32¢ NEWS OF VICTORY WW II ISSUE - September 2, 1995 Sc. 2981 - issued 9/2/1995 Sc. 2981i - issued 9/2/1995 The rail connection here is streetcar tracks on the lower left side of the stamp, you'll have to look at the high-res version to see them - click on the image at right above. This was the fifth and last of a set of souvenir sheets, one per year, commemorating World War II. All had the same format, with ten stamps bracketing a map showing the course of the War during the year commemorated. They were moderately popular, but none of the sheets sparked any controversy until this one. The original design included a stamp showing an A-bomb's mushroom cloud, and the words "Atomic bombs hasten War's end, August, 1945." The Japanese government learned of the stamp's design, and had their embassy in Washington issue a formal protest. Despite strong support for the initial design, our government caved, and the design in the middle of the bottom row was substituted. Angry veterans complained, to no avail, so some issued their own stamps - read more about that here.

32¢ TOONERVILLE TROLLEY COMIC STRIP CLASSICS - October 1, 1995 Sc. 3000 - issued 10/1/1995 Full pane of 20 Sc. 3000g - issued 10/1/1995 Single of Toonerville Trolley stamp Sc. UX227 - issued 10/1/1995 Toonerville Trolley postal card from set of 20 Sc. 3000 - issued 10/1/1995 Press sheet of 6 panes This was a fun set of stamps, commemorating all the now-extinct comics I read in the Sunday funnies when I was a kid. I don't collect streetcars or trolleys, though, so I didn't pursue FDC's and the like for this one. Still, it's in the ATA Handbook, so here it is. This is the first of the entries in this catalog for which a press sheet was sold. Those started in 1994 with the Legends of the West pane, and have been a regular feature of the USPS stamp program ever since. Their formats are varied, ranging from two panes to a sheet to as many as 10. HERE is a pdf of the Brookman Stamps price list for press sheets through 2015, just to show you how varied they are. Displaying them is a challenge, to say the least. But, if you are a hard-core collector who must have an example of every format of a stamp, then you need the press sheets. Some are even imperf, so that's an added complexity. I have bought a few of the ones that are perfed/diecut, because one can still use the stamps, but when they are imperf!?! The designs were also issued in a set of twenty postal cards.

32¢ TENNESSEE WILLIAMS October 13, 1995 Sc. 3002 - issued 10/13/1995 Sc. 3002 - issued 10/13/1995 To me this is rather a dark and somber stamp, but apparently that was the designer's intention, he wanted to express Williams' tormented, brooding personality, and the dark nature of his stories. The train connection is of course the streetcar in the background, referring to Williams' play, A Streetcar Named Desire. There was no press sheet.

32¢ JOHN HENRY FOLK HEROES ISSUE - July 11, 1996 Sc. 3085 - issued 7/11/96 Sc. 3083-86 - issued 7/11/96 There was no press sheet. I have not pursued FDC's for this issue, because I have seen few that appealed to me as a trains enthusiast. The Collins cover below is an exception. J2603 (Sc. 3085) 7/11/96

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