April 11 in Pop Culture History
1876 – The Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks was organized in New York City.
1876 – The steno-type was patented (#175,892) by John C. Zachos of New York City
1909 – The city of Tel Aviv was founded.
1919 – The International Labor Organization(IOL) was founded.
1945 – The American Third Army liberated the Buchenwald concentration camp, near Weimar, Germany.
1954 – The Most Boring Day ever? Today was the most boring day in history, according to a computer program tracking news. The most noteworthy events of that day included a general election in Belgium and the birth of a Turkish academic.
1957 – The Ryan X-13 Vertijet became the first jet to take-off and land vertically, at Edwards Air Force Base, California.
1963 – Pope John XXIII issues Pacem in terris (Peace on Earth) – the first encyclical addressed to all instead of to Catholics alone.
1964 (Tornado) Bhabanipur, Bangladesh
1970 – #1 Hit April 11, 1970 – April 24, 1970: The Beatles – Let It Be
1970 – Apollo 13 was successfully launched from Cape Canaveral, Florida, carrying astronauts James A. Lovell, John L. Swigert, and Fred W. Haise. The difficult trip back home was the topic of the film, Apollo 13.
1976 – The Apple Computer 1 (Apple I) was created. They were initially all hand-built by Steve Wozniak.
1981 – #1 Hit April 11, 1981 – May 1, 1981: Daryl Hall and John Oates – Kiss on My List
1981 – Van Halen’s lead guitarist Eddie Van Halen married One Day at a Time actress Valerie Bertinelli
1988 – Cher (Cherilyn Sarkasian) won the Academy Award for Best Actress for her performance in 1987’s Moonstruck.
1989 – The Philadelphia Flyers’ Ron Hextall becomes the first goaltender in NHL history to score a goal in the playoffs.
1997 – Anaconda and Grosse Point Blank were released in theaters.
1999 – Miss Saigon (Broadway Musical) Opened on April 11, 1991 and Closed: January 28, 2001
2001 – Joe Dirt, Kingdom Come and Josie and the Pussycats debuted in theaters.
2006 – Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad announced that Iran had successfully enriched uranium.
2009 – #1 Hit April 11, 2009 – April 17, 2009: Lady Gaga – Poker Face
2013 – Matilda the Musical (Broadway Musical) Opened on April 11, 2013 and Closed: January 1, 2017
2014 – Rio 2, Draft Day and Oculus were released in theaters.
