You have only one month, and one week until Father’s Day, 2012. And you know what? This might be the last one in history.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cyCCd8MCcZY

But probably not.

But speaking of history, how much do you actually know about Father’s Day?

For example, did you know:

Modern Father’s Day was invented by Sonora Smart Dodd, born in Arkansas, who was also the driving force behind its establishment. Her father, the Civil War veteran William Jackson Smart, was a single parent who reared his six children in Spokane, Washington.^[2] She was inspired by Anna Jarvis‘s efforts to establish Mother’s Day. Although she initially suggested June 5, her father’s birthday, she did not provide the organizers with enough time to make arrangements, and the celebration was deferred to the third Sunday of June.

Unofficial support from such figures as William Jennings Bryan was immediate and widespread. President Woodrow Wilson was personally feted by his family in 1916. President Calvin Coolidge recommended it as a national holiday in 1924. In 1966, President Lyndon B. Johnson made Father’s Day a holiday to be celebrated on the third Sunday of June. The holiday was not officially recognized until 1972, during the presidency of Richard Nixon.^{[citation needed]}

Well played, Sonora, you saucy minx.

Look, that’s all fine and well. If we’re honest with ourselves, we’ll concede that the kernel of Father’s Day – showing respect and reverence for the Old Man/Pops/Big Dawg/Daddy Cool – has been around since time immemorial.

In some cultures, and in times past, an appropriate gift might have been a pair of polar bear skin mittens, a handsome set of Kudu horns, or a small European country.

Needless to say, the modern equivalent of an appropriately manly and appreciative gift is Old Spice. Or rather, the superinjection of masculinity that accompanies the application of said Old Spice.

Just something to keep in mind, when the-quite-possibly-but-in-all-likelihood-not-last Father’s Day rolls around, this year.