US 5149-5152 Wonder Woman forever header gutter block (20 stamps) MNH 2016

Item Specifics

Country

United States

Catalog Number

5149-5152

Stamp Type

General Issue

Condition

Mint (NH)

Stamp Format

Block

Item Description

Detailed Description
It is a stock image only. If you want to see the picture of the actual stamp, please check with me before you bid or place the order.

This item includes one block of 20 stamps as shown in the picture.

Seventy-five
years ago, while most comic book damsels in distress helplessly awaited rescue
by their male protectors, Wonder Woman confidently brushed aside this
established gender barrier. In groundbreaking tales, Wonder Woman continues to
defuse the havoc of a male-dominated world—always with justice, equality, and
peace. The U.S. Postal Service® celebrates her diamond anniversary by
chronicling her evolution in comics, from her World War II origins to today.

In the wake of
Superman’s phenomenal launch in 1938, hordes of copycat Super Heroes appeared
in the pages of comic books. Most were short-lived, some endured, and virtually
all were male characters. Then, in 1941, came Wonder Woman. With her peaceful
ways and fearlessness, Wonder Woman stood out from the pack.

Creator William
Moulton Marston was a psychologist who contributed toward the development of
the polygraph—“lie detector”—and whose theories about women’s potential were
atypical of his era. The middle-aged Ivy Leaguer was unlike most creators of
Super Heroes in the genre’s early days: typically scrappy young sons of
immigrants, seeking opportunity during the Depression. In comic books Marston
recognized a powerful medium for his message. For this mission he assumed a
Secret Identity: Charles Moulton.

Marston’s
Wonder Woman was unique in its throwback visual style and its fast-forward
intentions for society. He expressed a view that women’s power lies in their
superior capacity to love and believed that women should rule the world—and
would do a better job of it than men.

Although Wonder
Woman was preceded by a handful of female characters who could be deemed Super
Heroes, she quickly eclipsed them all. Her debut in issue #8 of All Star Comics
hit newsstands on October 21, 1941, preceding America’s entrance into World War
II by just seven weeks. She next headlined in Sensation Comics and within a few
months her popularity led to a stand-alone Wonder Woman comic book. The
publisher of these titles, All-American Publications, would later merge with
Detective Comics and others to form DC Comics.

In Wonder
Woman’s origin story, Diana, a princess, rescued an American military pilot and
intelligence officer from his wrecked plane near her home on an uncharted
island, a utopia of immortal women based on the mythological Amazons. Diana’s
mother, the queen, decreed that an ambassador must deliver the injured pilot,
Steve Trevor, back to America both to rid the island of male presence and to
serve the causes of peace and equality as war enveloped the world.

Disguised,
Diana entered a competition devised to determine the best candidate and emerged
victorious unbeknownst to her mother. Reluctantly, the queen allowed Diana to
go, bestowing upon her a star-spangled costume, an invisible airplane, and a
magic golden lasso that could compel those ensnared to tell the truth and
submit to the loving will of Diana’s new alter ego: Wonder Woman. In the guise
of Diana Prince, she assisted and adored Steve Trevor. As Wonder Woman, she
rescued him from one perilous situation after another while doing her part to
save the world.

At last
victorious in World War II, Americans were eager to return to domestic matters.
Women left their wartime jobs to accommodate returning soldiers in the
workforce, settling into family life and the baby boom. Super Heroes, deprived
of Axis foes, lost their relevance and disappeared in droves. Although Wonder
Woman remained popular enough to survive the downsized world of Super Heroes,
Marston, the driving creative force behind her, was stricken with polio, then
cancer, and died in 1947.

At the same
time, the comic book industry was coming under powerful pressure to remove
realistic criminality and took upon reforming itself of anything perceived as subversive.
In the hands of writers and editors who didn’t share Marston’s societal agenda
for Wonder Woman, and in an era of strict gender roles, the amazing Amazon was
soon being defined much more by romance than by bold action. Her red
high-heeled boots were suddenly replaced with what appeared to be ballet
slippers.

By the late
1960s, society was undergoing revolutionary changes. Wonder Woman needed an
infusion of relevance. In one attempt, she sacrificed her superpowers, trained
in the martial arts, opened a mod boutique, and donned hip clothing instead of
the star-spangled costume. Her look may have been reflective of the popular
culture at the time but the retooling was several beats behind the burgeoning
women’s liberation movement. Feminists protested that a weakened Wonder Woman
left girls deprived of a female peer among the Super Heroes.

A 1972
collection of World War II–era Wonder Woman comics resonated with readers. DC
Comics reintroduced a red-booted Wonder Woman and Diana reclaimed her powers.
In the following years she appeared in a long-running animated series with an
ensemble of Super Heroes, then in a live-action primetime hit show.

Wonder Woman’s
Modern Age writers and artists tied the character more closely to her roots in
Greek mythology in the late 1980s. Stories in the first decade of the 2000s
focused on Wonder Woman's role as the Amazons’ ambassador to the United
Nations. Intriguing storytelling depth and stunning stylization distinguished
the “New 52” series in 2011, introducing a deep secret: Diana is the daughter
of Zeus.

Wonder Woman
found her widest Modern Age audience in the Justice League animated series.
This interpretation of Wonder Woman as an outsider, a recent arrival from her
home island and new to the modern world and the Super Hero role, offers a novel
angle to a beloved character. Writing, animation, and voice characterization
that capture Wonder Woman’s courage and compassion have been key to the series’
popularity.

Wonder Woman’s
first big-screen portrayal, in the Warner Bros. 2016 release Batman v Superman:
Dawn of Justice, has fans eagerly anticipating Wonder Woman, her stand-alone
feature film, coming in 2017.

Abbreviations
>
DCP - Digital Color Postmark
FDC - First Day CoverHORZ - horizontal
IMPERF - imperforated
MNH - Mint Never Hinged
NDC - No Die Cut
NMS - Non Machineable Surcharge
PNC - Plate Number Coil
VERT - vertical
WAG - water activated gum

MULTIPLE VARIATIONs

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I am trying to offer the lowest shipping fee if possible. The item will be sent out via USPS standard mail (or first class mail) with no tracking number. I will take a picture of the package as proof of delivery. The shipping fee is listed as below -

* First item (USA) - BETWEEN USD $1.17 AND USD $2.29, DEPENDS ON THE SIZE
* First Item (International) - BETWEEN USD $1.83 AND USD $5.84, DEPENDS ON THE DESTINATION
* Each eligible additional item (USA / International) - USD $0.10 (see combined shipping discount), independent of size and destination

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>
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>
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Seller Information

Seller

msfong (28701)

Registered Since

04/25/2013

Feedback

99.9%

Store

Fongan

• Sales

Item Location

California, United States

Ships To

Worldwide

Returns Accepted

Yes