Today in 1960, Chas Newby of Liverpool got a temp job that would give him a story he could dine out on for the rest of his life: for two weeks, he played bass for the Beatles. Plus: today in 1985, a radio DJ in Iowa tried to ward off the holiday blues in an extremely repetitive way.

When Chas Newby Was With the Beatles for Two Weeks (Ultimate Classic Rock) 

DJ`S RECORD EFFORT PULLS HIM OFF AIR (Chicago Tribune)
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Today in 1901, a newspaper article proclaimed 16 year old May Kaarlus as perhaps the greatest trick shot billiard player in the whole world. And she really could play that well, though the career of this pool table prodigy went on to take a surprise turn. Plus: around this time in 2020, a baker sent a friend some hot chocolate bombs as gifts, though the friend didn't quite understand how to use them.

⁠Year 1901 - Lil' Miss May Kaarlus⁠ (Chicago Billiard Museum via Facebook) 

⁠Baker left cracking up after pal mistakes chocolate gift he made for bath bomb⁠ (The Mirror)

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If you’re doing an Advent calendar this month, you’re just over halfway finished opening up those little windows to see what’s inside. So let’s open up a few windows into where they came from. Plus: engineering students at ETH Zurich are trying to build robots that can drop little presents down scale model chimneys.

Advent calendars, explained: Where they came from and why they're everywhere now (NPR)

Robots help deliver gifts (ETH Zurich)
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Today in 1986, a newspaper column by film critic Gene Siskel helped to turn a local snack favorite in Chicago into a signature of the city. Plus: if you like holiday displays, there’s a pretty unusual one in Hatfield, Pennsylvania, a family of plywood moose.

Chicago’s love affair with popcorn goes back 150 years, from Cracker Jack to Garrett Mix (Chicago Tribune)

Hatfield Landmark ‘Nacho the Wooden Moose’ Welcomes New Calf ‘Salsa’ to East Orvilla Road Front Yard (NorthPennNow.com)

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Today in 1972, Apollo 17 landed on the moon. So far, it’s the last mission that put human beings on the lunar surface.  And it was the only Apollo mission where the dust all over that surface gave an astronaut a strong allergic reaction. Plus: around this time in 2011, a cat in Italy named Tommasso kind of inherited a multi-million dollar estate.

The Apollo Astronaut Who Was Allergic To The Moon (Mental Floss)

Tommaso, the Italian cat, inherits $13 million from owner Maria Assunta (The World)

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Kids have been writing letters to Santa for well over a century. Those letters are a fascinating, hilarious and sometimes jaw-dropping window into our own history. Plus: iIf you’re looking for an attraction worthy of the holiday season, you might head to Williams Bay, Wisconsin, to see the World’s Tallest Glass Tree.

A Brief History of Sending a Letter to Santa (Smithsonian)

WORLD’S TALLEST GLASS TREE 

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Today in 1965, CBS broadcast “A Charlie Brown Christmas.” It's one of the iconic TV holiday specials today, but pretty much everyone who put the TV special together thought it was going to be a failure. Plus: today in 2004, a basketball comeback for the books, courtesy of Houston Rockets star Tracy McGrady.

Life After Snoopy (Stanford Magazine via Archive.org) 

The Christmas classic that almost wasn't (USA Today via Archive.org) 

McGrady’s Big Finish Sends Rockets Past Spurs (NBA.com via Archive.org)  

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Nothing says the holidays like a creepy devil creature hitting you with sticks! In some European countries, there are parades focused on Father Christmas's evil counterpart, Krampus. Plus: starting tomorrow in Oklahoma, it’s the Minco Honey Festival. 

Austria's Krampus Parades, Where Santa's 'Evil Twin' Will Beat You With a Broom (Travel + Leisure) 

Minco Honey Festival 

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This month in 1893, the formal start of an effort to build a new kind of seagoing vessel: a ship with rolling wheels. Plus: now underway in Louisiana, it’s the Natchitoches Christmas Festival.

Across the Ocean in One Hundred Hours (The Illustrated American via Google Books) 

98th Annual Natchitoches Christmas Festival

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Today in 2023, a news report on the end of an era: a pastry chef in Anchorage, Alaska was, for the last time, building his massive and renowned holiday village out of gingerbread. Also on this day in 2023: a diner in China posted a photo of their food on social media, and ended up with a lot more entrees than anybody could eat.

‘I had a good run’: Pastry Chef Joe Hickel on his final Hotel Captain Cook gingerbread village display (KTUU)

After decades of sugary magic, Hotel Captain Cook pastry chef ices his final gingerbread village (Anchorage Daily News)

Food faux pas: China diner shocked by US$60,000 bill for meal after accidentally posting photo of dish ordering QR code online (South China Morning Post)

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