Why Is It Called Ovaltine?

Ask your parents what this photo depicts. They'll either say, "some chocolate milk drink I made you when you were young" or "I TOLD YOU NOT TO DISTURB ME WHILE I'M WORKING."

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Documents obtained by Mother Jones suggest that the reason Ovaltine is called Ovaltine instead of Roundtine despite the fact that “the mug is round; the jar is round” has to do with the Latin word for eggs.

Ovaltine was developed in Berne, Switzerland, where it is known by its original name, Ovomaltine (from ovum, Latin for “egg,” and malt, which were originally its main ingredients).

My friend, put your rifle down, and come down from that wall. You’ve served your country well, but the war is over. You’re coming home.

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WE'LL BE BLUNT

We need to start raising significantly more in donations from our online community of readers, especially from those who read Mother Jones regularly but have never decided to pitch in because you figured others always will. We also need long-time and new donors, everyone, to keep showing up for us.

In "It's Not a Crisis. This Is the New Normal," we explain, as matter-of-factly as we can, what exactly our finances look like, how brutal it is to sustain quality journalism right now, what makes Mother Jones different than most of the news out there, and why support from readers is the only thing that keeps us going. Despite the challenges, we're optimistic we can increase the share of online readers who decide to donate—starting with hitting an ambitious $300,000 goal in just three weeks to make sure we can finish our fiscal year break-even in the coming months.

Please learn more about how Mother Jones works and our 47-year history of doing nonprofit journalism that you don't find elsewhere—and help us do it with a donation if you can. We've already cut expenses and hitting our online goal is critical right now.

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