American First Day Cover Society Immediate Past President Chris Lazaroff is shown in this photo taking a sneak peak in Yellowstone National Park at what would become his 300th first-day ceremony in 50 states. That’s right: Chris has now attended at least one ceremony in every state, as well as a few territories and a District. I’ll have the story in an upcoming issue of Linn’s Stamp News.
His first ceremony was in 1982, but he didn’t get serious until 1989. Wyoming was the last state he needed.
Sundman Also Decides To Extend Reward Offer
June 2, 2016 — The recovered Jenny Invert stamp, stolen in 1955 from a major stamp show, was turned over Thursday to its owner, the American Philatelic Research Library. Making the announcement and then displaying the stamp was APRL executive director Scott English, while standing in front of an actual JN-4 biplane on display at World Stamp Show-New York 2016. (Behind English, left to right, APRL president Roger Brody, Mystic Stamp Company president Donald Sundman, U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara.)
There was no amplification for the event, unfortunately.
The stamp was part of a block of four owned by Ethel McCoy. The block was removed from a display at the American Philatelic Society convention in Richmond, Va. McCoy left the stamps, if ever recovered, to the APRL. One was found in 1977, another in 1982, and then, for 34 years, it was a “cold case.”
Mystic Stamp Company president Donald Sundman in September 2014 offered a $50,000 reward for the recovery of the two missing stamps, and “I thought it would be found right away with the initial press coverage,” he told The Virtual Stamp Club. It wasn’t.
“Sundman probably never expected having to write a check,” English told the reporters and onlookers.
Then, last month, Keelin O’Neil (right) of Belfast, Northern Ireland, brought the stamp in to the Spink USA auction house in New York, seeking to sell it. He had found it in his grandfather’s collection. Spink sent it to the Philatelic Foundation for an appraisal, and it was determined that it was one of the two missing stamps, although it had been altered to hide its identity.
O’Neil’s reaction? “Shock, more than anything,” he told The VSC. “When I found out it was stolen, I wanted to return it to its rightful owner.”
“I don’t think he had a choice,” Sundman says. “When the Philatelic Foundation 
recognized that the stamp was stolen, they contacted the FBI, so he wasn’t getting the stamp back, once it went to the Foundation.”
However, O’Neil is getting the $50,000 reward, as presented by Sundman during the news conference.
The U.S. Justice Department then took a few weeks to determine who that “rightful owner” was.
“This was good citizenship,” U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara. “They did the right thing and they ought to be commended for it.”
O’Neil tells The VSC he’s surprised at all the attention the recovery of the stamp is getting, and also how much attention stamp collecting is getting at WSS-NY.
“Now I actually feel kind of hopeful” that the one remain stamp from the “McCoy Block” will surface, Sundman said in The VSC interview, because of the press coverage for the return of the stamp. Among those covering the news conference were the local affiliates for CBS, NBC and Fox, New York 1, and Reuters print and television.
Sundman’s original reward offer ran through the end of World Stamp Show-New York 2016, which is Saturday, June 4.
“I told Roger [Brody, president of the APRL], ‘I’ve got to have a time limit on this, because I don’t want my grandkids to have to pay off this reward,” Sundman told The Virtual Stamp Club. (At left, Brody receives the recover stamp, Jenny Invert position 76, from Diego Rodriguez, Assistant Director in Charge, New York Field Office, Federal Bureau of Investigation.)
However, he is now extending it through the end of 2016, at the request of English.
“The more I thought about it, I think it’s great for the hobby and great for the APS, and so I’ve decided to do that today,” he said.
To mask the stamp’s identity, someone altered the left-side perforations and regummed the stamp, which removed the penciled number applied in 1918. However, because the two-color printing process in 1918 was so rudimentary, the centering of each stamp is different enough that the Philatelic Foundation was able to identify it anyway.
The stamp will reside at APS/APRL headquarters in Bellefonte, Pa., “to share it with our members for awhile,” English told reporters.
How much is the recovered stamp worth? While the best-condition copy of the error stamp sold during this show for $1,175,000, another not-as-good copy, also “reperfed” sold the following day (June 1) for $190,000. “We won’t know [the value of the recovered stamp] until we sell it,” English said.
[press release]
U.S. Postal Service to Announce Innovative New Stamp Products at World Stamp Show-NY 2016
USPS StampApp, eGuide to U.S. Stamps, Souvenir Portfolio and Water Soluble Forever Stamps to be Featured
NEW YORK CITY — The U.S. Postal Service will announce several new and innovative stamp products during the World Stamp Show-NY 2016, which begins Saturday, May 28 at the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center in New York City. The new products include The World Stamp Show Souvenir Portfolio, a book with a number of impressive digital and tactile features; the 2015 eGuide to U.S. Stamps, a digital version of the Postal Service Guide to U.S. Stamps, 42nd Edition; the USPS StampApp, the only official U.S. stamp collecting app; and new Forever stamps that are water soluble.
The water soluble feature is available on the Classics Forever stamps, which will be issued during the show on Wednesday, June 1. The pressure-sensitive adhesive on the stamps make them water soluble, enabling philatelists to remove these special stamps from envelopes after they have been used by soaking them in plain water. This is the first time this feature has been included on a Forever stamp.
“Stamps have a way of connecting the world, and now it’s happening digitally,” said Postal Service Chief Marketing and Sales Officer Jim Cochrane. “Leveraging digital technology is incredibly important to the future of stamp collecting, and increasingly, you will find new technologies embedded within stamps that will have the potential to bridge the physical and digital.”
USPS StampApp
The USPS StampApp is the only official U.S. collecting app and the only collectibles app that includes an entire reference library along with user-generated content for philatelists to upload their own stamp collection. Designed for collectors and stamp enthusiasts of all ages, StampApp affords users beautiful, high-resolution imagery of the U.S. stamp archive, with details and production specifications that are important to collectors. Users can manage their personal collections on StampApp, knowing that everything is securely and permanently stored in the Cloud, where it is always accessible on all of their devices.
The USPS StampApp will be available on usps.com, Apple’s App Store and Google Play.
2015 eGuide to U.S. Stamps
The Postal Service crosses philately’s digital divide with the brand new 2015 Postal Service eGuide to U.S Stamps.
The U.S. Postal Service takes the lead in digital stamp display with a first-of-its-kind eBook of stamps. Like its print-book brother, the eGuide to U.S. Stamps encompasses more than 7,000 U.S. stamps from 1845 to the present. This is the only official compilation of U.S. postage stamps issued by the Postal Service. Extensive content includes detailed listings for each stamp with color illustrations, dates of issue, quantities issued, and separate listings for design variations. Multiple categories are covered — definitive, commemorative, airmail, duck stamps, stamped envelopes, and more — all organized into easily accessible indexes with an updated Stamp Series section that lists all stamps issued per series.
The benefits of the eGuide to US Stamps include:
The Postal Service eGuide to U.S. Stamps will be available for reading on Kindle, Apple and Android tablets and phones, and can be purchased online at over 1,000 eBook retailers including the Apple Store, Google Play, Amazon, and Barnesandnoble.com.
[In a discussion I had with one of the developers of the eGuide, this is a real e-book, not just a .pdf file saved in Kindle and Nook formats. We’ll have more on these two digital products in the near future. —Lloyd de Vries]
The World Stamp Show Souvenir Portfolio
The World Stamp Show Souvenir Portfolio is a coffee-table book that features information about each of the eight stamps to be released during the Show. The design elements in this book include lenticular, textured and even Augmented Reality sprinkled throughout the pages. It also includes sleeves for inserting the stamp panes being issued during the week of the show, which must be purchased separately. The August 2015 World Stamp Show-NY 2016 stamp pane is included. The Portfolio can be purchased at World Stamp Show-NY 2016.
Learn more about the innovative new stamp products along with many other digital features at the U.S. Postal Service’s exhibit booth at the World Stamp Show-NY 2016, which continues through June 4. The United States plays host to this sanctioned international stamp show only once every 10 years.
On June 2, during the show, United States Postmaster General and CEO Megan J. Brennan will dedicate a pane of 16 stamps featuring America’s National Park Services in celebration of their centennial year. This event will be webcast and coincides with special dedication ceremonies across the nation that day. Also throughout the week, the U.S. Postal Service will dedicate seven other commemorative postage stamps on site.
These products and many of this year’s other stamps may be seen on Facebook atfacebook.com/USPSStampsor via Twitter@USPSstamps oron the website https://www.usps.com/stamps/, the Postal Service’s online site for information on upcoming stamp subjects, first-day-of-issue events and other philatelic news.
The Postal Service receives no tax dollars for operating expenses and relies on the sale of postage, products and services to fund its operations.
The featured speakers at the opening ceremony both knew about stamps from personal experience: U.S. Navy Admiral (ret.) Thomas B. Fargo collects them – “Collecting has been an immensely satisfying part of my life.” – and U.S. Postal Service Chief Marketing & Sales Officer James Cochrane has been selling them for his entire career, starting at New Jersey post offices where he began his career. 
From left to right, Master of Ceremonies Jamie Gough, “Alexander Hamilton,” Adm. Fargo, WSS-NY president Wade Saadi, Vice Admiral Joseph P. Mulloy, and Cochrane, cut the ribbon to start the snow.
The two Naval officers were a nod to New York City’s “Fleet Week,” an annual event where many U.S. Navy ships dock in the city and the streets are filled with sailors and Marines on shore leave.
In introducing Fargo, a former three-star admiral, Mulloy (left) mentioned that both men were submariners, and that Fargo had visited the North Pole in 1993 but “he did not make any covers.”
Fargo said he had, although only to send letters to 
members of his family. He also admitted that he was more of a “shoebox collector.” His holdings include “my prized mint plate block collection.” When he asked an expert about what to do with that collection, he related wryly, the response was “Have you ever thought of using it for postage?”
Fargo ended his speech by noting that the last day of the show, June 4th, is the 74th anniversary of the Battle of Midway, a turning point for World War II in the Pacific Ocean, and next December 7th will be the 75th anniversary of the attack on Pearl Harbor. (Read more on Fargo and his distinguished career here.)
Gough, the MC, praised the USPS for delivering quickly almost everywhere in the USA “for 49 cents” [oops] and suggested that if those attending the show are worried about the government reading their e-mails, “send a letter.”
Cochrane mentioned that the USPS employs more than 113,000 veterans. He then announced several new digital products from the USPS: An e-book version of The Postal Service Guide to U.S. Stamps, USPS Stamp App, and some digital features to the World Stamp Show Folio that was issued Saturday at WSS-NY. He predicted that it is a matter of time before U.S. stamps themselves have electronic features, such as video and audio!
[We will have more on the app and e-book soon. Meanwhile, check out the press release from the USPS.]]
He noted that the Classics Forever stamps coming out next week at WSS has water-soluble adhesive: “You asked for it and we heard you.”
Cochrane also said the USPS has brought in more collectors by expanding topical offerings. He wrapped up by saying he would be the dedicating official at the Assateague Island National Seashore on the first day of the National Park Service Centennial stamps, while Postmaster General Megan Brennan will handle the main first day ceremony at the show.
Then there was a surprise speaker: Alexander Hamilton. The humorous speech was mostly about his life and times, and how even he can’t get tickets to the smash hit Broadway musical “Hamilton.” There wasn’t much philatelic content in his talk until at the end he mentioned the 1957 $5 stamp with his portrait on it.
The “recreator” was later on the so how floor.
[BTW, he referred to himself as “a bastard and his orphan.” I read the 2005 Ron Chernow book, considered the definitive biography of Hamilton and on which 
the musical is based, and Hamilton never considered himself a bastard. -LdeV]
Just before the ribbon cutting, “Magenta” owner and shoe designer Stuart Weizman (left) gave a short welcome via video from Spain; he said he would be attending the show later in its run.
From Canada Post’s Details magazine:
NATIONAL RESEARCH COUNCIL OF CANADA Commemorative envelopeIssue date: June 6th
We honour the 100th anniversary of the National Research Council of Canada (NRC) by showcasing some of the many cutting-edge Canadian inventions it has fostered over the past century. From advances in early aviation safety and nuclear medicine to vaccines and space-based engineering, they represent NRC’s dedication to the science and innovation that builds new industry, enhances national security, and improves the well-being of Canadians
From Canada Post’s Details magazine
Issue date: July 12, 2016
“I’m a collector, illustrator, artist and designer. These projects bring all of those elements together.
— Keith Martin, illustrator
Hatched by designer Kosta Tsetsekas and illustrator Keith Martin, these stamps are the first in a three-year series celebrating Canada’s avian citizens. Our first flock includes five official birds: the Atlantic puffin (Newfoundland and Labrabor), the great horned owl (Alberta), the common raven (Yukon), the rock ptarmigan (Nunavut) and the sharp-tailed grouse (Saskatchewan).
To help create the series, Martin learned about his feathered 
subjects. He explains that, “You ultimately have to understand the physicality of these creatures.”
Martin’s illustrations focus on the most striking traits of each bird: the cartoon-like colouring of the patterns, colours and textures that come together to create the character and warmth of these birds.”
Forced to pick a favourite, Martin chose the puffin. “When it’s flying, it’s like a missile,” he says, “but when it lands, it always looks like it’s doing it for the first time. I wanted to reflect that quirkiness in my illustration.”
With two more years of Canadian birds waiting in the wings, Tsetsekas is equally keen to see the next issues soar. “Before a single image was finalized, Keith and I worked together to plan 
each bird in the 15-stamp series,” he smiles. “So, naturally, we’re eager to see them take flight.”
Scott Catalogue has assigned the following numbers:
2923 Souvenir Sheet of 5
2924 Troodon inequalis
2925 Dimetrodon borealis
2926 Comox Valley elasmosaur
2927 Cypretherium coarctatum
2928 Acrotholus audeti
[press release]
Predator or prey? There’s more than meets the eye in Dinos of Canada stamp sequel 
OTTAWA, May 26, 2016 /CNW/ – The mystery about the prehistoric creatures depicted in Canada Post’s exciting new Dinos of Canada stamp series is whether they are the hunters or the hunted.
The series, unveiled today, depicts five beasts from Canada’s geological past as reflections in the eyes of their prey or the predators stalking them. They are vividly illustrated by Sergey Krasovskiy, one of the world’s top paleo-artists.
The stamp design team at Vancouver’s Subplot Design Inc., led by Roy White, created an interesting storyline for the stamps with each eye as its unique frame. The stamps inspire the imagination without having to depict an entire scene.
The repeating eye motif comes roaring back on the uncut press sheet as the eye of a hungry tyrannosaur and as the frame for a single stamp among seven other souvenir sheets.
The creatures’ fossils were found across Canada and represent vastly different geological times. The animals were chosen with the help of the Canadian Museum of Nature, which assisted in the development of the 2015 series. They are:
Acrotholus audeti – This small dinosaur possessed a skull bearing a 10-centimeter thick dome of solid bone over the eyes. The bipedal herbivore may have used the dome to butt heads with other members of its species. It inhabited the then coastal lowlands of Alberta about 85 million years ago.
Comox Valley elasmosaur (this fossil has not yet been given a scientific name) – The vicious marine reptile had a neck nearly seven metres long that helped it hunt its prey 83 million years ago. It was discovered in 1988 by a father and his 12-year-old daughter prospecting for fossils in the Comox Valley.
Cypretherium coarctatum – One of a group of mammals commonly known as “terminator pigs,” this fearsome beast had a long, narrow snout with menacing pointed teeth at the front. It lived on the ancient floodplains of Saskatchewan 35 million years ago.
Canada’s first dinosaur, paleontologists later came to realize it was a mammal-like reptile. Its fearsome jaws were filled with serrated teeth and it likely used a sail on its back for display. It lived in what is now Prince Edward Island about 270 million years ago in, when it was hot and dry and located near the Equator.
Troodon inequalis – The bird-like dinosaur was similar to the carnivorous Velociraptor of Jurassic Park movie fame. It had the largest brain of any dinosaur in relation to its body size and was a resident of Alberta’s coastal lowlands about 75 million years ago.About the stamps
The four-colour stamps measure 40 mm x 40 mm. They are available in booklets of 10 permanent stamps printed by Lowe-Martin. The uncut press sheet measures 480 mm by 650 mm and features an enlargement of a tyrannosaur, whose eye is the frame for a single stamp among seven other souvenir sheets. Each souvenir sheet measures 159 mm by 105 mm and consists of five stamps. The cancel image on the Official First Day Cover features dinosaur tracks. The cancel site is Courtenay, B.C., where the Courtenay and District Museum and Palaeontology Centre is home to the Comox Valley elasmosaur.
[press release]
PINK FLOYD: ROYAL MAIL ISSUES SPECIAL STAMPS TO HONOUR LEGENDARY ROCK GROUP 
Royal Mail today reveal images of a set of 10 stamps that will be issued to mark 50 years since Pink Floyd turned professional and became the ‘house band’ of the London Underground movement of music and arts.
The stamps are available to pre-order from 26 May 2016 at www.royalmail.com/pinkfloyd and to purchase from 8,000 Post Offices from 7 July 2016.
Six stamps feature iconic album covers: The Piper At The Gates Of Dawn; Atom Heart Mother;The Dark Side Of The Moon; Wish You Were Here; Animals and The Endless River.
The band is renowned for its innovative album covers, many of which have become design classics. Through working with leading graphic designers and photographers, they established a body of work that is instantly recognisable, with album cover art considered among the most iconic ever created. Most of the band’s album covers were devised by Hipgnosis, co-founded by Aubrey Powell and Storm Thorgerson in 1968. They were at the forefront of album cover design, using experimental techniques in photography and multiple exposures, and retouching to create the startling images.
A further four stamps within a miniature sheet celebrate the live performances of the band. Arguably the most visually literate band of all time, as well as being one of the most successful, their live appearances were renowned. They were among the first groups to make extensive use of light shows and projection of films for their appearances, increasing in ambition over the decades.
The four images convey the experience of these live performances, from the appearances at the influential UFO Club, London in 1966 where they invented the ‘psychedelic’ light show; to the extremely ambitious staging for albums such as The Wall and the Division Bell tours.
Pink Floyd were formed when the founding trio of bassist Roger Waters, drummer Nick Mason and keyboardist Rick Wright were augmented by original guitarist Syd Barrett. In 1968, guitarist David Gilmour joined the band shortly before Barrett’s departure.
Few bands in the history of rock have managed to carve out a career as rich and expansive as that of Pink Floyd. From their blues-based psychedelic roots, the members of the outfit have created some of modern music’s most totemic and inspirational albums, with ground-breaking live performances to match.
STAMP-BY-STAMP
THE PIPER AT THE GATES OF DAWN (EMI Columbia, 1967)
Pink Floyd’s psychedelic debut is named after Chapter 7 of Kenneth Grahame’s classic children’s novel, The Wind in the Willows, one of frontman Syd Barrett’s favourite books. Photographer Vic Singh shot the cover image using a prism lens given to him by George Harrison some weeks earlier.
ATOM HEART MOTHER (EMI 
Harvest, 1970)
Pink Floyd’s fifth album provided them with their first UK Number One. It was also the first of their LPs not to feature the band’s name on the front of the sleeve, setting the tone for subsequent albums. Hipgnosis, co-founded by Storm Thorgerson and Aubrey Powell, designed the cover – the cow’s name is Lulubelle III.
THE DARK SIDE OF THE MOON (EMI Harvest, 1973)
With sales in excess of 40 million copies worldwide, The Dark Side Of The Moon remains in the Billboard chart in America over 40 years after its release, and has been entered into the Guinness Book of Records as the longest-charting album. Created by Hipgnosis, with graphics by George Hardie of NTA, the prism device is a classic.
WISH YOU WERE HERE (EMI Harvest, 1975)
With a theme of ‘absence’, the Hipgnosis design message was summarised by Storm Thorgerson as ‘not being present in a relationship or conversation’. The concept even extended to the album being shrink-wrapped in opaque black plastic which had to be slit or removed to access the music and images.
ANIMALS (EMI Harvest, 1977)
Animals was released as punk raged. While Johnny Rotten wore a T-shirt with the slogan ‘I Hate Pink Floyd’, Nick Mason busied himself producing The Damned’s Music for Pleasure. The photograph of Battersea Power Station features the now legendary floating inflatable pig designed by Roger Waters.
THE ENDLESS RIVER (Parlophone Warner, 2014)
Ostensibly a tribute to the late Richard Wright and described as a ‘headphones’ album by David Gilmour, The Endless River beat all records for volumes of online pre-orders. For the album cover, Aubrey Powell discovered 18-year old graphic designer Ahmed Emad Eldin’s enigmatic work, which was recreated by design company Stylorouge and photographer, Simon Fowler.
PINK FLOYD LIVE
While their studio work has always been important, Pink Floyd have been defined by their live performances. Their early shows in 1966 at London’s UFO Club married the use of pioneering liquid light effects that matched the psychedelic quality of the music itself.
By 1973, the band’s stage set was further expanded to mirror the dramatic sensibilities of the music: the tension that pervades The Dark Side of the Moon was reflected by lighting director Arthur Max’s innovative work, which included a 15-foot model plane flying over the audience, crashing on stage in sync with the explosion during the track On the Run. The In The Flesh Tour (aka The Animals Tour) of 1977 continued that pattern of spectacle through the use of inflatables, including the now famous pigs, and saw Pink Floyd make US stadiums their own.
Next came the Wall, Roger Water’s ambitious theatrical concept base on alienation which saw a physical wall built between the audience and the band.
Some 14 years later, spectacular stadium shows had become the norm, with Floyd underlining their status as pioneers during The Division Bell Tour, captured to great effect on the p.u.l.s.e DVD and beating all records in terms of gate receipts.
1st Class UF
O Club, 1966. The UFO Club opened on Dec. 23, 1966. Pink Floyd were booked for the opening along with Soft Machine.
1st Class – The Dark Side of the Moon Tour, 1973. This show included the special effect of a plane crashing into the stage at the end of the song On the Run.
£1.52 – The Wall Tour, 1981. Gerald Scarfe and Roger Waters designed a series of animations for the Wall Tour. These animations were projected onto a 40-foot high wall of cardboard bricks which was gradually built between the band and audience.
£1.52 The Division Bell Tour, 1994. Over 5.3 million tickets were sold for this tour and it grossed approx. 100 million US dollars.
[press release]
MoneyGram Waives Fees for Donations to American Red Cross for Wildfire Relief Efforts in Canada
Company also working with Canada Post and Canadian Government to provide financial aid to victims
MoneyGram (NASDAQ: MGI) announced it has initiated support initiatives to help those impacted by the massive wildfires in Canada. From now through the end of June, MoneyGram is waiving fees for those who want to donate to the American Red Cross to support wildfire relief efforts.
MoneyGram and Canada Post are also working together to distribute $1.6 million in relief funds being granted by the Canadian Government. More than 1700 MoneyGram issued money transfer checks will be available for pick-up at Canada Post locations.
“Our hearts go out to those impacted by these terrible fires,” said Pete Ohser, executive vice president, Americas and Europe. “With the help of the Red Cross and Canada Post, we are focused on ensuring financial assistance gets to those who need it most during this crucial time. I’d also like to say ‘thank you’ to each and every first responder who continues to fight these fires by putting themselves in harm’s way; their courage and determination are inspiring.”
In response to a request for assistance from the Canadian Red Cross, the American Red Cross has deployed 50 disaster response specialists who are working in several functional areas, including case management, information management, shelter management, mapping and psychosocial support.
Donations to the Red Cross can be made at www.MoneyGram.com or any MoneyGram agent location in the U.S. All donations should be submitted to the American Red Cross under receive code 2540 to waive the transaction fee. Any dollar amount will be accepted up to a maximum of $249.99 per transaction.
From Israel Post; click on the links for more information on the issues:
“We celebrate long, lazy summer days, vacation time and fun with our stamp for Summer, picturing the beach, the sea and of course the sun!
“It’s also time for the Summer Olympics and for Rio 2016 we have chosen to feature three major sports for Israeli athletes – Track and Field, Judo and Sailing. Good luck to our team! These stamps are a must have for a collector of sports stamps.
“It’s time we say thanks to “man’s best friend”. Dogs not only make wonderful pets but they serve humans in many different ways. Our Service Dogs stamps feature Guide dogs for the blind and Search and Rescue dogs who save many lives.
“Continuing our historic series marking the WWI Centenary we are issuing a stamp on Aerial Warfare 1916. This is certainly an important issue for collectors of military and aircraft themes. This stamp tells the interesting story of aircraft used in Eretz Israel and features the German Rumpler C-IV airplane.
“Sisters Viki and Riki, from central Israel, model for our June ATM Adopt a Dog issue:”
These stamps will all be issued June 21st.
