Valentine's Day Collection

The origins of Valentine's day are hard to pin down. The popular story is that it is the Feast Day of St. Valentine, but which St. Valentine? As it turns out, there are several to choose from. The most likely seems to be Valentinus of Rome, a priest or bishop who was jailed for converting Romans to Christianity. His head was cut off on February 14, 269 C.E., but before the big event he sent a note to his jailer's daughter signed "Your Valentine". This may have been the beginning of the tradition of sending Valentine Cards, but it is a good bet that the Good Bishop did not spend the afternoon of February 13 running all over town trying to find a heart-shaped box full of chocolates!

That sort of behavior would have been appropriate during the Roman Feast of Lupercalia, which took place on February 15. The festival celebrates Lupercal, the She-wolf who raised Romulus and Remus, the legendary founders of Rome. Lupercal was also revered as a fertility goddess, and her festival was celebrated by men running naked in the streets and drawing women's names from a jar. The women whose names were drawn would be "married" to whoever drew her name for the rest of the festival. It was not uncommon for the couples to remain together, at least, until the next Lupercalia. These are the sort people who wound not forget to get a box of chocolates for their Sweethearts!

• Fibber McGee and Molly, February 10, 1942, "Valentine Candy". The matron of 79 Wistful Vista receives a two-pound box of chocolates and is heartily impressed that the man of the house remembered the most romantic day of the year. However, Fibber cannot remember ordering the candy! Not that he will ever admit such a mistake to Molly.
• The Cavalcade of America, February 14, 1944, "G.I. Valentine". Francis Langford tells about the WAACs and Army Nurses she met while on a USO Tour through Alaska, England, and North Africa. She tells about waiting for a bomber returning from a combat mission, a dedicated nurse, and a group of lonely WAACs in North Africa.
• My Favorite Husband, February 11, 1949, "Valentine's Day". Liz tries to help Katie the maid to romance the butcher by slipping him a poem that Katie wrote. The butcher is convinced that Liz wrote the poem and that she is in love with him. What will George do when he finds out that he has been replaced?

Listen with amour to the lovely stories of yore -- Our Miss Brooks sending unsigned Valentines and waiting by the mailbox for a reply, Reggie at Duffy's Tavern getting a mysterious valentine, Riley being bitter at Peg for squeezing tomatoes, Henry Aldrich not being able to throw a party at his house all the while hungering for lemon mirangue pie, Honest Harold writing his own valentines, only to have a sleepwalker delivery boy mix them up, and more amore amore!