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TIL - When Roald Dahl attended school, the nearby Cadbury chocolate factory would occasionally send boxes of new chocolates to the school to be tested by students. It is believed that this likely inspired him in writing his third children's book, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.

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MVpm TIL that Festivus was created in 1966 by Readers Digest editor, Dan O’Keefe. It marked his first date with his wife. Years later his son, Daniel O'Keefe, became a writer on Seinfeld and Festivus became what we know it to be now.
LkwkQ TIL India has used 3 time zones in the past - Bombay, Madras and Calcutta, with Madras time zone (being in between the other two) used by the railways all around the country. Neither of them had the arbitrary UTC+X(.5) time offset. The present day IST is closest to the Madras time.
X0gdD TIL of Cri du chat syndrome which is a rare genetic disorder that affects 1 in 50,000 children; its name comes from the French for "cry of the cat" as the cries of affected infants are similar to that of a meowing kitten due to problems with the larynx and nervous system
b9NE4 TIL that the early 19th-century American interpretation of Santa Claus was part of a movement to tone down the wild Christmas celebrations of the era, which included aggressive home invasions under the guise of wassailing (caroling), substantial premarital sex, and public displays of sexual deviancy
X0A1r TIL that John Romita Sr. based his design for Mary Jane off of Ann-Margret's look in "Bye Bye, Birdie"