Monday, February 9, 2026

Godzilla - 20th Century : 2000 Japan

2000-Jun-23 Shiba Post Office
Godzilla - 1954


Japan 20th Century Series 11 depicts seven subjects, which represent the years from 1953 to 1958 :
1) Television regular broadcast started (1953).
2-3) Kurosawa Akira, film director, received international awards. Kurosawa's "Seven Samurai" (1954).
4-5) Rikidozan and the buckle of his champion belt. Rikidozan's karate chop.
6) Film "Godzilla" (1954).
7) 10,000 yen banknote was issued (1958). Portrait of prince Shotoku.
8) Novel "Taiyo-no kisetsu" by Ishihara Shintaro. It gave the name "Taiyo-zoku" to a generation of alienated youth.
9-10) Tokyo Tower was built (1958). It rises 333 meters (1,093 feet) and has two observation decks. 

Sunday, February 8, 2026

Minnesota Science Fiction Society : Minicon

Minicon is an annual gathering of science fiction and fantasy fans. The convention is held each year over Easter weekend in Bloomington, MN. Minicon is sponsored by the Minnesota Science Fiction Society, Inc. (Minn-StF). It's one of the largest fan-run conventions in the U.S. As of 2011 Minicon has been operated by a different non-profit organization that split from Minn-stf.


1995-Apr-15
1996-Apr-07 Honoring Ed Emshwiller, illustrator for many science fiction and fantasy magazines, winning 5 Hugo Awards for Best Artist
1997-Mar-28 "Furry"
1998-Apr-10

Aquaman : 2006 DC Comics

2006-Jul-20 San Diego CA

Aquaman – art by Jim Aparo – The memories of Aquaman's personal tragedies run deep after he loses his son, his wife and his monarchy. Nevertheless, the former King of the Seven Seas remains determined to protect both the Atlanteans and surface dwellers from those who endanger them.

Aquaman #5 (of 5) – Oct 1989 Art by Curt Swan and Al Vey
Aquaman defends both land and sea with great strength, speed and the ability to communicate telepathically with all marine life. His ultimate goal is to help both realms put aside their natural prejudices and unite in peaceful coexistence

Saturday, February 7, 2026

Alfred Kubin : Austria

1977 & 2002

Alfred Leopold Isidor Kubin (1877 – 1959) was an Austrian artist, printmaker, illustrator, and writer of a single novel, The Other Side. Kubin is considered an important representative of Symbolism and Expressionism and is noted for dark, spectral, symbolic fantasies. Kubin produced a small number of oil paintings in the years between 1902 and 1910, but thereafter his output consisted of pen and ink drawings, watercolors, and lithographs.

Angst - 1903


Friday, February 6, 2026

Danish Comics and Film : 2002 Denmark

2002-Jan-16

Rasmus Klump - Danish comic strip series for children created in 1951 by the Danish wife-and-husband team Carla and Vilhelm Hansen. The series tells the adventures of the bearcub Rasmus Klump and his friends: Pingo (a penguin), Pelle (a pelican), Pildskadden (a turtle), Skæg (a seal) and others. Always dressed in red dungarees with white polka dots, Rasmus Klump travels the world on board his boat Mary, which he builds with his friends in the first episode.

Valhalla is a Danish comic series, which offers a comedic view of the gods of Norse mythology. Originally commissioned for and published by Interpresse, it has been published by Carlsen Comics since 1978. In 1986, Valhalla was adapted into an animated feature film the studio A Film. On October 10, 2019, a more serious and dark live action adaptation was released

Jungledyret Hugo (Hugo the Jungle Animal) Danish media franchise created by Flemming Quist Møller based on a lullaby he wrote for his son, and was later turned into a full-length animated feature. The franchise currently consists of two traditionally animated features, an animated television series, books, music album, and a third film animated in CGI.

Cirkeline (Circleen) Danish comic book character, created by Hanne Hastrup in 1957. The character is a little elf with spiky black hair, who wears a red dress with black dots and prefers walking barefoot. Between 1968 and 1971, the comic was adapted for a series of animated short films for the Danish public TV station Danmarks Radio. The first Cirkeline book was published in 1969, and in 1998, she took the leap to the big cinema screen in the first of 3 feature films.

Wednesday, February 4, 2026

Bédéciné International Festival of Comics : 1989 Illzach France

Bédéciné International Festival of Comics (BD - Bandes dessinées) Illzach Cultural Centre, is the must-attend event for comic book fans. More than meetings with many authors, numerous activities are also organized: exhibitions, drawing workshops, animations, stories, shows.

Illzach is a commune in the Haut-Rhin department in Alsace in north-eastern France.

Tuesday, February 3, 2026

Comic Strip Museum Festival : 2009 Belgium

2009-Oct-05 souvenir sheet featuring several comic characters including Blake & Mortimer, Cubitus, Suske & Wiske, Tintin's rocket


1984 the Belgian Comic Strip Museum was founded as a non-profit, to promote comic strips and maintain the Art Nouveau archtectural masterpiece (Waucquez Warehouse-1906) that housed the project. Located in Brussels, the Museum opened its doors to the public  1989-Oct-06. Every year more than 200,000 visitors pass through its doors to explore permanent and temporary exhibits of comic art. The Center collects and preserves anything that deals with European comics

 

Cachet featuring Tintin's rocket (invented by Cuthbert Calculus in Herge's 1953 Tintin Moon series

Monday, February 2, 2026

History of Italian Comics : 1997 San Marino

1997-Sep-18 History of Italian Comics

Quadratino has been published by the newspaper Il Corriere dei Piccoli for boys from 1910 to 1911. The first version of the character has appeared in 1909, the same newspaper, in the story entitled The tragic history of the triangle and the square. The series told the surreal stories of the mischievous Quadratino, Grandma Mathematics, Trigonometry and the guardian; in every episode of the eponymous protagonist of the series is punished for his bad behavior with the transformation of his head in a rectangle, a triangle or in another geometric figure; at the end of the story, after understanding of his sins, the head returns to its normal shape.

Mr. Bonaventura is a cartoon character created in 1917 by the imagination of Sto (Sergio Tofano) and appeared on the pages of the Corriere dei Piccoli for several decades until 1953. Bonaventura, with a characteristic red tail coat and bowler hat, baggy white pants and the faithful dog dachshund at his side, was the eccentric hero of adventures who saw him almost always penniless millionaire beginning and the end.

Kit Carson is a character in the comic western Tex, published by Sergio Bonelli Editore, designed by Gian Luigi Bonelli and realized graphically Galep. Its name is inspired by a famous historical figure of the West, Kit Carson (1809-1868).

Cocco Bill is a fictional character created by Benito Jacovitti and protagonist of numerous comics stories made in 1957; has had television transpositions.

Tex Willer is the main fictional character of the Italian comics series Tex, created by writer Gian Luigi Bonelli and illustrator Aurelio Galleppini, and first published in Italy on 30 September 1948.

Diabolik is a fictional character created in 1962 by Angela and Luciana Giussani. His adventures are published by the publishing house in Milan Astorina.

Valentina is an Italian comic strip series, created in 1965 by the Italian artist Guido Crepax and concluded in 1996.

Corto Maltese is a cartoon character created by Hugo Pratt in 1967 and protagonist of the comic book series Corto Maltese

Sturmtruppen is a comic strip created by Franco Bonvicini, better known as Bonvi is a satirical depiction of World War II seen through the eyes of the German shock troops

Alan Ford is a comic book about the adventures of a cranky group of secret agents, the TNT Group. created by the mind of Max Bunker (Luciano Secchi) and Magnus pencil (Roberto Raviola).

Lupo Alberto ("Alberto the Wolf") is an Italian comic book series created by Guido Silvestri (Silver) in 1974.

Pimpa is an Italian comic book series drawn by Altan, starring a dog drawn big red polka dots, with his tongue hanging out often.

Bobo is a satirical comic strip Sergio Staino, created 1979, the protagonist of the strips is precisely Bobo, a kind of alter ego of Staino same, even though physically resembles the philosopher Umberto Eco.

Massimo Zanardi is a cartoon character created by Andrea Pazienza. It appears for the first time in the Yellow School, the 1981 comic book published on the magazine Frigidaire.

Martin Mystère is the protagonist of an Italian comic book created by writer Alfredo Castelli and artist Giancarlo Alessandrini, it was first published in Italy in 1982.

Dylan Dog is a fictional character, the protagonist of the register in horror comic Dylan Dog, published by Sergio Bonelli Editore and built by Tiziano Sclavi (also based on the character of John Silence of the English writer Algernon Blackwood)

Saturday, January 31, 2026

Flash Gordon - Alex Raymond : 1995 Classic Comics

1995-Oct-01 Boca Raton FL

Flash Gordon – Alex Raymond (1909-1956) – Cartoonist Alex Raymond steered the Sunday funnies toward Romanticism with exotic locales, memorable villains, and breathless action in this science-fiction classic. The strip began in 1934. © 1995 King Features Syndicate Inc. - printed on back of stamp

USPS Stamper Card

Friday, January 30, 2026

Peanuts - Linus - Bob Balaban



Another TTM (through the mail) autograph. Bob Balaban is a well known character actor who has appeared in many films including: A Mighty Wind, Close encounters of the Third Kind, Grand Budapest Hotel, Midnight Cowboy. 
One of Balaban earliest roles was on Broadway in "You're A Good Man Charlie Brown" portraying Linus. 
I enjoyed doing the sketch and appreciated Mr Balaban fulfilling my request for an autograph.

Wednesday, January 28, 2026

Arne Anka : 2008 Sweden

2008 Sweden
There was a cold war! Now it's global warming! Where did Lagom go?
Lagom is a Swedish concept of 'just the right amount' or 'in moderation'

Arne Anka is a Swedish comic strip drawn by Charlie Christensen from 1983-1995, 2006-forward. The title character is inspired by Disney's Donlad Duck (Kalle Anka). Arne often gets drunk at Zeke's bar, where he starts critically thinking about life, with a sharp wit.

Mineral water? It's environmentally unfriendly!

The Arne Anka stamp was part of an 8 stamp set celebrating Swedish cartoons/comics

Tuesday, January 27, 2026

Forlì Comics & Games : 2022 Italy



2022-Mar-12 Forlì Comic & Games convention postcard with commemorative pictorial postmark. The stamp features the artwork of Zerocalcare and was issued 2022 to celebrate Philately Day.  Forlì Comics and Games, founded in 2011, is the first and most original winter comics convention in Romagna. Forlì features a large market exhibition, fantastic guests, events, comics, games, video games, the legendary cosplay competition, meet & greets, K-pop, and guaranteed fun for four generations!

 

Monday, January 26, 2026

Cubitus - Youth Philately : 1994 Belgium

1994-Oct-09 Beglium

Cubitus is a Franco-Belgian comics series, created by the Belgian cartoonist Dupa. The series tells the story of Cubitus, a good-natured large, white dog endowed with speech. He lives in a house in the suburbs with his master, Sémaphore, a retired sailor, next door to Sénéchal, the black and white cat who is Cubitus' nemesis.