Did you know that the “holiday” Festivus was a real thing, before the Seinfeld episode that made it famous? It was invented by Alan O’Keefe in 1966!

Festivus is both a parody and a secular holiday celebrated on December 23 as an alternative to the perceived pressures and commercialism of the Christmas season. Festivus entered popular culture after it was made the focus of the 1997 Seinfeld episode “The Strike”.

The non-commercial holiday’s celebration, as depicted on Seinfeld, occurs on December 23 and includes a Festivus dinner, an unadorned aluminum Festivus pole, practices such as the “Airing of Grievances” and “Feats of Strength,” including wrestling, and the labeling of easily explainable events as “Festivus miracles”.

Happy Festivus to you! And if you decide to conduct a wrestling match today, please be careful.