# U661 - 2007 $16.25 Marine One Express Mail Envelope
A stamped envelope or postal stationery envelope is printed or embossed indicium indicating the prepayment of postage. It is a form of postal stationery, and a neat addition to any stamp collection.
Please note: This envelope was issued with three different designs; Yoda, Obi-Wan, and Darth Vader, and sold in packs of three. The envelope design you receive may vary from the image above.
First Star Wars Movie
In 1971, writer and director George Lucas sought to produce a film adaptation of the comic serial Flash Gordon, but he couldnât get the rights. Lucas then decided he would invent his own. To find inspiration, he researched what had originally inspired Alex Raymond to write Flash Gordon. This led him to the works of Edgar Rice Burroughs (John Carter of Mars) and Edwin Arnold (Gulliver on Mars).
In addition to these sources, Lucas found contemporary inspiration, stating âIt was really about the Vietnam War, and that was the period where Nixon was trying to run for a [second] term, which got me to thinking historically about how do democracies get turned into dictatorships?â Lucas began writing in 1973 and pitched the idea to several studios, but they didnât think science fiction would sell. He eventually reached a deal with 20th Century Fox and would write four different screenplays before filming began in March of 1976. He also continued to tweak the story as filming progressed.
To create something as impressive as the movie, the Postal Service called on veteran Star Wars poster artist, Drew Struzan â Stephen Spielbergâs proclaimed âfavorite movie artist!â. As one of the original movie-poster artists for the first Star Wars film, Struzan earned fame and recognition for the work on that film.  He created a movie-poster-like sheet featuring 15 characters and space vehicles for the first-ever Star Wars stamps.
Click here for more Star Wars stamps.
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A stamped envelope or postal stationery envelope is printed or embossed indicium indicating the prepayment of postage. It is a form of postal stationery, and a neat addition to any stamp collection.
Please note: This envelope was issued with three different designs; Yoda, Obi-Wan, and Darth Vader, and sold in packs of three. The envelope design you receive may vary from the image above.
First Star Wars Movie
In 1971, writer and director George Lucas sought to produce a film adaptation of the comic serial Flash Gordon, but he couldnât get the rights. Lucas then decided he would invent his own. To find inspiration, he researched what had originally inspired Alex Raymond to write Flash Gordon. This led him to the works of Edgar Rice Burroughs (John Carter of Mars) and Edwin Arnold (Gulliver on Mars).
In addition to these sources, Lucas found contemporary inspiration, stating âIt was really about the Vietnam War, and that was the period where Nixon was trying to run for a [second] term, which got me to thinking historically about how do democracies get turned into dictatorships?â Lucas began writing in 1973 and pitched the idea to several studios, but they didnât think science fiction would sell. He eventually reached a deal with 20th Century Fox and would write four different screenplays before filming began in March of 1976. He also continued to tweak the story as filming progressed.
To create something as impressive as the movie, the Postal Service called on veteran Star Wars poster artist, Drew Struzan â Stephen Spielbergâs proclaimed âfavorite movie artist!â. As one of the original movie-poster artists for the first Star Wars film, Struzan earned fame and recognition for the work on that film.  He created a movie-poster-like sheet featuring 15 characters and space vehicles for the first-ever Star Wars stamps.
Click here for more Star Wars stamps.
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