Postal Service Honors Fashion Icon NEW YORK, Feb.

NEW YORK, Feb. 16, 2017 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The U.S. Postal Service today issued Forever stamps honoring Oscar de la Renta, one of the world's leading fashion designers, during a ceremony at Vanderbilt Hall in Grand Central Terminal. The stamps are being sold as a pane of 11 stamps. For 50 years, de la Renta created glamorous, sophisticated clothes that showcased the distinctively feminine attributes of the women who wore them. His innovative designs and close attention to detail elevated American style and brought international attention to New York as world leader in fashion.   "The Postal Service is proud to honor Oscar de la Renta for his genius and pioneering leadership in the fashion industry," said Janice Walker, vice president, Corporate Communications, U.S. Postal Service, who dedicated the stamp.   "These beautiful stamps illustrate his highly polished style and tremendous skill, which helped bridge the gap between American and French designers of trend-setting fashions for women."   Walker was joined at the stamp dedication ceremony by Secretary Hillary Clinton; Michael R. Bloomberg, founder, Bloomberg LP and Bloomberg Philanthropies and 108th Mayor of the City of New York; Alexander Bolen, chief executive officer, Oscar de la Renta LLC; Anna Wintour, artistic director of Condé Nast and editor in chief of Vogue; and Anderson Cooper, journalist and author.   "Our family and our company are profoundly honored that the U.S. Postal Service has chosen to memorialize Oscar de la Renta's life and work with this series of beautiful stamps," said Bolen.   "Oscar was proud to be an American and this would have made him tremendously happy. To commemorate his personal version of the American dream with these stamps is a great honor for which we thank the U.S. Postal Service," Bolen said.   The Oscar de la Renta stamp pane includes 11 images — an evocative black-and-white portrait of de la Renta and 10 stamps that show details from some of his most exquisite gowns. The portrait photo of de la Renta is by Inez van Lamsweerde and Vinoodh Matadin. The photo of the light pink dress is by Norman Jean Roy. Art director Derry Noyes designed the stamps.   Background Oscar de la Renta moved to Spain as a young man from his native country, the Dominican Republic, to pursue a life in the arts. After working for some of the biggest names in European fashion, he moved to New York in 1963 and captured the beauty and ease American women craved in their gowns and suits. He mingled just as confidently with the socialites of New York as he had with their counterparts in Paris and Madrid and sought to create both the day and evening wear that such powerful and influential women desired. The Oscar de la Renta stamps are being issued as Forever stamps, which are always equal in value to the current First-Class Mail 1-ounce price. The public is asked to share the news of the stamp using the hashtag #OscardelaRenta.   Customers may purchase the Oscar de la Renta Forever stamps at usps.com/stamps, at the Postal Store usps.com/shop, by calling 800-STAMP24 (800-782-6724) and at Post Office locations nationwide. A variety of stamps and collectibles also is available at ebay.com/stamps.   Ordering First-Day-of-Issue Postmarks Customers have 60 days to obtain first-day-of-issue postmarks by mail. They may purchase new stamps at Post Office locations, at the Postal Store usps.com/shop or by calling 800-782-6724. They should affix the stamps to envelopes of their choice, address the envelopes to themselves or others and place them in envelopes addressed to:   FDOI – Oscar de la Renta Stamps USPS Stamp Fulfillment Services 8300 NE Underground Drive, Suite 300 Kansas City, MO 64144-9900   After applying the first-day-of-issue postmark, the Postal Service will return the envelopes through the mail. There is no charge for postmarks up to a quantity of 50. For more than 50, customers are charged 5 cents each. All orders must be postmarked by April 16, 2017.   Ordering First-Day Covers The Postal Service also offers first-day covers for new stamps and stationery items postmarked with the official first-day-of-issue cancellation. Each item has an individual catalog number and is offered in the quarterly USA Philatelic catalog, online at usps.com/shop or by calling 800-782-6724. Customers may request a free catalog by calling 800-782-6724 or writing to:   U.S. Postal Service Catalog Request PO Box 219014 Kansas City, MO 64121-9014   Philatelic Products There are six philatelic products for this stamp issue: 562706, Press Sheet with Die-cut, $48.51 562710, Digital Color Postmark Keepsake (2 panes), $12.95. 562716, First-Day Cover (set of 11), $10.23. 562721, Digital Color Postmark (set of 11), $18.04. 562724, Framed Art, $39.95. 562730, Ceremony Program, $6.95.   Many of this year's other stamps may be viewed on Facebook at facebook.com/USPSStamps or via Twitter @USPSstamps.   The Postal Service receives no tax dollars for operating expenses and relies on the sale of postage, products and services to fund its operations.   Please Note: For broadcast quality video and audio, photo stills and other media resources, visit the USPS Newsroom at about.usps.com/news/welcome.htm.

For reporters interested in speaking with a regional Postal Service public relations professional, please go to about.usps.com/news/media-contacts/usps-local-media-contacts.pdf. Follow us on Twitter (twitter.com/usps), Instagram (instagram.com/uspostalservice), Pinterest (pinterest.com/uspsstamps), LinkedIn (linkedin.com/company/usps), subscribe to our channel on YouTube (youtube.com/usps), like us on Facebook (facebook.com/usps) and view our Postal Postsblog (uspsblog.com). For more information about the Postal Service, visit usps.com and usps.com/postalfacts.   A photo accompanying this release is available at: http://www.globenewswire.com/newsroom/prs/?pkgid=42187

National: Roy Betts 202.268.3207 usps.com/news