# 5543a - 2021 First-Class Forever Stamp - Imperforate Love

US #5543a
2021 Love (Imperforate) – Love Series

• Part of the Love stamp series

Stamp Category:  Commemorative
Series:  Love
Value:  55¢ First Class Mail Rate (Forever)
First Day of Issue:  January 14, 2021
First Day City:  Loveland, Colorado
Quantity Issued:  200,000,000 (Includes die-cut AND imperforate stamps.  The exact quantity of imperforate stamps is unknown, but it is only a tiny fraction of the total print quantity, making the imperforates much scarcer than traditional die-cut stamps.)
Printed by:  Ashton Potter (USA) Ltd.
Printing Method:  Offset, Microprint
Format:  Panes of 20
Tagging:  Nonphosphored Type III, Block Tag

Why the stamp was issued:  To continue the popular Love Series of stamps.

About the stamp design:  Pictures a colorful digital illustration of the word “LOVE” with each letter having two different colors. Also includes three large, two-toned hearts as well as a small single-color heart, a rectangle, and an arch.

First Day City:  The First Day of Issue Ceremony was held virtually due to the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic. The First Day of Issue Cancellation was from Loveland, Colorado, home to the Valentine Re-mailing Program. This program allows people around the world to send their valentines to Loveland to be hand-stamped with a cachet, verse, and specially designed cancel. A new verse is chosen each year through a contest held by the town’s chamber of commerce. The program began in January 1947 and re-mails over 160,000 cards each year. Re-mailed cards from Loveland have become popular with collectors.

About the Love Series:  Based on the popularity of Christmas stamps, the USPS issued its first Love stamp in 1973. It wasn’t intended to be the start of a series, and, in fact, it wasn’t until 1982 that another Love stamp was issued. Love-themed stamps were issued sporadically over the next few years. The USPS stated that they weren’t intended just for Valentine’s Day mail, but also for weddings, birthdays, anniversaries, and other special occasions.

In 1987, the USPS officially declared it a series, and new Love stamps have been issued nearly ever year since. Love stamps are on sale longer than most commemorative stamps and are usually printed in greater quantities. They have sometimes been known to go back to press for additional printings if demand is sufficient.

History the stamp represents:  From Antony and Cleopatra to Queen Victoria and Prince Albert, history is full of love stories. One of the most well known in the modern era is the story of music legends Johnny Cash and June Carter.

Cash and Carter first met backstage at the Grand Ole Opry in July 1956. Both were accomplished singers in their own right, and Carter toured with Cash as a back-up singer for years. No one knows for sure when their romantic relationship began, but it was not until 1967 that they could officially be together. (Carter divorced her second husband in 1966, and Cash and his first wife divorced in 1967.)

When asked about the start of her relationship with Cash, Carter later said, “It was not a convenient time for me to fall in love with him, and it wasn’t a convenient time for him to fall in love with me… I thought ‘I can’t fall in love with this man,’ but it’s just like a ring of fire.” Cash and Carter were married in February 1968 and had one son together.

Johnny Cash and June Carter may not have been each others’ first loves, but what they had was true love. Cash often credited Carter with helping him overcome his drug and alcohol addictions. The two were together for over 30 years and passed away just four months apart. It truly was a love story for the ages.