by Lloyd A. de Vries
The Virtual Stamp Club
If you collect first day covers in the U.S., you owe Michael A. Mellone a debt of gratitude. Maybe two debts of gratitude: He helped establish independent shows for first day cover collecting, and wrote and published the catalogues that made it possible to identify and systematically collect cachets.
He passed away February 12, 2018, in West Palm Beach, Florida, at the age of 72.
For nearly two decades, Mike guided the annual shows and conventions of the American First Day Cover Society. He and his promoter partner Steve Ritzer produced two of the society’s first standalone conventions in the “modern” era, in 1986 in Morristown, N.J., and in 1988 at the Disneyland Hotel in Anaheim, Calif.
In 1992, with Ritzer providing behind-the-scenes support, Mellone produced the AFDCS Cover Fest in Columbus, Ohio. Steve Ripley was the wacky chairman and programmer, but Mellone handled logistics: Finding and checking out hotels, selling and setting up the bourse, and all the myriad details necessary for a successful show.
The following year, Mellone and Ripley called the AFDCS show “Americover.”
On the right, Mike looks puzzled after the Stamford Marriott, where Americover 2007 had just begun, is evacuated because of a fire. His assistant, later his wife, Dottie Graf is with him.
The significance is that, until these shows, the AFDCS was a guest at someone else’s party. Space for first day cover exhibits and dealer booths was limited. The hosts even controlled the events the AFDCS could hold.
Along the way, Mellone and friends invented the cachetmakers bourse, where the people who design first day covers could sell their products at a reduced-price for tables. It came about at the 1986 show, after cachetmakers and other small dealers took over the hospitality suites at earlier conventions to sell FDCs, pushing out collectors who simply wanted to sit around, eat, drink and talk.
Earl Planty, a business professor, was the first to catalogue different cachets for early first day covers, identifying them, assigning a catalogue number, and even assigning a value. Mellone, however, as they say in football, “took the ball and ran with it.”
First, he added photographs of the different cachets to make identification easier. Instead of parsing a written description, collectors could compare what they had to the pictures. He also expanded Planty’s listings, adding dozens of cachets for those issues.
Then Mellone went a step further: He added issues, first for the 1930s and eventually for nearly every issue through the 1960s.
The first Mellone Photo-Encyclopedia appeared in 1976. It was no coincidence that within a few years, first day covers were one of the hottest specialties in philately.
A collector of a specific issue now knew not only what he or she had, but what he or she didn’t have. “You have a Crosby for that issue? There are five different Crosbys for it, and here is what you’re missing.” Many collectors then made an effort to buy the missing covers. That increased sales, which in turn increased dealers’ interest in acquiring FDCs for sale. Prices rose. Interest increased.
Also helping increase the interest in FDCs was his pocket catalogue. It was first titled Discovering the Fun in First Day Covers, with a license from Scott Publishing Co. to use its catalogue numbers. After a few years, Discovering became the Scott Catalogue of U.S. First Day Covers, with introductory material on collecting, identifying and valuing FDCs that Mellone had written. (Scott discontinued publication of the catalogue after the 2009 edition.)
Mellone’s F.D.C. Publishing Company also produced books and catalogues on other FDC-related subjects, encouraging research and scholarship in the specialty. It also printed 3″x5″ inventory cards for first day cover collections; I still have mine!
Mellone revised the 1930s catalogue, and extended it earlier, into the 1920s. He never got around to doing more with the other decades than reprinting them. Publishing the catalogues was expensive and time-consuming, and he told me he didn’t make much money on them, if any.
Above, Mike receives an Honorary Life Membership in 2005 from AFDCS president Tom Foust, while Dottie gets her HLM from board chairman Dick Monty.
Mike was shy and preferred to work in the background: Steve Ritzer and Steve Ripley were his “front men,” glad-handing and interacting with the public. At some of the shows he produced alone, after splitting with Ritzer, he even asked me to make the public address announcements for him. Mike did the physical work.
This summer, at Americover 2018, as you walk through the cachetmakers and dealers bourses, checking your photo-encyclopedia, take a moment to think of Mike Mellone.
“In Her Words: Women’s Duty and Service in World War I” opened Feb. 2 at the Smithsonian’s National Postal Museum. The exhibition, open through May 8, offers a glimpse into the lives of four women serving in and alongside the American military during World War I. Through letters, uniforms, ID badges, notebooks and other authentic objects, the exhibition reveals the wartime experiences, personalities and aspirations of two U.S. Army Nurses, a U.S. Navy Yeoman and a YMCA worker.
“This exhibition raises awareness of the extraordinary work of women during World War I,” said Elliot Gruber, director of the museum (left). “The letters on display offer a unique window into the experiences of four individuals and the motivations to serve their country.”
Despite these developments and the increasing visibility of women’s contributions, the military establishment did not treat women as it did men, offering them limited opportunities and unequal benefits. The work they performed and how they were treated during and after the war raised significant questions and helped set new precedents for women’s employment opportunities and political rights.
OTTAWA, ON – February 8, 2018 – The War Amps officially launched its 100th anniversary year today with the unveiling of a Canada Post commemorative envelope, at the Association’s National Headquarters in Ottawa.
USPS on eBay – On Vacation (?)
The U.S. Postal Service confirms to The Virtual Stamp Club that there is a Priority Mail stamped-envelope with the design of the new Priority Mail stamp.
The envelope with the same first-day pictorial cancellation as for the stamp (shown on the left here) can also be ordered from SFS, at 
A long-time Toronto resident, Kathleen Livingstone was an activist, humanitarian and popular radio host devoted to the empowerment of Black women. She founded the Canadian Negro Women’s Association in the 1950s and, in 1975, launched the Congress of Black Women of Canada – now a nationwide organization. In 2011, she was named a Person of National Historic Significance by the Government of Canada.
Toronto-born Lincoln MacCauley Alexander had a distinguished career as a public servant and became a leader in the fight for racial equality. He was the first Black Canadian to be elected to the House of Commons (1968), appointed to the federal Cabinet (1979) and named to a viceregal position in Canada, as Lieutenant Governor of Ontario (1985). He encouraged countless young people to pursue their dreams – often telling them, “I did it. You can. You will.”
The National Postal Museum has accepted a donation of three volumes of postally used envelopes collected by the late Dr. George S. Brooks of Winchester, Kentucky. Dr. Brooks formed the collection in honor of his son LTJG George S. Brooks, Jr. USN, who was lost at sea aboard the submarine USS Pompano off the coast of Japan during World War II.
especially poignant part of the collection.
CALGARY – Weeks before the cauldrons are lit for the Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games in South Korea, Canada Post lifted the veil on stamps that honour some of the most accomplished athletes Canada has known.
“The women who share the podium in these stamps broke barriers, inspired generations and have contributed to our country’s national story both on and off of the ice and snow,” says Deepak Chopra, President and CEO of Canada Post. “They have been ambassadors for their sports, impressive role models and a great source of national pride.”
Sharon and Shirley Firth
Sonja Gaudet
Danielle Goyette
Nancy Greene
Clara Hughes
18th January 2018 — Five of Australia’s much loved television personalities will today be honoured in Australia Post’s 2018 Legends Awards to celebrate their significant contribution to the country’s entertainment industry.
tertainment careers.
Now in its 22nd year, the Australia Post Legends Award celebrates the lives of living Australians who have made a unique contribution, inspired the community and influenced the way Australians think about themselves and the community.
at official Australia Day Council events hosted in Melbourne and Sydney, with the first luncheon taking place in Melbourne today. Each Legend will be presented with a unique 24-carat gold replica of their stamp at the luncheon.
