N1901

Comedians

Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy

Collins Cover Announcement 

COMEDIANS 

Laurel and Hardy

The famous humorists featured on the five stamps of the recent Comedian Series brought laughter and joy to generations of Americans. In this first COLLINS cover of the series, I pay tribute to the team of Stanley Laurel and Oliver Hardy. Hardy was the authoritative, bossy schemer and Laurel was the subservient dupe who always seemed to get the worst of Hardy's ideas and orders. My hand-painted cachet finds 011ie as the coach of a college football team playing in the Rosebowl. One of his players has been injured and he is now ordering the diminutive and apprehensive Stan into the game. As always, Stanley realizes that he is putting his well-being at risk in response to 011ie's instructions.

Why the football format for my hand-painted cachet? It so happens that on the Day of Issue in Hollywood, there was an absolutely fabulous pictorial cancelation available in Anaheim. This large and beautiful postmark shows Mickey Mouse kicking off a football in the "Disneyland Pigskin Classic" game. Mickey himself is quite a famous comedian, and I thought what a wonderful COLLINS Cover it would be if I could link up Walt Disney's Mickey with all of these vintage famous comedians of yesteryear. And...to enhance the football theme, each of my "Famous Comedian" covers will have a cachet with the Rosebowl story line.

This cover, and indeed the full set of five, will be the best of the issue. Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy. Jack Benny. Edgar Bergen and Charlie McCarthy. Fanny Bryce. Bud Abbott and Lou Costello. All of these greats will visit the Rosebowl Game on original hand-painted Collins cachets. All of the covers will have the spectacular Mickey Mouse postmark actually obtained on Day of Issue. (It is possible that I'm the only cachetmaker to obtain this cancel.) When all is said and done, these covers will be a great addition to your collection.

The first will find coach Hardy and player Laurel at the Rosebowl. It will have a sports theme of football. It will have the most famous of all Disney characters -- Mickey Mouse. It is another fine COLLINS First Day cover. Item #N1901. $9.75.