Issued on September 11, 2012 as part of the Literary Arts series is this stamp of O. Henry. I remember his "Gift of the Magi" from my literature textbook in fourth grade.
{Info below from Beyond the Perf}
The U.S. Postal Service commemorates the 150th anniversary of the birth of O. Henry (the pen name of William S. Porter, 1862-1910) with a stamp in its Literary Arts series. The short stories of O. Henry are beloved for their irony and skillful unfolding of plot; often, they end with a surprise twist. This prolific author wrote nearly 300 tales, most in the final eight years of his life. By the time of his death, he was the most widely read storyteller in America and was internationally admired.
The first stamp in the Literary Arts series was issued in 1979; O. Henry is the 28th writer to be honored in the series. Art director and stamp designer Ethel Kessler worked with artist Cap Pannell on his first stamp illustration for O. Henry. It is being issued as a Forever® stamp, which is always equal in value to the current First-Class Mail one-ounce rate.
He was on a Russian stamp in 1962 for the centenary
http://lori.ru/3611226
Posted by: Alan B | September 12, 2012 at 01:55 AM
There should be a contest for most ironic use of this stamp.
Posted by: O'Leary | September 12, 2012 at 03:34 PM
I was talking with one of the people who runs the O. Henry Museum here in Austin (where the stamp was unveiled), and he noted that this most likely the first U.S.P.S. stamp that features a convicted felon! (O. Henry was indicted on embezzlement charges during his time in Austin, which may or may not have been phony; he was actually tried twice for the same offense, and only convicted after the second trial). How's that for the wild life of the literati?
Posted by: Laura Roberts | September 25, 2012 at 07:38 PM