Holder for roll of paper towels

Claim 1

A towel holder for a conventional roll of perforated paper towels which are rolled on a hollow tubular core, said holder comprising: (a) a base member having a substantially flat upper surface and an under surface which is adapted for use on a horizontal or vertical support surface; (b) a towel support rod extending perpendicularly from the approximate center of said base and adapted to receive thereon said hollow tubular core; said support rod including a elongated bore extending a prescribed distance axialy into the end of said rod opposite said base member; (c) braking means for selectively impeding the normal rolling tendency of said core as a towel is being torn therefrom comprising a plate member positioned adjacent the end of said tubular core opposite said base member and means for permitting selective axial movement of said plate member toward said base member to provide a compressive force in a direction along the axis of said tubular core to permit pressure to be brought to bear against the ends of said roll of paper towels; (d) said brake means further including a control knob having an upper portion and a lower base plate larger in diameter than the tubular core of said towel roll; a shaft extending perpendicularly to the undersurface of said base plate for insertion into said elongated bore into said support rod; and said shaft being of a dimension such that it fits loosely into said bore and is of a length slightly less than said bore; whereby a roll of paper towelling is placed on said support shaft with one end of said roll seated on said base, and said shaft of said control knob is inserted loosely into said axial bore such that when it is desired to remove a towel, the towels are rolled off to the desired length, the control knob base plate is depressed against the end of the towel roll to prevent further unrolling of the towels, and the towels are torn off along the perforated point.