“The Mad Gasser of Mattoon (also known as the Phantom Anesthetist) was the name given to an event of alleged mass hysteria in which a person or people allegedly committed a series of apparent gas attacks in Mattoon, Illinois, during the mid-1940s. More than two dozen separate cases of gassings were reported to police over the span of two weeks. The gasser's supposed victims reported smelling strange odors in their homes which were soon followed by symptoms such as paralysis of the legs, coughing, nausea and vomiting. No one died or had serious medical consequences as a result of the gas attacks.
“Although the explanation that the reports were only a case of mass hysteria is widely accepted, others maintain that a Mad Gasser actually existed.”
@jalefkowit can’t decide if “Mad Gasser” is a Laugh-In sketch or a treatment for Timecop 2: Fentanyl Rising