One of the negative side effects of all this patriotism was the appearance of the black market. By utilizing the black market, a person could buy a lot of items that were in short supply even though they would have to pay inflated prices. It was annoying to those who worked hard to conserve but it still existed to supply such items as meat, sugar, and gasoline to those who could afford it.
So there it was, wartime America and the reality of what rationing was all about. As always, we faced up to adversity and made it through. Although World War II ended in 1945, rationing was continued until 1946 as the much depleted pipelines had to be refilled. By the late 1940's, prosperity was returning and the Depression of the 1930's was just a bad memory. More women were entering the workplace, and television was making its move into the living rooms of America sending a chill up the spine of the movie business. However, there was room for everyone and both survived.
Let’s hope that we never have to live through rationing, but if we do, I hope we handle it as well as those brave souls of the wartime 1940's.