S501

Black Heritage

Jackie Robinson

Collins Cover Announcement 

JACKIE ROBINSON

It is with great pleasure that I announce the availability of this cover for the cachet was designed by one of the great pioneers of the First Day Cover hobby - Frank Pennington. Frank's biography was documented in the official program at this year's AFDCS Annual Convention. He was raised in Texas and collected stamps during the 1920's. In the 1930's he became a FDC collector and often made his own private hand-drawn cachets. The first commercially produced Pennington FDC was for the 1939 Golden Gate issue, and nine different cachets were designed for this stamp. It remains a beautiful and sotqht after set.

Today, retired in San Rafael, California, Frank still designs an occasional cachet, and I first met him when I went to Salinas for the John Steinbeck issue. We have remained in touch, and at this Year's convention (at which he was one of the honored guest pioneer cachetmakers) he agreed to do my Jackie Robinson cover. In addition to the usual "COLL',:NS" logo, each cover is identified with the following inscription below the cachet - "Frank Pennington '82". This will truly be a FDC collector's item - a COLLINS cover with a Pennington cachet.

The cachet itself is a beauty printed in black and blue, it portrays a youthful Robinson in his Brooklyn Dodgers uniform. Providing a background for the portrait is a large baseball symbolizing the game that propelled this man of courage into the history books. Handpainted, the cachet is done with careful detail right down to every stitch in the baseball.

This issue is one that I immensely enjoyed as I took my daughter Becky and son Tim with me to Cooperstown. After a 6 a.m. breakfast the three of us set about our day's work. Cooperstown that Monday was as close to pure Americana as one can come. Baseball fans engulfed the serene village or tne annual Hail ot Fame game. On the sprawling well-kept lawns between stately trees were the sidewalk tables of FDC deal rs offering their covers to old and young, collector and novice. The small post office set up a canceling table on the front- steps, and all morning brisk activity was evident. Some local Cooperstown friends helped me out, and Becky and Tim took the covers for canceling. Soon we were on the road heading west through afternoon downpours. Since the home run is such an exciting part of the game, I had decided on "Homer" N.Y. as my unofficial cancel. Arriving home late at night, the three of us were weary but still enthusiastic about a fun-filled successful day.

The considerations for adding this cover to your collection are many.

1 The artist - Frank Pennington - has designed a wonderful portrait cachet. This work .of a pioneer cachetmaker on a modern "COLLINS" FDC is sure to make this a very collectible cover which reaches across the decades of our hobby.

2. Jackie Robinson was a great athlete and a greater human-being. This issue will be one of the most popular of the year.

3. There are many "sports" and "baseball" topical collectors, and this cover will be a must for their collections.

4. The hand-painting of the cachet is beautifully done and gives

this cover a great appearance.

5. The covers have both the official "First Day of Issue" hand cancel from Cooperstown and the unofficial First Day hand cancel from Homer. This related unofficial proves that these covers were actually done on First Day. The two cancels add much interest and will further set this COLLINS FDC apart from others done for this issue.

Be assured that this baseball FDC is something special and will provf to be an excellent addition to any cover collection. As always, I must reserve the right to limit multiple orders.

Item No. is S501 and Price is $6 .00

Spring 2019 Mail Sale Commentary 

Lot 9 S501 — Jackie Robinson

This was the very first Collins cachet to honor a Major League Baseball player and will always be an extremely_important piece for any-Collins, sports, or baseball collection. The hand Rainted cachet was designed by my late friend and first day cover pioneer, Frank Pennington. The story of how this cover came into existence is on pages 145-146 of the book. Jackie was the first black player to become a Major Leaguer and, as such, was a prominent personality in sports and Civil Rights history. The cover is postmarked at both Cooperstown, New York and Homer, New York. It s a "must-own" item for any dedicated Collins or sports collector.