The Gamma Gambit (1979)

Normally today has been reserved for National Dog Day on this page.

We’re gonna shake things up a bit this year and go with another day that shares this date: National Toilet Paper Day.

This underrated invention is taken for granted – until there is none and always at the most inconvenient of times. People have used many methods to clean themselves. The Romans used a sponge on a stick that they rinsed and left for the next person.

Early American settlers used whatever was handy; leaves, grass, corn cobs, fruit skins, seashells, stone, sand and water were the most common depending on location and social customs.

China first mass produced toilet paper in the 14^th century.

Americans can rejoice and celebrate 1857, the year toilet paper first hit store shelves in the new country. It was sold on the roll in 1871. Leave it to the Germans to improve upon the product by adding perforations to the roll allowing for squares.

It wasn’t until 1883 that Seth Wheeler patented rolled toilet paper and toilet paper dispensers.

To liven the invention colors were added in the 1960s. Those lasted till the turn of the millennium when basic white has become the norm again. The last colored toilet paper was manufactured in 2004 by Scott.

This non-holiday is very important to the United States, as we use more toilet paper than any other country in the world. America is also, surprise, surprise, the leading exporter of the product.

A whopping 75-percent of the world doesn’t use toilet paper. Many other countries have moved onto the bidet.

Rather than having a spokesman for the day, we’re using toilet paper itself. Or, a specific roll.

As Marvel Comics pushed through the end of the 1970s and sluggish sales, merchandising continued to prove an important source of revenue. One of those licenses was snapped up by Oh! Dawn Inc. of New York. Their offering to the comic book collecting world?

The Incredible Hulk and Amazing Spider-Man Toilet Paper with an original story: The Gamma Gambit. The quality tissue provided 40.65-square feet of two-ply; 325-facial quality sheets.

The Gamma Gambit, as written by Jim Salicrup and illustrated by Michael Higgins, is told over eight sheets and repeated until roll’s end.

The jokes tell themselves, so why belabor the point?

If interested, try an online selling site to purchase this on the secondary market. It’s worth picking up for the novelty alone. Just make sure to put it under some mylar with a sign that reads: Do Not Break, Even in an Emergency.

The Gamma Gambit

The Gamma Gambit (1979)

The Gamma Gambit (1979)