Vintage Black Cinema Stamps

On July 16th, the United States Postal Service released stamps commemorating vintage black cinema. These stamps highlight the African-American cultural experience that was represented in early films.

Each 42 cent first class postage stamp depicts a movie poster from days gone by. There are 5 stamps in the set. The souvenir sheet includes 20 stamps in four rows with each type of stamp represented. Each stamp features an actual copy of the advertising poster for the movies they represent. Each souvenir sheet also includes selvage text.

The movies represented are The Sport of the Gods, Black and Tan, Caldonia, Princess Tam-Tam, and Hallelujah.

The Sport of the Gods was a silent film released in 1921. It is a story of a, innocent man who serves a prison sentence for a crime that was committed by his friend. Black and Tan was released in 1929 and featured Duke Ellington and his Cotton Club Orchestra. The film was 19 minutes long and featured the 3 songs performed by Ellington and the orchestra.

Caldonia was an 18 minute short film that featured bandleader, saxophonist and singer Louis Jordan. There are 4 songs performed by Jordan and his band mates, who was a legend of the time. Princess Tam-Tam is a rare film that features Josephine Baker singing and dancing. Baker starred as a simple African woman presented to Paris society as royalty. The film was released in France in 1935. Hallelujah was one of the first films that featured an all black cast. It was released by MGM in 1929.

Each of these movies pays homage to African American culture that should not be forgotten.