Postal Bulletin 22205 > Information Desk > Philately > Stamp Announcement 07-14: Star Wars Stamps

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Stamp Announcement 07-14: Star Wars Stamps

Star Wars Stamps

On May 25, 2007, in Los Angeles, California, the Postal Service™ will issue 41-cent, Star Wars commemora­tive stamps in 15 designs. Designed by Terrence McCaf­frey and William J.Gicker Jr., of the U.S. Postal Service, the stamps go on sale nationwide May 25, 2007.

The Postal Service will issue the Star Wars stamps in a pressure-sensitive adhesive (PSA) commemorative sheet of 15 stamps (Item 570100), and a booklet of 15 stamped postal cards (Item 886500). The commemorative sheet fea­tures artwork by longtime Star Wars poster artist Drew Struzan of Pasadena, California.

The sheet includes the following 15 first-class stamps that show familiar characters and vehicles from the six movies in the saga:

The selvage includes the Star Wars logo and back­ground images of a space battle, including a Star Destroyer, TIE fighters, X-wing starfighters, and the second Death Star as shown under construction in Star Wars: Episode VI, Return of the Jedi. The background also includes the lightsaber-wielding form of Darth Vader, whose helmet comprises the largest of the 15 stamps.

The back of the souvenir sheet includes extensive verso text describing the dramatic roles that each featured char­acter or vehicle plays in the Star Wars saga.

The $6.15 Star Wars, commemorative sheet may not be split and the stamps may not be sold individually.

How to Order First Day of Issue Postmark

Customers have 60 days to obtain the first day of issue postmark by mail. They may purchase new stamps at their local Post Office™, at The Postal Store® Web site at www.usps.com/shop, or by calling 800-STAMP-24. They should affix the stamps to envelopes of their choice, address the envelopes (to themselves or others), and place them in a larger envelope addressed to:

STAR WARS COMMEMORATIVE SHEET
POSTMASTER
7001 S CENTRAL AVE
LOS ANGELES CA 90052-9998

After applying the first day of issue postmark, the Postal Service will return the envelopes through the mail. There is no charge for the postmark. All orders must be postmarked by July 24, 2007.

Special Dedication Postmarks

Due to a contractual agreement with Lucasfilm Ltd., only the following pictorial postmark is permitted. Post Offices planning events are prohibited from designing their own special pictorial postmark featuring Star Wars characters or the Star Wars name or logo on new art. The word “Station” or the abbreviation “STA” is required somewhere in the design, because it will be a temporary station.

Technical Details

 

Issue:

Star Wars

Item Number:

886500

Denomination &
Type of Issue:


26-cent stamped postal cards

Format:

$12.95 stamped postal card booklet
of 15 (15 designs)

Series:

N/A

Issue Date & City:

May 25, 2007,
Los Angeles, CA 90052

Designers:

Terrence McCaffrey, USPS
William J. Gicker Jr., USPS

Artist:

Drew Struzan, Pasadena, CA

Art Directors:

Terrence McCaffrey, USPS
William J.Gicker Jr., USPS

Typographer:

Terrence McCaffrey, USPS

Modeler:

Donald Woo

Manufacturing Process:

Offset

Printer:

Sennett Security Products/
Banknote Corporation of
America, Inc. (SSP/BCA)

Printed at:

Browns Summit, NC

Press Type:

Man Roland, 300

Sheets per Booklet:

15

Print Quantity:

750,000 cards

Paper Type:

CS1 (phosphor tagged)

Stamp Orientation:

Vertical and Horizontal

Card Size (w x h):

4.25 x 6.75 in./107.95 x 171.45 mm

Plate Size:

18 cards per revolution

Plate Numbers:

N/A

Marginal/Backside
Markings:

 

Front:

N/A

Back:

“STAR WARS” • © 2007 Lucasfilm
Ltd & TM • “All rights reserved.
Used under authorizations”
• © 2007 USPS • Descriptive
paragraph

Booklet Covers:

 

Front:

Header “STAR WARS” Stamp
image • “STAMPED POSTAL
CARDS” • “15 DESIGNS”
• Price “$12.95”

Back:

Stamp art images • © 2007 USPS
• USPS Logo • Barcode
“886500” • Informative
paragraph • “Item No. 886500”
• “Price $12.95” • “AIC 092”
• “Package Not Suitable for
Philatelic Archiving” • © 2007
Lucasfilm Ltd & TM • “All rights
reserved. Used under
authorization”

Guidelines for Finalizing Star Wars Stamps Pictorial Postmark Art

Pictorial Postmark

Unfinished Art

To finalize the Star Wars stamp pictorial postmark art, insert the date, city, state, and ZIP Code™ of the physical location of your event adjacent to the stamps image. Overall dimensions of the pictorial postmark must not exceed 4 inches horizontally by 2 inches vertically. Col­lectors prefer the dimensions 3 1/2 inches by 1 inch.

How to Order First Day Covers

Stamp Fulfillment Services also offers first day covers for new stamp issues and Postal Service stationery items postmarked with the official first day of issue cancellation. Each item has an individual catalog number and is offered in the quarterly USA Philatelic catalog. Customers may request a free catalog by calling 800-STAMP-24 or writing to:

INFORMATION FULFILLMENT
DEPT 6270
US POSTAL SERVICE
PO BOX 219014
KANSAS CITY MO 64121-9014

Philatelic Products

There are eight philatelic products available for this stamp issue:

Distribution: Item 570100, $6.15 Star Wars, Commemorative Sheet of 15 Stamps

Stamp Distribution Offices (SDOs) will receive approxi­mately 425 percent of their standard automatic distribution quantity for a PSA sheet stamp. Distributions will be in mul­tiple waves. Wave 1 shipments, which began April 2, 2007, will be completed by April 27, 2007. Wave 2 shipments, which begin May 15, 2007, will be completed by June 21, 2007. Wave 3 shipments, which begin June 26, 2007, will be completed by July 26, 2007.

Distributions are rounded up to the nearest master car­ton size (2,000 commemorative sheets/30,000 stamps).

Initial Supply to Post Offices

From the initial shipments of Item 570100 received by SDOs, a subsequent automatic distribution will be made to Post Offices for their full standard automatic distribution quantities using PS Form 17, Stamp Requisition/Stamp Return. SDOs must not distribute this commemorative sheet to Post Offices before May 18, 2007.

Additional Supply

Post Offices requiring additional quantities of Item 570100 must requisition them from their designated SDO using PS Form 17. SDOs requiring additional commemora­tive sheets must order them from the appropriate account­able paper depository (APD) using PS Form 17.

Following the completion of the Wave 3 shipments to SDOs, the San Francisco, New York, Chicago, and Mem­phis APDs will each receive 560,000 additional commemo­rative sheets. The Denver APD will receive 280,000 additional commemorative sheets for fulfilling supplemen­tal orders from SDOs. Also, the Kansas City Stamp Ser­vices Center will receive 1,600,000 additional commemorative sheets for fulfilling supplemental orders from APDs.

Sales Policy

All Post Offices must acquire and maintain a supply of each new commemorative stamp as long as customer demand exists, until inventory is depleted, or until the stamp is officially withdrawn from sale. If supplies run low, Post Offices must reorder additional quantities using their normal ordering procedures. The $6.15 Star Wars com­memorative sheet may not be split, and the stamps may not be sold individually.

— Stamp Services,
Government Relations, 4-26-07




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