Stamp of excellence

Canada Post announced recently that it will issue a new set of stamps celebrating the 75th anniversary of Superman.

Among the stamps is one featuring art by the Man of Steel’s co-creator, and Canadian native, Joe Shuster. The art is most famous for its use as the cover of SUPERMAN #1, but originally was used in the half-page opening splash of the Superman story in ACTION COMICS #10.

Booklets also will be available, reprinting the entire cover(s), rather than just the cropped artwork used on the stamp.

The stamps, which are Permanent, meaning they can be used at any time, regardless of the going domestic rate (similar to the United States’ Forever stamps), will be available Sept. 10. However, they and the booklets are now available for pre-order.

Canada previously featured Shuster Superman art on a stamp in 1995.

The artwork is a composite of the Shuster-drawn background from the cover of SUPERMAN #3. And a tweaked Superman figure, likely originally drawn by Dennis Neville after a layout by Shuster, from the June 14, 1939, daily newspaper strip — which was the seventh story of the serial, and later colored and reprinted as the lead story in SUPERMAN #3

The 45-cent stamp was part of a five-stamp set honoring fictional heroes with Canadian roots, including Captain Canuck, Nelvana of the Northern Lights, Johnny Canuck and Fleur of Lys.

The United States also issued a Superman stamp featuring Shuster art originally used on the cover of SUPERMAN #2.

The stamp was issued as part of the 1930s set in the United States Postal Service’s “Celebrate the Century” series. The 2001 series also paid tribute to other 1930s Americana, including Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s New Deal, Disney’s “Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs,” Olympic gold medalist Jesse Owens and more.