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Merrill Fabry
Recent Articles
The Inextricable Role of Gender in the History of Fact-Checking
"TIME Inc.'s researchers are conspicuous because they are women," noted one 1944 pamphlet for employees
By Merrill Fabry
April 2, 2019
Ben & Jerry's Is Turning 40. Here's How They Captured a Trend That Changed American Ice Cream
Their first store opened on May 5, 1978
By Merrill Fabry
May 4, 2018
From an Anonymous Tip to an Impeachment: A Timeline of Key Moments in the Clinton-Lewinsky Scandal
How the sex scandal involving President Bill Clinton and White House intern Monica Lewinsky consumed the news of 1998
By Olivia B. Waxman and Merrill Fabry
May 4, 2018
What Was the First Sound Ever Recorded by a Machine?
It wasn't intended ever to be heard again
By Merrill Fabry
May 1, 2018
Why Is Tennis Scored So Weirdly?
No one really knows how the system started, but it dates all the way back to the Middle Ages
By Merrill Fabry
January 11, 2018
11 of the Most Fascinating Obituaries From 2017
A spy, a songwriter, a spacesuit technician, a smuggler and more
By Merrill Fabry
December 28, 2017
The Ancient Origins of Our Modern Obsession With Breaking World Records
The impulse now exemplified by the Guinness Book of World Records dates back centuries—but how do you measure a record without a stopwatch?
By Merrill Fabry
November 9, 2017
Where Does the 'Thumbs-Up' Gesture Really Come From?
Ancient Romans did use the thumbs-up gesture, but back then it didn't mean "good job."
By Merrill Fabry
October 25, 2017
Here’s How the First Fact-Checkers Were Able to Do Their Jobs Before the Internet
TIME's archives offer unique insight into the history of the job
By Merrill Fabry
August 24, 2017
The Surprising Function of the First Coloring Books
"Adult coloring books" are actually even older than coloring books for kids are, and both kinds have a long history
By Merrill Fabry
August 2, 2017
The Surprisingly Peaceful History of Bastille Day Celebrations
The storming of the Bastille was violent but its first anniversary was just the opposite, as revolutionaries and royals celebrated together
By Merrill Fabry
July 13, 2017
Now You Know: Why Are There Special Gifts for Each Anniversary Year?
Many people give paper for a first anniversary, silver for a 25th and so on—but why? Here's what to know about the tradition's origins.
By Merrill Fabry
July 6, 2017
How Memorial Day Went From Somber Occasion to Summer Celebration
The Memorial Day holiday was originally meant to be a day to honor those killed in battle. How did it become a day for celebration instead?
By Merrill Fabry
May 25, 2017
Now You Know: Why Are Taxi Cabs Yellow?
In New York City the color is mandated by law
By Merrill Fabry
May 2, 2017
This Is Why Arbor Day Is a Thing
It was the idea of a tree-planting enthusiast in Nebraska
By Merrill Fabry
April 28, 2017
Points of Origin
Where this year's TIME 100 were born
By Merrill Fabry
April 20, 2017
Building a Nation
America has been creating the architecture of national life since before it was a nation.
By Merrill Fabry
March 30, 2017
50 Women Who Made American Political History
Celebrate these trailblazers
By Julia Zorthian , Merrill Fabry and Olivia B. Waxman
March 8, 2017
50 Women Who Made American Political History
As Americans mark Women's History Month, we take a look back
By Julia Zorthian , Merrill Fabry and Olivia B. Waxman
March 8, 2017
Now You Know: Why Is 'Teatime' in the Afternoon?
It started in the 1840s, some 200 years after tea was first introduced to England
By Merrill Fabry
March 2, 2017
24 Mostly Insane Ways Man Has Tried to Cheat Death
Eating monkey brains, drinking blood and 22 other ways man has tried to cheat death
By Merrill Fabry
February 16, 2017
8 Management Tricks Barack Obama's Staff Learned at the White House
Choose your sleeping pills wisely.
By Merrill Fabry
January 12, 2017
How to Stay Sane While Working in the World's Most Powerful Office
Join a gym
By Merrill Fabry
January 12, 2017
5 Things You Learn Working at the White House
Savor even the bad days
By Merrill Fabry
January 12, 2017
As Norway Decides There's No Future for FM Radio, Here's What to Know About Its Past
It took decades for FM radio to surpass AM radio
By Merrill Fabry
January 11, 2017
Now You Know: Why Did Americans Start Naming Their Babies After the President?
"Yes we named it after you," one father of a boy named John wrote to then-Senator Kennedy in 1960
By Merrill Fabry
January 4, 2017
Now You Know: Why Do People Always Look So Serious in Old Photos?
It's not just a matter of bad teeth or long exposure times
By Merrill Fabry
November 28, 2016
Here’s What Past Candidates Have Done After Losing Presidential Elections
History shows that losing an election doesn't mean the end of influence
By Merrill Fabry
November 9, 2016
A Brief History of Voting Problems on Election Day
The problems fall into two main categories
By Merrill Fabry
November 8, 2016
The 50 Best Apps of the Year
Our favorite iPhone and Android apps of the year
By Alex Fitzpatrick , Mandy Oaklander , Lisa Eadicicco , John Patrick Pullen , Matt Peckham , Dan Hirschhorn and Merrill Fabry
October 31, 2016
Now You Know: What Was the First Credit Card?
Credit cards became big business in the 1950s
By Merrill Fabry
October 19, 2016
7 Firsts From Nobel Peace Prize History
Here are 7 times the Nobel Committee did something new
By Merrill Fabry
October 6, 2016
Now You Know: Which Came First, the Chicken or the Egg?
The famous question has thousands of years of history behind it
By Merrill Fabry
September 21, 2016
Now You Know: When Did People Start Saying That the Year Was 'A.D.'?
The terms weren't introduced at the same time—A.D. came before B.C.—and each took hundreds of years to catch on
By Merrill Fabry
August 31, 2016
'Southside With You' and 5 Other True Presidential Love Stories
A new film celebrates the Obamas' first date, but they are not the first White House couple to boast a rom-com-worthy romance
By Merrill Fabry
August 26, 2016
Now You Know: Why Do We Have Middle Names?
Romans may have used three names, but that's not why Americans have middle names today
By Merrill Fabry
August 16, 2016
Now You Know: Where was the First Public Telephone Booth?
The first was in Connecticut—but which town gets the prize depends on what you mean by "telephone booth"
By Merrill Fabry
August 3, 2016
Where Kennewick Man Stands, 20 Years After Discovery
The legal saga over an 8,500 year old skeleton began on July 28, 1996
By Merrill Fabry
July 28, 2016
Now You Know: Who Was the First U.S. President to Wear Pants?
It was probably John Quincy Adams
By Merrill Fabry
July 21, 2016
Now You Know: Why Are There Two Dakotas?
Because different population sizes, trade routes and politics meant the two halves didn't really like each other
By Merrill Fabry
July 14, 2016
What to Know About the History of the Fed's Beige Book
It wasn't always beige
By Merrill Fabry
July 13, 2016
This Is How the HIV Test Was Invented
June 27 is National HIV Testing Day
By Merrill Fabry
June 27, 2016
Now You Know: How Did Long Hair Become a Thing for Women?
The convention goes back to ancient times, when Roman men were judged harshly for having hair that required extra attention
By Merrill Fabry
June 16, 2016
Now You Know: What Happens If the President Gets Drunk?
As it turns out, not much.
By Merrill Fabry
June 2, 2016
Now You Know: Where Was the Original 'Smoke-Filled Room'?
It was in Chicago, the location of the 1920 Republican Party convention
By Merrill Fabry
May 17, 2016
The Long History Behind Your Favorite Celebrity Commencement Speech
In recent decades, academics have ceded some ground to celebrity speakers
By Merrill Fabry
May 13, 2016
Defending Vibrant City Life: Jane Jacobs at 100
Her book,
The Death and Life of Great American Cities
, challenged the accepted wisdom of urban planners
By Merrill Fabry
May 4, 2016
This Is Why Cars Have License Plates
On April 25, 1901—115 years ago—New York became the first state to require them
By Merrill Fabry
April 25, 2016
What Happened the First Time a Pope Visited a Synagogue
John Paul II's Apr. 13, 1986, visit to Rome's Great Synagogue was the first of its kind
By Merrill Fabry
April 13, 2016
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