Harold Vernon Froehlich

Harold Vernon Froehlich (born May 12, 1932) is a retired American politician and judge. He served one term in the U.S. House of Representatives, representing Wisconsin's 8th congressional district during the 93rd Congress (1973–1975). A Republican, he broke with his party to vote for the impeachment of President Richard M. Nixon.

After leaving Congress, he served thirty years—from 1981 to 2011—as a Wisconsin circuit court judge in Outagamie County. Earlier in his career, he served ten years in the Wisconsin State Assembly and was the 66th speaker of the Wisconsin State Assembly. His final public office was on the Wisconsin Government Accountability Board, where he served until its dissolution in 2015.

Biography Born in Appleton, Wisconsin, Froehlich served in the United States Navy during the Korean War after graduating from Appleton Senior High School in 1950. In 1959, Froehlich graduated from the University of Wisconsin–Madison and then received his law degree in 1962. That same year, he was elected to his first term in the Wisconsin State Assembly. He would ultimately serve ten years in the Assembly, and was chosen as Speaker during the 1967–1968 and 1969–1970 sessions. He has been married to Sharon Ross since 1970, and they have two children. He is a former treasurer for the Black Creek Improvement Corp and former president of 322 Investment, Ltd. Judge Froehlich was named "Judge of the Year" in 1999 by the Bench Bar committee of the State Bar of Wisconsin.

Toilet paper panic Froehlich represented a district in which the paper industry is a major employer. Prompted by concern from the industry, on December 11, 1973, Froehlich issued a press release declaring, "The U.S. may face a shortage of toilet paper within a few months," and alluded to rationing as a possible solution. The release made it into major newspapers and to Johnny Carson. On December 19, Carson told his audience of tens of millions in his Tonight Show monologue that there was a shortage of toilet paper. Primed by recent shortages of other kinds of paper along with gasoline and meat, consumers went out the next day and hoarded toilet paper, emptying store shelves. The run on toilet paper continued for three weeks, until consumers saw that stores were being restocked and that there was therefore no shortage. The incident was the subject of a short film released in early 2020 by documentary filmmaker Brian Gersten, The Great Toilet Paper Scare. Ironically, a genuine scarcity of toilet paper occurred later that year due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Electoral history

Wisconsin Assembly (1962–1970)

Year Type Date Elected Defeated Total Plurality 1962 General Republican 12,453 76.15% Dem. 3,901 23.85% 16,354 8,552 1964 General Republican 9,405 71.27% Dem. 3,791 28.73% 13,196 5,614 1966 Primary Republican 3,314 78.40% Rep. 913 21.60% 4,227 2,401 General Republican 8,386 78.82% Dem. 2,254 21.18% 10,640 6,132 1968 General Republican 10,038 74.96% Dem. 3,353 25.04% 13,391 6,685 1970 General Republican 6,101 57.43% Dem. 4,522 42.57% 10,623 1,579

U.S. House of Representatives (1972, 1974)

Wisconsin Circuit Court (1982–2006)

Wisconsin Supreme Court election (1996)