March 18

Born:

1842 - Stéphane Mallarmé
French symbolist poet whose work inspired some of the revolutionary art groups of the early 20th century.

1892 - Robert P.T. Coffin
American poet; winner of the Pulitzer Prize for Poetry in 1938.

1915 - Richard Condon
American novelist who worked heavily in the political satire genre, best known for The Manchurian Candidate and the Prizzi books.

1927 - George Plimpton
American journalist best known for his sports writing and founding of The Paris Review.

1932 - John Updike
American writer whose two Pulitzers were for books in the Harry "Rabbit" Angstrom series.

1945 - Joy Fielding 
Canadian novelist and actress, most of whose works are set in large American cities.

1948 - Susan Patron
American children's book author; winner of the 2007 Caldecott for The Higher Power of Lucky.

1953 - Franz Wright
American Pulitzer Prize-winning poet whose father, James Wright, also won in the same category.




Died:
1768 - Laurence Sterne
1956 - Louis Bromfield
1986 - Bernard Malamud
1996 - Odysseas Elytis