Star Trek: Post Office Celebrates Show’s 50th with Stamps

Star Trek was cancelled by NBC, after only three seasons, but lives forever in the hearts and minds of fans. And guess what — the Post Office knows it. To celebrate the 50th anniversary of this science-fiction classic TV show, the United States Postal Service is releasing four Star Trek “Forever” stamps.

While we would still like to see star William Shatner’s proposed musical or variety celebration, a “Forever” stamp is an appropriate way to honor this series. As short as it was, the original Star Trek begat an incredible franchise of sequels and feature films. What’s more, it continues to live long and prosper, in syndication.

From the USPS press release on the 2016 “Forever” stamps:

Star Trek
Celebrating the 50th anniversary of the television premiere, the new Star Trek Forever stamps showcase four digital illustrations inspired by classic elements of the television program:

• the Starship Enterprise inside the outline of a Starfleet insignia against a gold background;
• the silhouette of a crewman in a transporter against a red background;
• the silhouette of the Enterprise from above against a green background; and,
• the Enterprise inside the outline of the Vulcan salute (Spock’s iconic hand gesture) against a blue background

The words “SPACE… THE FINAL FRONTIER,” from Captain Kirk’s famous voice-over appear beneath the stamps against a background of stars. The stamps were designed by Heads of State under the art direction of Antonio Alcalá.

Kids, if you’ve been thinking of starting a stamp collection, this new Star Trek collection is galaxies away from the worst investment a fledgling philatelist could make. The last time a Star Trek stamp was released, was in 1999, as a part of a collection dedicated to the 1960s.

Here’s how the USPS explains “Forever” stamps:

As the name suggests, Forever Stamps can be used to mail a one-ounce letter regardless of when the stamps are purchased or used and no matter how prices may change in the future.

Forever Stamps are always sold at the same price as a regular First-Class Mail stamp.

What do you think? Will you buy these Star Trek 50th anniversary stamps? Will you use them, or save them?