1973 was quite a year in American history. There was the stock market crash, an oil embargo, and shortages in electricity, onions, and gasoline.
But perhaps the most comical and surreal thing that happened that year was the toilet paper scare.
There were reports of a toilet paper shortage in Japan, but no one in the U.S. noticed,
Then there was Representative Harold V. Froehlich from Wisconsin. On November 16th, he put out a news release that there was a possibility of a paper shortage. Again, no one paid much attention.
When Froehlich found out that the Federal Government had fallen short on its bid for toilet paper for soldiers and bureaucrats, he put out another news release on December 11 stating:
“The United States may face a serious shortage of toilet paper within a few months… I hope we don’t have to ration toilet tissue… A toilet paper shortage is no laughing matter. It is a problem that will touch every American.”
With such an alarming news release, newspapers across the country picked up on the report.
On December, 19, 1973, Johnny Carson went on his show and cracked a joke about the toilet paper shortage.
And suddenly the American public took the matter very seriously. People rushed to the grocery stores and bought up all the toilet paper even though there was no actual shortage.
Toilet paper production was ramped up to cover for this sudden surge in toilet paper purchases, but there was never a moment when manufacturers felt they could not meet the needs of the people.
Johnny Carson issued an apology on his show, saying, “I don’t want to be remembered as the man who created the false toilet paper scare. I just picked up the item from the paper and enlarged on it somewhat and made some jokes as to what they could do about it. There’s no shortage.”
And that is how things are today with the current panic. There is no toilet paper shortage. A family member of mine works at a place that makes the material for toilet paper, paper towels, baby wipes, and feminine products, and he has told me that there is absolutely no shortage in materials. People are once again panicking for no valid reason.
