FREE: Commemorative Stamp "Dorothy of Wizard of OZ"

The listing, Commemorative Stamp "Dorothy of Wizard of OZ" has ended.

America's Classic films

Title is Musicals


First Day of Issue: March 23, 1990
First Day City: Hollywood, California,
site of major film studios
Stamp Designer: Tlwmas Blackshear
Novato, California


"Silver Screen" musicals, which are recalled on this U.S. stamp, were among the most successful motion pictures of the 1930s. For a nation suffering through the misery of the Great Depression, they provided escape to a world of fantasy and lavish spectacle.

Over the years, the musical has remained primarily an American art form. It became popular with the very first sound movie, produced in 1927, which featured several musical numbers by Al Jolson. In the decade that followed, it was further refined by creative new directing techniques, improvements in sound recording methods, increased use of color film, and the hiring of well-known composers to write movie scores.

Hollywood drew inspiration from a variety of sources to meet the public demand for musicals. Some were film versions of popular Broadway shows. Others were based on books or short stories; and a few were original screenplays. The most successful of them combined elaborate production numbers with exciting special effects and memorable hit songs.

Some of Hollywood's greatest talents originally made their mark in musicals. During the 1930s, directors Busby Berkeley and Mervin Lekoy staged many classic musicals. Also, legendary movie stars such as Judy Garland, Ray Bolger, ***** Powell, Ruby Keeler, James Cagney, and Fred Astaire eamed lasting fame as song and dance performers.