USPS Katharine Hepburn Legends of Hollywood Stamp

Jul 20, 2010
Tim Rich

Katharine Hepburn Legends of Hollywood Stamp - 2009 © USPS. All Rights Reserved.

The U.S. Postal Service honored actress Katharine Hepburn with the 16th collectible postage stamp in its Legends of Hollywood commemorative stamps series.

On May 12, 2010 the U.S. Postal Service added another collectible postage stamp to its Legends of Hollywood commemorative stamps series with their dedication of the first class 44-cent Katharine Hepburn stamp. Hepburn joins 15 other Hollywood personalities in the Legends of Hollywood stamp series, making her stamp the 16th in the series.

The Career of Katharine Hepburn

According to the Internet Movie Database, Katharine Hepburn was born May 12, 1907 in Hartford, CT.

After graduating from Bryn Mawr College, Hepburn turned her efforts toward professional acting and began receiving small parts in Broadway plays. After attracting much attention for these minor roles, a starring role in A Warrior's Husband (1932) caused Hollywood to notice the attractive redhead. Hepburn finally (and inevitably) appeared in the movies in A Bill of Divorcement in 1932.

Hepburn's third movie, Morning Glory (1933), earned her the first of four Oscars - a feat unmatched by any actress in Hollywood history. Her other Oscar victories occurred with Guess Who's Coming to Dinner (1967) with Spencer Tracy, The Lion in Winter (1968) with Peter O'Toole and Anthony Hopkins, and On Golden Pond (1971) with Henry Fonda.

Over the course of her career, Hepburn made more than 40 motion pictures, starred in several made-for-TV movies, acted on Broadway, and starred opposite many of the biggest actors in Hollywood history including Humphrey Bogart (The African Queen in 1951), Henry Fonda (On Golden Pond in 1971), Spencer Tracy (9 films including Woman of the Year in 1942 and Adam's Rib in 1949), Anthony Hopkins (The Lion in Winter in 1968), John Wayne (Rooster Cogburn in 1975), John Barrymore (A Bill of Divorcement in 1932), Jimmy Stewart (A Philadelphia Story in 1940), and Warren Beatty (Love Affair in 1994).

On 29 June, 2003, Katharine Hepburn died of natural causes at the age of 96.

USPS Katharine Hepburn Stamp

The design for the Hepburn stamp was created by Derry Noyes of Washington, DC. The image of Hepburn on the stamp is based on a publicity still from Woman of the Year (1942). The picture was photographed by Clarence S. Bull.

The Katharine Hepburn Legends of Hollywood dedication ceremony took place at the Katharine Hepburn Cultural Arts Center in Old Saybrook, CT. Postmaster General John E. Potter was joined by Sam Waterston, who starred with Katharine Hepburn in The Glass Menagerie (1973); Anthony Harvey, director of The Lion in Winter (1968); and Chuck Still, executive director of the Katharine Hepburn Cultural Arts Center.

How to Order Katharine Hepburn First-Day Covers

For those who enjoy the collecting of first-day covers (FDC), the Stamp Fulfillment Services department of the USPS offers a 1st day cover of the Katharine Hepburn Legends of Hollywood stamp postmarked with the official first-day-of-issue cancellation. The first-day cover can be found in the quarterly USA Philatelic catalog. Collectors of United States stamps may request a free catalog by calling 800-STAMP-24 or writing to:

Information Fulfillment
Dept. #6270
U.S. Postal Service
PO Box 219014
Kansas City, MO 64121-9014

Stamps in the Legends of Hollywood Series

The USPS Legends of Hollywood series of stamps began in 1995 with the release of the Marilyn Monroe stamp and continues to be one of the longest-running and most popular stamp series in USPS history. As of 12 May, 2010, there are 16 stamps in the Legends of Hollywood series, with no end in sight. The current list of Legends of Hollywood stamp subjects can be found below. For those interested in postage stamp collecting, the Scott catalog number is found beside each stamp.