January 23, 2023 - National Handwriting Day | National Pie Day

Welcome to January 23rd, 2023 on the National Day Calendar. Today we celebrate handy work and the pie war to end all wars. Before the invention of the printing press, the only way to get a copy of a book was to duplicate it by hand. During the Middle Ages, monks worked for hours at a time to reproduce the Bible, history books, and countless other volumes that might have been lost over time. This massive undertaking undoubtedly caused more than its fair share of cramped hands. So think of that the next time you gripe about taking meeting notes by hand. On National Handwriting Day, we celebrate the lost art of writing longhand and how it shaped history. Anyone who has ever baked a pie from scratch knows there is no such thing as, “easy as pie.” Turns out, there’s some skill involved in taking a pie to the face. Ben Turpin, the comedian and silent film star is largely credited with being the first victim of this joke in the 1909 film Mr. Flip. Fatty Arbuckle and Buster Keaton perfected the gag with specific recipes depending on the victims hair color. Blackberries looked better on blondes and cream filling was funnier on brunettes. By the time Laurel and Hardy were in full swing, the pie to the face was almost old hat, but Stan agreed to make the pie picture to end all pie pictures with the film Battle of the Century. The Los Angeles Pie Company provided the more than four thousand pies required for the movie, which debuted in 1927. Life magazine later wrote that this pie Armageddon was so classic that every pie made its special kind of point and piled on its special kind of laugh. On National Pie Day, don’t insult your favorite baker by making a joke of their masterpiece. Instead, savor a sweet bite with a classic comedy film. I’m Anna Devere and I’m Marlo Anderson. Thanks for joining us as we Celebrate Every Day! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices