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This Happened

This Happened—January 26: Happy Birthday To Hockey's Great One

On this day in 1961, Wayne Gretzky was born.

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How did Wayne Gretzky start playing hockey?

Growing up in Brantford, Ontario, Gretzky practiced his skills on a backyard rink and played junior hockey. Though he was small in stature, Gretzky's intelligence, stamina, and knowledge of the game would lead him to greatness.

How many Stanley Cups has Wayne Gretzky won?

Gretzy has won 4 Stanley Cups playing for the Edmonton Oilers. Nicknamed "The Great One", he has been voted the greatest hockey player ever in a survey of hockey writers, former players, general managers and coaches.

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food / travel

Pasta v. Fascists: How Italy's Staple Dish Became A Symbol Of Resistance

Pasta may not be considered controversial today, but it played an important role during Italy's fascist years, particularly in one family's celebration of community and liberation.

Photo of the Cervi family.

Photo of the Cervi family, whose seven children were shot by the Fascists on December 28, 1943, at the Reggio Emilia shooting range.

@comunisti_alla_ribalta via Instagram
Jacopo Fontaneto

ROME — Eighty years ago — on July 25, 1943 — the vote of no confidence by the Grand Council of Fascism, leading to Benito Mussolini's arrest, set off widespread celebrations. In Campegine, a small village in the Emilian province, the Cervi family celebrated in their own way: they brought 380 kilograms of pasta in milk cans to the town square and offered it to all the inhabitants of the village.

The pasta was strictly plain: macaroni dressed with butter and cheese, seen as more of a "festive dish" in that period of deprivation. As soon as the Cervi brothers learned about the arrest of Mussolini, they procured flour, borrowed butter and cheese from the dairy, and prepared kilos and kilos of pasta. They then loaded it onto a cart to distribute it to their fellow villagers. Pastasciutta (dry pasta) specifically regards dishes with noodles that are plated "dry", not in broth. That would disqualify soup, risotto, ravioli...

Even though pastasciutta is the most stereotypical type of pasta today, it had a complicated relationship with the government during Italy's fascist years.

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