First introduced by the Du Pont Corporation in 1940, nylon stockings were an instant success. Billed as "stronger than steel" and "run-proof," the public was fascinated by the new synthetic material. Du Pont brilliantly promoted the new stockings from the start. On May 15, 1940, Du Pont declared "N-Day" - for the first time, all across America, nylon stockings would go on sale. Women lined up for blocks and Du Pont sold 5 million pair in that single day.

During World War II Du Pont was forced to divert its nylon production to war-related materials, such as parachutes and aircraft tires. The nylon stocking shortage had begun. In America, the demand for nylon stockings was so high that people began paying $20 on the black market (before the start of the war they had cost a little over a dollar). In Chicago, police ruled out robbery as a motive in a murder case because the perpetrator had left behind six pair of nylon stockings at the crime scene!

In August of 1945, only eight days after Japan's surrender, Du Pont announced that it would immediately return to producing nylon stockings. The next month stockings went on sale at a limited number of stores. Thousands of people showed up for the stockings, which quickly sold out, and so began the first of the so-called "Nylon Riots." Throughout 1945, stores were besieged by mobs of women who had learned of the sales by word of mouth. Du Pont, not fully recovered from its wartime conversion, could not keep up with the demand. People waiting in line were disorderly and police had to disperse crowds. When stores sold out of the precious hosiery, fights broke out. In Pittsburgh, the mayor arranged for a stocking sale in response to a petition by four hundred women. On the day of the sale, 40,000 people lined up to fight for 13,000 pairs. Similar scenes took place all across the country. Finally, by March of 1946, Du Pont was producing 30 million pairs a month, enough for everyone, and the "Nylon Riots" ended.