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Al
Hirschfeld became the first artist in history to have his
name on a U.S. Postage Stamp Booklet when the United States
Postal Service released the five postage stamps that Hirschfeld
was commisioned to design. The five designs are Laurel &
Hardy, Jack Benny, Edgar Bergen & Charlie McCarthy,
Abbott & Costello, and Fanny Brice. The Stamps were
issued in booklets of 20 - four sets each of the five Hirschfeld
designs. |
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By
including Hirschfeld's signature on the stamp booklet,
and by issuing the stamps under the name "Comedians
by Hirschfeld," the U.S. Postal Service has broken
a long-standing policy. Not even Norman Rockwell, who
illustrated the Tom Sawyer Stamp of 1972 and the Boys
Scouts Stamp of 1960, had his name on the cover or as
part of the issue title. Neither did Robert Indiana when
he designed the famous "Love" Stamp. When asked
why the Post Office should change its policy now Margo
Feiden, Hirschfeld's art dealer for more than 20 years,
had a ready answer: "After all, it is a Hirschfeld!" |
Another
"first" in postal history is the inclusion of
"hidden writing" within each stamp, that being
the hidden "NINAs" that have become Hirschfeld's
trademark. Hirschfeld first included NINA - his daughter's
name - to commemorate her birth in 1945, and has continued
to hide her name in each of his drawings ever since. The
U.S. Postal Service regulations prohibit stamps from containing
any hidden text, but they waived the regulation for Hirschfeld
and a statement was issued explaining the departure from
policy: "NINA has become such a distinctive element
... that our stamp designs would not be true Hirschfelds
without them." |
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Still
another exciting departure from Postal "norms"
occured when the Post Office set up a special branch in
The Margo Feiden Galleries on Friday-Sunday, September
20, 21, and 22, 1991. All letters mailed from the Gallery
during those three days were cancelled with a unique pictorial
postmark. |
The
stamp booklet - hand-signed by Al Hirschfeld - and beautifully
framed surrounded by 20 of his stamps, is available for
shipping anywhere in the world exclusively at The Margo
Feiden Galleries. The Gallery is located at 699 Madison
Avenue, between 62nd & 63rd Streets, New York, NY
10021, telephone (212) 677-5330. |
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Happy
Hirschfeld Collecting!
Taken from a press release published by The Margo Feiden Galleries
Ltd., New York ©1991
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