One of the biggest news stories of the 1940s was the birth of the first known set of quintuplets to the Dionne family in Canada, so Trudy's set of six babies would have been an even bigger sensation. This explains why, in the montage of international reactions to the births, the Canadian Premier is quoted as saying that the news is "Possible, but not probable" in the evident hope that his nation will not lose its claim to fame. Also, the reason that Hitler and Mussolini are portrayed as receiving the news of Miss Kockenlocker's happy event with anger and dismay is because both Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy had a policy of encouraging motherhood and an expanding population in their countries, even offering cash bonuses for large families.