American race car driver (born 1954)

Alan Kulwicki

Alan Dennis Kulwicki, nicknamed "Special K" and "the Polish Prince", was an American auto racing driver and team owner with Polish origin. He started racing at local short tracks in Wisconsin before moving up to regional stock car touring series. Kulwicki arrived at NASCAR, the highest and most expensive level of stock car racing in the United States, with no sponsor, a limited budget and only a racecar and a borrowed pickup truck. Despite starting with meager equipment and finances, he earned the 1986 NASCAR Rookie of the Year award over drivers racing for well-funded teams.

Born

1954

December 14

Died

1993

Era

1950s

Country

—

About

Alan, in brief

Source: Wikipedia · CC BY-SA 4.0

Life timeline

Key dates

1954 Born
1993 Died

Also on December 14

What else happened on this day, through history

557 Constantinople is severely damaged by an earthquake, which cracks the dome of Hagia Sophia.
835 Sweet Dew Incident: Emperor Wenzong of the Tang dynasty conspires to kill the powerful eunuchs of the Tang court, but the plot is foiled.
872 Pope John VIII is elected following the death of Hadrian II.
1287 St. Lucia's flood: The Zuiderzee sea wall in the Netherlands collapses, killing over 50,000 people.

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The world in 1954

When Alan arrived

april 1 United States President Dwight D. Eisenhower authorizes the creation of the United States Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, Colorado.
april 18 Gamal Abdel Nasser seizes power in Egypt.
april 22 Red Scare: Witnesses begin testifying and live television coverage of the Army–McCarthy hearings begins.
april 25 The first practical solar cell is publicly demonstrated by Bell Telephone Laboratories.

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Same-day contemporaries

Also born on December 14

B. K. S. Iyengar 1918–2014 Indian yoga instructor and author, founded Iyengar Yoga (born 1918) Bill Ranford 1966– Canadian ice hockey player and coach Craig Biggio 1965– American baseball player and coach Daniel De Leon 1852– Curaçaoan-American journalist and politician (died 1914) David A. Cherry 1949– American artist and illustrator DeFord Bailey 1899– American Hall of Fame country and blues musician (died 1982) Hans von Ohain 1911–1998 German-American physicist and engineer (died 1998) Karan Armstrong 1941– American soprano and actress (died 2021) Louis Marshall 1856– American lawyer and activist (died 1929)

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Same-year contemporaries

Also born in 1954

Annie Lennox 1954– Scottish singer-songwriter and pianist Archie Griffin 1954– American football player Chris Huhne 1954– English journalist and politician, Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change Clem Burke 1954–2025 American drummer (born 1954) Cliff Martinez 1954– American drummer and songwriter David Keith 1954– American actor and director David Lee Roth 1954– American singer-songwriter and producer Dawn Primarolo 1954– English politician Dennis Haysbert 1954– American actor and producer

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More to explore

Alan's birthday December 14 Alan's zodiac Sagittarius When Alan arrived 1954