10:10 wasn't always dominant. Look at some print ads for watches from the 1920s and 1930s. 8:18 was used just as frequently if not more so. It's the "other" time where the hands are balanced and equidistant from the 12 and 6. I grew up (pre-web) having heard (probably from some trivia book) the false explanation that 8:18PM was the time of Lincoln's death.
https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/the-ten-ten-tenet/