20c Physical Fitness stamp

A 20-cent commemorative stamp recognizing the increasing enthusiasm of Americans for attaining and maintaining good physical health was issued May 14, 1983, in Houston, Texas. The First Day of Issue ceremony took place in the Houston Convention Center following the National Fitness Classic sponsored by the President's Council on Physical Fitness and Sports. President Reagan had declared the month of May "National Physical Fitness Month."

The stamp draws attention to all forms of exercise, sport, and physical fitness activities. Since runners are a recognizable symbol of the modern fitness movement, the designer, Donald Moss of Ridgefield, Connecticut, chose to depict one female and two male joggers dressed in appropriate running attire. Behind the runners appears a white wavy line representing an electrocardiograph tracing. It graphically depicts the changes in electric potential of the currents that traverse the heart and initiate its contractions. Frank J. Waslick modeled the stamp.

The stamp was printed in the photogravure process and issued in panes of fifty.

Reference: Postal Bulletin (April 21, 1983)

Scott Catalogue USA: 2043
mint

Copyright United States Postal Service. All rights reserved.

Museum ID: 2000.2016.14