Silly Stamp Information

I am very fond of postage stamps that are made in different shapes. Designs can be found in heart, triangle, rhombus, octagon and circle stamps. Tonga even had banana shaped stamps from 1969 to 1985. Sometimes, postal administrators have tried experimenting with different types of shapes, but such changes did not go over very well with the public. In the 1970’s, in an effort to save money, the United States Postal Service released a stamp that was very tiny. The public hated it and the idea has not been repeated since.

When a stamp is successful, there is little notice from the public, but stamp collectors are giddy with excitement. When a stamp is unsuccessful, there can be an ugly uproar from both the Philatelic societies as well as the public. One notable mistake that the USPS produced came in the 1970’s. They released a stamp for anti-alcoholism that seemed like a good idea in the design process. But, when it came time to sell the stamps, the public was not interested. Imagine receiving a letter with the words “Alcoholism: You Can Beat It!” on the envelope. People
wondered if the sender was giving them a subtle nudge toward attending AA meetings. Chalk that one up to “not a good idea”. That one did not sell.