A Trusted Pill Turned Deadly. How Tylenol Made a Comeback | Retro Report

In 1982, after a mysterious killer spiked its pills with poison in 1982, Tylenol's savvy response set a template for corporate crisis management. Subscribe to our newsletter for the history behind the headlines: www.retroreport.org/newsletters/
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[@Itsellagracee]

People licking ice cream and putting it back on shelves brought me here

[@nhonorato89]

Same 😟

[@minieluvr2104]

same

[@kaleisha.6381]

EllaGrace same.

[@kach6473]

Me too.

[@kingk7533]

Same

[@cuyalk8922]

Anybody else here from that girl licking ice cream?

[@lifeadventures6832]

No

[@justinjohnson8221]

Yes how does this have to do with ice cream that dude on Facebook goes he don’t feel bad but she just liked some Ice cream

[@lucyennis5716]

But like what is the link to ice cream and pain relief?

[@williamflores6762]

Heard she licking ass now

[@DaddysFlipside]

Here from Drew Gooden's video about it actually.

[@JohnPedimore]

You know your getting old when you remember these stories.

[@baligobrazy8684]

Lol

[@blissfularrogance3529]

I remember that I had just bought Tylenol and mailed it back to the company and they sent me a coupon for a really large bottle of it.

[@stondnc8089]

Shhh

[@janetwoods3751]

I actually wasn't a pain pill person in 1982 so l actually forgot but that is so sad

[@spiderlegs50]

William Thisbal getting old,,,heck , I'm there....

[@irumicu]

Such an underated channel and series.

[@RETROREPORT]

Thank you! Help spread the word.

[@keesalemon]

@@RETROREPORT I have been! Recently converted one of my co workers into a regular Retro Report viewer :)

[@anetamichniak7483]

My moms clients Joann remember she was in college. Cause she was shocked it was recalled tyeneol

[@aalvarado4274]

It said 1980 on the screen and the man said “almost 40 years ago” where does time go 😭😭

[@brandondavidson4085]

Oh no wonder I hadn't watched this one yet, it was just posted! Yay, more Retro Report!

[@mcslog]

I thought the same thing!

[@TTstone616]

"The first to buy is the first to die" sounds like a popular ad for Marlboro or a rap CD...

[@nouseforanamelucky13]

Yes, flush down the lethal mix into the water system..

[@aaronscarpa7469]

No Use for a Name, it would dilute it even if there was contamination.

[@Amy-gn6zw]

No Use for a Name that’s what I thought! 🤦‍♀️

[@marymonte9438]

Thnx for the reality check...😯😖

[@nouseforanamelucky13]

@Blood Beryl bro, chill tf out.. just because you're miserable doesn't mean everyone else has to be.. 😉

[@nouseforanamelucky13]

And there's a reason we're not supposed to flush them down.. otherwise, there wouldn't be places to deposit your old meds safely..

[@thetinman5030]

I remember this I ended up getting a job as a carpenter in Lombard Illinois and my boss was the brother of the woman who first died from that. Sad story I'll never forget you Wally

[@cuyalk8922]

I'm so sorry for your lost

[@73cidalia]

cuyalk Loss 😉

[@amah9372]

I’m so sorry for your loss.

[@MelinoeAckerman]

I'm so sorry for your loss.

[@millieo7155]

I still look for pills over capsules when buying otc because of tylenol.

[@elainakosmidis8657]

millieo : I’ll always remember this story. I was 11 years old & we were asked to bring a news clipping to school to do a presentation on a story. I did my presentation on the 1982 Tylenol tampering incident.

[@johnscanlon2598]

Pills could easily be made as well

[@lymarie1974]

I was 8 when this happened I remember sitting in my grandmas den on the couch scared all I knew was that the adults were frightened which made me terrified

[@redhead9297]

The licking of the ice cream brought me here from that one comment

[@dragonlolislayer8631]

I nigga

[@miamiboy2002]

Same

[@k1payforlayf739]

I saw it on Spill

[@yourstrulyxo6025]

Exactlyyyy 😂😭

[@beechild700]

Samee

[@Pink89765]

love this channel! I love how you guys take older events and connect them today. totaly deserve more supporters

[@RETROREPORT]

Thanks so much -- tell your friends about us!

[@zzoinks]

That's like throughline from npr

[@ellllllo77]

What kind of a monster would do something like this

[@janasali821]

Patrick Pin precisely that, a monster

[@vatoloco2066]

This report took me back in time. I remember when this story broke out on the news. Yes!!!! I’m old. 😂😂😂

[@karenbrown4524]

I was 18 in 1982 and naturally remember when this happened. Seeing Dan Rather making a news report is throwing me off a bit. 🤭 I'm on a Retro Report binge. Great channel

[@RETROREPORT]

Thank you -- enjoy!

[@rosebud4467]

I remember this. I was only 10, but lived in the area where this was happening. I remember hearing all of my family members frightened over this & tossing all of the tylenol out, as well as all OTC meds. No one really knew what was going on... It was a crazy time.

[@Jourdainist]

Man thats insane. I was -14 when this happened. Ill never forget that day.

[@rucianapollard4057]

I was 6 and was going to start 1st grade in September

[@tylersheehy3918]

Flush it down the tolit ? That's illegal now in days

[@rontayan]

Oh, I thought they found the person that did it. Scary they are still out there.

[@limingde91]

The most important lesson for me was the importance of trust. "No one cares what caused the crisis, but you will be judged for how you respond to that crisis". To regain trust after a loss of trust from a crisis is to "come clean to the public immediately" and then work to make sure that same crisis never happens again.

[@Erinski]

Imagine getting home after the worst day ever, taking some Tylenol to help with your headache, and a cop car drives down your street saying "Do not take any Tylenol. It's poison."

[@bmjesus08]

Lol

[@liztodd2379]

I just subscribed.. thank you for uploading.

[@tonygreene81able]

I like these retro reports. Thank you

[@zzoinks]

I met somebody who said he worked for the company making all the bottle sealing machines in the early days post Tylenol recall. He said it converted from a cigar company to sealing company and because they were the only one making them, or close to it, they received orders faster than they could make the machines. He said they rushed to make them so the sealing machines broke down often. The cigars used to be wrapped in plastic by the company so that's why they were able to move to producing sealing machines

[@ryanleet1286]

J and J and asbesto in baby powder. Yeah they are so competent

[@_FilmFanatic]

Very interesting channel, just subscribed! 🙂

[@Maxmartin12355]

I watched this as a AD and watched like 25 of your video's including this one great work.

[@RETROREPORT]

Thank you -- tell your friends about us!

[@whatupgigi]

I remember this and i was scared and made sure at 4 years old at the time to make sure my Dad threw out his bottle.

[@Dynamatrix1973]

Nobody has memory recall when they're 4 years old. Stop lying.

[@Jarrod-ud7vu]

Subscribed! Great ad!

[@JS-rk8dl]

I Heard Halloween was Cancelled in 1982 because of this

[@boujiebarbie3198]

Can you guys please cover the Stella Nickell case? It is somewhat similar to this one but very different ending, thank goodness.

[@axtaxt8372]

Excedrin was tampered with in the 80s too..

[@annetteslife]

Almost immediately after this incident

[@mikegallant811]

Yes, the Sue Snow murder case.

[@wack9674]

Wait how does this relate to the licking of ice cream?

[@kydaestheticsedits9647]

waCk idk, these Twitter hoes are mad dumb

[@trishamgreen]

Both are product tampering.

[@mommasaidnoo7706]

It's just to show how companies are extremely strict about the tampering of products, because stuff like this (and worse) has happend.

[@qvaken8142]

We also had an issue in Australia in 2018 with people sticking sewing needles into strawberries. It was allegedly a 50-year-old woman who was a former supervisor at a fruit-picking business who first contaminated 5 to 7 punnets, then after it was reported on in the media and on social media, there were "copycats" who contaminated many more. Thankfully it looks like only one person was hospitalised after swallowing half a needle, and I couldn't find any cases of death. But the fruit growing industry took a hit because they had to recall products and the public were less likely to buy strawberries. So the problem is product tampering / contamination, which can be a problem for public health and for the affected industries.

[@TawsifEC]

Awesome channel, just discovered it :o

[@briewilliams2507]

Ice cream licker bought me here

[@elevatormaniacgames]

I live in the Chicagoland area. My dad always told me it had to do with some woman who worked at Johnson and Johnson and was trying to kill her husband. I have no idea how he got that story.

[@yes0335]

Yeah that would be unrealistic

[@Tornado1994]

It was a Nutty Chemist named James Lewis.

[@Jamietheroadrunner]

Law & Order: Criminal Intent season 1 episode 7 is that exact episode! From the early 2000s. It’s one of my favorite Law & Order episodes and I guarantee u ur dad saw that episode too 😂

[@elevatormaniacgames]

@@Jamietheroadrunner I oughta give it a watch lol.

[@sassyjd6284]

Tylenol still has many recalls

[@tialynpetrylak3256]

Sassy JD generic brands.

[@RyanSpringer1984]

Wonder if they ever thought this was one corporation trying to take down a rival...

[@3Dgamespot]

Wow thanks to KZbin because I didn’t know these happened back in the time wow is good to know the history people are crazy.

[@ferociousgumby]

That was the beginning of pill bottles that are impossible to get open (not to mention seals on everything else).

[@jrpacer6355]

Till this day I don't buy anything with gel cap I remember when this happened....

[@jgkidd82]

What a way to enter this crazy world. I was a four month old baby when this happened and I don't remember a time without the safety seals and all other precautions because of what happened in Chicago the year I was born.

[@_kim123]

It would have helped to collect the bottles to test them and then track were they were purchased from. Hopefully you could see what dates they arrived to the store and the batch numbers. But reasons like this are where better security measures begin.

[@flargarbason1740]

They did. They tested a few hundred thousand of them and I believe 3 from the Chicago area were found to also be affected

[@RuneSwagga]

Happy you showed up as an ad. !

[@RETROREPORT]

We've got tons of great stories -- check out the rest of our channel :)

[@michaeljotoyajackson7294]

I remember this Tylenol scare.... I was only a teen-ager than. And we can look back at all the proof of who Hasatan's Children really are than and to this present day.

[@seacue9417]

love you retro

[@shaeshae9831]

I just subscribed to your Channel today is Tuesday November 6th 2018 at 10:38 p.m. on the East Coast

[@charliewebb9173]

Johnson & Johnson set it up themselves so they could capitalize on the new security bottles.

[@johnscanlon2598]

Did they patent the bottle design ?

[@kevinth86]

I wonder if the Tylenol poisoner could have been a disgruntled former employee

[@nothingfree3524]

whats actually being done about the dangerous drug abuse that killing people today? all the deaths that alcohol creates?

[@kaitie648]

I wasn’t alive for this but I remember recalls from when I was a child, in the 2000s. An ice cream company - Perry’s I believe - had their peanut butter ice cream recalled. I also remember Mattel’s magnet and lead paint recalls in 2007/2008(?)

[@jamy4920]

I'm just here from Facebook 🤷🏼‍♀️🤷🏼‍♀️

[@Mom_sBasement]

Loser.

[@FreeportHometown]

Nobody asked

[@redhennessy3046]

“I have a magic pen and it told me what to write “😂 I guess somethings stay the same in America 🇺🇸🤣

[@the-finn]

I remember this story

[@elainakosmidis8657]

The Finn My mom was freaked out! I remember it too.

[@bardlover6]

I’ve always wondered in the safety seal companies did it

[@lpsyakimo]

Acetaminophen is chemically similar to alcohols toxic byproduct Acetaldehyde which explains why high doses of Acetaminophen is associated with liver damage, just like Acetaldehyde

[@daveminion6209]

this is a strange case: that if James Lewis wanted either revenge or justice for the "death" of his daughter due to a "defective " Johnson and Johnson medical device used to help his daughters health condition (heart problem), why not just SUE j&j , instead MURDERING potentially dozens of other innocent civilians ??!? why not target those at J&J, the drs, and hospital responsible for his daughters life?? very odd case......

[@cindyburton6698]

I remember this story..wonder if it ever be solved

[@thetinman5030]

Yes it was solved it was a woman who did it she was just freaking crazy

[@johnpetun1180]

What I thought this channel would have more than 2 million subs but you only have 25k..

[@RETROREPORT]

2 million followers would be incredible! Tell your friends -- help make it happen.

[@joengi6698]

I got this as an ad

[@Animalfarm6cats]

Where the heck did 40, years go? Thanks, for the anxiety attack.

[@josemontouy9869]

I really thought they dont know . This goes way up there

[@trevor4835]

Can’t believe the person who did this got away with it

[@venangoproductions]

Do you guys have sources of the videos

[@RETROREPORT]

Do you mean where we got the archival video?

[@venangoproductions]

@@RETROREPORT Yes

[@RETROREPORT]

@@venangoproductions We usually work with a bunch of different archives. Which video are you looking for?

[@alejandraavila1213]

I wonder if they checked the employees of that department store because i don’t think someone could of immediately opened all the cans right at the store and poisoned the capsules unless they have bought a bottle poisoned a few capsules and gradually distributed them there at the store

[@alejandraavila1213]

It also had to be early morning where no people or low amount if people where coming out of the store

[@anahio]

Server:People from licking the ice cream video has entered the chat

[@donkeeton7897]

I was 14 but remember this well this was one of two bad events of 1982 the first one was the Air Florida plane crash in January and then this in September of that year I also remember when Tylenol was safety sealed afterwards in early 1983 I remember taking Tylenol for a cold that was bugging me at the time and remember the first newly sealed packaging well.

[@eatingcakewithfriends]

just flushing cyanide down the toilet, is that really a good idea?

[@yudhajitvishwakarman0825]

It goes into sewage system in turn to the sea

[@gsw8734]

Well it isn't dangerous.

[@rustyshackelford6972]

I remember this.........

[@oleggorky906]

I remember this story from the early 80’s. I’m not an American and we don’t even have that brand here in the UK; the nearest equivalent we would have would be something like Panadol, or a generic version featuring paracetamol (acetaminophen) but the fear and paranoia gripping America caused people to ask the same questions over packaging over here, because some random looney tune or an individual or group with a grievance against a company could potentially do the same. There’s no doubting that what the guy says is true; they saved the brand by coming clean and improving the safety aspects of the packaging, and as a result, it’s even a well known product in countries where it isn’t even sold. As for my own thoughts, purely an opinion, I think that it must have been an insider who hated the company for whatever reason.

[@Terminatorfan1984REAL]

The pills were filled with potassium cyanide (which has the smell of almonds)

[@affingtones2570]

Now I can only think of a ytpmv.

[@Gabe3N]

Did he seriously just call Johnson & Johnson's recovery "The greatest comeback since Lazarus?" I'm pretty sure a man coming back from the dead is more impressive and great so to speak than redesigning the packaging for a pain reliever lol

[@flargarbason1740]

It’s a figure of speech...

[@Vriege]

Oh damn

[@tellysantos2392]

i was 8 when this happened that was terrifying

[@glendawood5585]

I remember when that happened

[@rdgzunleashed2749]

Sounds like Richard Kuklinski was testing the Tylenol.

[@Carlos-nz3vi]

History repeats itself

[@RETROREPORT]

Indeed!

[@Kyoqaa]

how about they fingerprint the bottles? I honestly think it was a store restocker.

[@myabbayah9092]

I remember this i was like 10

[@mobzollerthememeguy6765]

Flush it all down the commode mkay My grandma still calls the toilet a commode

[@kazkk2321]

This is a great psychological and sociological experiments .

[@lunarmartian3840]

That J and J rep who brags about how well they handled the crisis and repeats the same gimmicky sentence twice sounds like he is blowing his own horn, especially considering they were found guilty of not informing the public when they pulled medicine later on

[@zyourzgrandzmaz]

WHY THE FUCK HAVE I BEEN RECOMMENDED THIS AS AN advertisement FOR THE LAST YEAR? I WATCHED THE VIDEO NOW STOP.

[@nathanngumi8467]

Interesting.

[@ChrisJohnson-ht3gx]

I remember this very well. Nicknamed, Enditalls! ( not funny, but true)

[@thefallen9805]

All these stories about products being tampered with... causing people to be killed or injured... IT PISSES ME OFF!!

[@benglenn8901]

I fuckin love Wells Fargo - Swaggersouls : The misfit podcast 1

[@beechild700]

A comment on the video about the ice cream challenge on the spill brought me here

[@Lylelanley99]

I can't stop looking at skin tag that guy has over his eye. Does he not see it?

[@lucyennis5716]

Which guy

[@amyjojinkerson6745]

how about a disgruntled employee

[@NotThisShipSister1]

1:19 who is this please? I can’t remember

[@RETROREPORT]

Do you mean Dan Rather?

[@garfieldnate]

I didn't realize they hadn't found the murderer!

[@chrislemaster2695]

Why was this never aired on Unsolved Mysteries with Robert Stack or Americas Most Wanted with John Walsh

[@nassauleaf]

Yeah this was a hot mess!!! I still pray over any pill I take ..

[@l.l.9806]

I don't take pills

[@gabebarbieri194]

Because that will help..?

[@Jessiemats]

Interesting

[@healingv1sion]

Johnson and Johnson could have done waaay better on the baby powder thing

[@robpowell5493]

That should seem like it was fun

[@christopherlewis3352]

Like many of you, I am here as a result of the "Ice Cream licking" but I have a serious question, also I will end with my take. Blue Bell has been in business since 1907 and were around in the 80's thru these Tylenol murders right? So as a food product why did they not make their product tamper-free with plastic seals and such? For my take....i think the girl who licked the Ice cream should face criminal charges but she did in fact shed light on a situation that BB and several other ice cream manufacturers should've addressed over 30 years ago!