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I feel like I have to include this one because the mistaken belief that the Hallmark company invented Valentine’s day is so widespread. Exchanging cards for St. Valentine dates back to the 1400s and Shakespeare’s Ophelia even called herself Hamlet’s Valentine, saying: “Tomorrow is Saint Valentine’s Day/All in the morning betime, / And I a maid at your window, / To be your Valentine.” But still, Hallmark and other companies’ tireless efforts to push gift and card-giving keep the whole Valentine industry humming. For the record, though, Hallmark maintains it didn’t create Valentine’s day, and it didn’t create Grandparents Day, National Son’s Day, National Daughter’s Day, Sweetest Day, Boss’s Day, Administrative Professionals’ Day, Teacher Appreciation Day, or Clergy Appreciation Day, either.
