American novelist and essayist

Jonathan Franzen

Jonathan Earl Franzen is an American novelist and essayist. His 2001 novel The Corrections drew widespread critical acclaim, earned Franzen a National Book Award, was a Pulitzer Prize for Fiction finalist, earned a James Tait Black Memorial Prize, and was shortlisted for the International Dublin Literary Award. His novel Freedom (2010) garnered similar praise and led to an appearance on the cover of Time magazine alongside the headline "Great American Novelist". Franzen's latest novel Crossroads was published in 2021, and is the first in a projected trilogy.

Born

1959

August 17

Died

Living

Era

1950s

Country

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About

Jonathan, in brief

Source: Wikipedia · CC BY-SA 4.0

Life timeline

Key dates

1959 Born

Also on August 17

What else happened on this day, through history

986 Byzantine–Bulgarian wars: Battle of the Gates of Trajan: The Bulgarians under the Comitopuli Samuel and Aron defeat the Byzantine forces at the Gate of Trajan, with Byzantine Emperor Basil II barely escaping.
1186 Georgenberg Pact: Ottokar IV, Duke of Styria and Leopold V, Duke of Austria sign a heritage agreement in which Ottokar gives his duchy to Leopold and to his son Frederick under the stipulation that Austria and Styria would henceforth remain undivided.
1386 Karl Topia, the ruler of Princedom of Albania, forges an alliance with the Republic of Venice, committing to participate in all wars of the Republic and receiving coastal protection against the Ottomans in return.
1424 Hundred Years' War: Battle of Verneuil: An English force under John, Duke of Bedford defeats a larger French army under Jean II, Duke of Alençon, John Stewart, and Earl Archibald of Douglas.

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The world in 1959

When Jonathan arrived

april 25 The Saint Lawrence Seaway, linking the North American Great Lakes and the Atlantic Ocean, officially opens to shipping.
april 8 A team of computer manufacturers, users, and university people led by Grace Hopper meets to discuss the creation of a new programming language that would be called COBOL.
april 8 The Organization of American States drafts an agreement to create the Inter-American Development Bank.
april 9 Project Mercury: NASA announces the selection of the United States' first seven astronauts, whom the news media quickly dub the "Mercury Seven".

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Same-day contemporaries

Also born on August 17

Charles I of Austria (died 1922) 1887– Lennart Torstensson 1603–1651 Swedish field marshal and engineer (born 1603) Martin Sandberger 1911–2010 German colonel and lawyer (died 2010) Maru Teferi 1992– Israeli marathon runner Patrick Manning 1946–2016 Trinidadian-Tobagonian politician, 4th Prime Minister of Trinidad and Tobago (died 2016) Pieter van der Hoog 1888–1957 Dutch bacteriologist, dermatologist, and Islamicist (born 1888) Robert De Niro 1943– American actor, entrepreneur, director, and producer Robin Cousins 1957– British competitive figure skater

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Same-year contemporaries

Also born in 1959

Ahmet Davutoğlu 1959– Turkish political scientist, academic, and politician, 37th Prime Minister of Turkey Aidan Quinn 1959– American actor Albert Owen 1959– Welsh sailor and politician Andrew Bolt 1959– Australian journalist Anna Escobedo Cabral 1959– American lawyer and politician, 42nd Treasurer of the United States Barry O'Farrell 1959– Australian politician, 43rd Premier of New South Wales Boris Nemtsov 1959–2015 Russian academic and politician, First Deputy Prime Minister of Russia (born 1959) Brad McCrimmon 1959– Canadian ice hockey player and coach (died 2011) Brett Bodine 1959– American NASCAR driver

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More to explore

Jonathan's birthday August 17 Jonathan's zodiac Leo When Jonathan arrived 1959