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Horlicks is a sweet malted milk hot drink powder developed by founders James and William Horlick. It was first sold as "Horlick's Infant and Invalids Food", soon adding "aged and travellers" to their label. In the early 20th century, it was sold as a powdered meal replacement drink mix.
‘Night starvation’ was a fictitious condition invented by Horlicks as an advertising gimmick that was supposedly relieved if a mug of the malt drink was consumed before bedtime. In the song "Goodness gracious me!", the doctor (played by Peter Sellers) mentions night starvation as one of the many possible ailments that his wealthy Italian patient (played by Sophia Loren) might be suffering from, when in fact the trouble is that they are both lovesick.
It was then marketed as a nutritional supplement and manufactured by GlaxoSmithKline (Consumer Healthcare) in Australia, Bangladesh, Hong Kong, India, Jamaica, Malaysia, New Zealand, South Africa, Sri Lanka, and the United Kingdom. It is now produced by the Anglo-Dutch company Unilever through its Indian division. Horlicks in the UK is currently owned by Aimia Foods. (Full article...)