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August Wilson is born as Frederick August Kittel Jr. in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
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His mother remarries David Bedford, and the family moves to a predominantly white neighborhood, where they face racism.
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Wilson experiences racism at Central Catholic High School and later drops out of multiple schools before educating himself at the Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh.
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At age 17, he officially changes his name to August Wilson to honor his mother.
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Joins the U.S. Army but leaves after one year.
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Co-founds the Black Horizon Theater in Pittsburgh with Rob Penny.
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Moves to St. Paul, Minnesota, to write plays for the Science Museum of Minnesota.
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– Moves to Seattle, Washington, where he writes many of his famous works.
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His play Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom is accepted for development at the National Playwrights Conference.
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Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom premieres on Broadway, marking his breakthrough as a playwright.
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Fences wins the Pulitzer Prize for Drama and the Tony Award for Best Play.
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The Piano Lesson wins Wilson his second Pulitzer Prize for Drama.
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Seven Guitars is nominated for a Pulitzer Prize and a Tony Award.
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King Hedley II premieres in Pittsburgh before moving to Broadway.
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Wilson announces he has been diagnosed with liver cancer.
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Wilson dies at age 60 in Seattle, Washington.
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The Virginia Theatre on Broadway is renamed the August Wilson Theatre in his honor.
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– The film adaptation of Fences, starring Denzel Washington and Viola Davis, is released, winning an Academy Award for Davis.