Alcatraz welcomed its first civilian prisoners, a group of 14 from the federal penitentiary on McNeil Island, Washington. The move was part of the government’s efforts to combat the upswing in crime that had come with Prohibition, and Alcatraz was well fortified. A who’s-who of America’s criminals would soon reside there, including Al Capone and Machine Gun Kelly. Until its closure in 1963, there were no known successful escapes.
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Featured Event
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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.]
Featured Biography
Featured Biography
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Born this day in 1943, General Pervez Musharraf assumed power in Pakistan following a 1999 coup, formed a military government, and, during his presidency (2001–08), struggled to deal with Islamist extremism within the country.
Famous Birthdays
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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.]
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1994
The Major League Baseball Players Association began a labor 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.]
Eric Risberg—AP/REX/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 field.]
Noam Galai/Getty Images
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?]
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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.]
Proscenium Films
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 quiz.]
Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.
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 Lamarr.]
UPI/Bettmann Archive
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 time.]
Image: Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.
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.]
AP Images
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 authors.]
Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.
1919
The Weimar constitution was formally declared, establishing Germany as a republic. [How much do you know about German history?]