Father's Day History, the Numbers and Where to Go

History

The idea for Father's Day came to Sonora Dodd of Spokane, WA, while she listened to a Mother's Day sermon in 1909. Dodd wanted a special day to honor her father, William Smart, a widowed Civil War veteran and farmer who raised six children after their mother died during childbirth. Dodd petitioned the city, asking for her father's birthday, June 5, to be set aside as a special day, but the mayor settled upon the third Sunday in June, the month of Smart's birth.

The first Father's Day was celebrated in Spokane in 1910, and in 1916 then-President Woodrow Wilson attended a Father's Day celebration there. Fifty years later, President Lyndon B. Johnson signed a proclamation declaring the third Sunday in June as Father's Day, and in 1972 President Richard Nixon signed a public law that made it a permanent day of national observance.

Facts and Figures

(Source: U.S. Census Bureau)

70.1 million – Estimated number of fathers across the nation

1.8 million – Number of single fathers in 2010 (about 15 percent of single parents are men)

154,000 – Estimated number of stay-at-home dads in 2010. These Mr. Moms with children younger than 15 have been out of the workforce for at least a year so they can care for the family while their wives work outside the home.

$2.8 billion – Amount of child support received by custodial fathers in 2007; they were due $4.3 billion. (Custodial mothers received $18.6 billion of $29.8 billion owed in child support in the same year.)

8,111 – Number of men's clothing stores around the country (if you're still looking for a gift)

66 percent – Percentage of children younger than 6 who were praised three or more times a day by their fathers

Where to Go

Father's Day Crawfish Boil Celebration At Uncle Darrow's

Bring dad to this Father's Day celebration at Uncle Darrow's, with live jazz and blues music by Joe Banks and friends on the back porch. There will also be free massages for pops by Vitality Health Center of Venice.

Where: 2560 Lincoln Blvd, Venice

When: Saturday, from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m.

Cantalini's Salerno Beach Restaurant

Cantalini's in Playa del Rey is celebrating Father's Day with a Champagne brunch and live jazz from the Fred Sokolow Trio, and dinner also will feature live music with Ian Whitcomb.

Where: 193 Culver Blvd., Playa del Rey

When: Sunday, Champagne brunch from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.; dinner from 4 p.m. to 10 p.m.

James' Beach and are celebrating Father's Day with food and drink specials. Only on this day will you be able to get "I Love You, Dad" tacos!

Where: 2025 Pacific Ave. and 60 N. Venice Blvd, Venice

When: Noon to close