ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Thursday, October 31, 1996 TAG: 9610310036
SECTION: NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL PAGE: A6 EDITION: METRO
DATELINE: WASHINGTON
SOURCE: ASSOCIATED PRESS
More than a dozen dinosaurs, a pair of swans and an ox will appear on U.S. postage stamps next year. The 1997 program will also feature this country's first triangular stamps, classic dolls, airplanes, composers, coaches and the African-American holiday Kwanzaa.
``The 1997 program celebrates America,'' Postmaster General Marvin Runyon said. ``These beautiful images, each of which is truly a work of art, commemorate our heroes, history and humanity.''
Scheduled for release in May are the first triangle-shaped stamps in U.S. history, a shape popular in other countries. A U.S. mail stagecoach is on the red triangle, while a blue version displays a clipper ship.
A pair of large panoramic sheets will be issued in May or June displaying the world of dinosaurs. The two sheets, totaling 15 stamps, depict a scene in Colorado 150 million years ago and one set in Montana 75 million years ago.
Dolls could also prove a big seller with a set of 15 colorful stamps depicting such popular dolls as Raggedy Ann, Baby Coos, Maggie Mix-up, Scootles and Alabama Baby. They are scheduled to go on sale in July.
The lunar new year is the first stamp off the blocks, proclaiming the Year of the Ox in early January. The popular African-American holiday Kwanzaa will be out in October, and the usual Christmas stamps will include a Madonna and child, holiday wreaths and American holly.
The popular love stamps will be back in 1997, this time using a pair of swans, their necks curled to form a heart.
A pair of botanical prints by the German artist Maria Sibylla Merian will appear, and Bugs Bunny will grace another stamp. A set will feature classic American airplanes.
Four legendary football coaches will be issued - featuring George Halas and Paul ``Bear'' Bryant, with the other two yet to be announced.
Other famous people on stamps will include Raoul Wallenberg, the Swedish diplomat who saved thousands of Jews from Nazi terror; Benjamin O. Davis Sr., the first black to reach the rank of brigadier general in the U.S. Army; and novelist and playwright Thornton Wilder.
Musical stamps will honor classical composers and conductors, opera singers, and the centennial of the first performance of John Philip Sousa's ``The Stars and Stripes Forever.''
Social issues will also make an appearance with a stamp focusing on helping children learn.
LENGTH: Medium: 55 lines ILLUSTRATION: PHOTO: The U.S. Postal Service announced Tuesday the designsby CNBfor 1997 postage stamps. Swans, an ox, and classic dolls will
appear. AP