U.S. Postal Service Katharine Hepburn Commemorative Stamp Adopted By Kent State University Museum

May 21, 2010 - PRLog -- The Kent State University Museum (Kent, Ohio) will be adopting the United States Postal Service’s newly-issued commemorative stamp on Katharine Hepburn as the official stamp for its highly anticipated exhibition on the legendary star’s personal collection of stage and film costumes. The KSU Museum exhibition, “Katharine Hepburn: Dressed for Stage and Screen,” opens October 2, 2010.

Recognized as one of cinema’s greatest actresses and a universally acknowledged film legend, Katharine Hepburn (1907-2003) has influenced generations of women.  Costumes in the collection given to the museum by her estate were designed by some of the greatest 20th century designers for fashion, stage and film.

The announcement was made at a May 12 luncheon on Katharine Hepburn’s influence on fashion sponsored by Dillard’s department store. A framed image of the Hepburn commemorative stamp was presented to the museum’s director Jean Druesedow by Cleveland Postmaster W. Spencer Hsu.  The stamp portrait is a publicity photograph from Woman of the Year (MGM, 1942), the film comedy that first teamed Hollywood’s famed screen partnership, Spencer Tracy and Katharine Hepburn.  In all, they made nine films together.

After Postmaster Hsu noted Miss Hepburn’s personality has had a profound influence on American culture, he revealed that as a boy in Taiwan, he had been so influenced by Tracy that he adopted “Spencer” as his English name.  
 
“Well, we are thrilled to ‘adopt’ this stamp, too” exclaimed Druesedow, adding the stamp will be used for correspondence relating to the museum exhibition.  “It is indisputable that Katharine Hepburn’s iconic impact still influences fashion’s designs and trends, whether classic American wear or today’s Tomboy look.”

As testament to Miss Hepburn’s influence, Dillard’s fashion show presented Hepburn-inspired looks ranging from Hollywood Glamour to Hepburn’s signature trousers and tunics.  Represented was a wide range of American couturiers and lines – a veritable Who’s Who of American designers, many of whom, like Michael Kors, Ralph Lauren and Calvin Klein have publically acknowledged their debt to the screen legend and fashion icon.

For more details about the Kent State University Museum and updates about the Katharine Hepburn exhibition and supporting programming go to www.kent.edu/museum or visit the museum’s Facebook page.  

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About the Kent State University Museum

Closely linked to the Shannon Rodgers and Jerry Silverman School of Fashion Design and Merchandising at Kent State University, the Museum contains important collections of fashion and decorative arts; provides students with first-hand experience with historic and contemporary fashions, as well as costumes representing many of the world's cultures; and serves both the University and the community through exhibitions and public programs, and, by appointment, research in the collections.  2010-11 marks the Kent State University’s Museum’s 25th anniversary, and pre-opening programming for the Hepburn exhibit culminates in the museum 25th anniversary gala “25 Years of Dazzle” at the museum with special guest Robert Osborne, host of Turner Classic Movies.  Honorary chairs for the gala are Reuben and Isabel Toledo.  After the exhibition opens, a full schedule of events will cover Miss Hepburn’s influence on fashion, her life and artistry, stage and screen costume design, and the impact of the entertainment industry on fashion.  

About the U.S. Postal Service commemorative stamp on Katharine Hepburn.

This stamp was released May 12 and is the 16th issuance in the Legends of Hollywood series.   One of America’s most fascinating and enduring film stars, Hepburn made more than 40 motion pictures, including the comedy classic Bringing up Baby (1938)—with Hepburn as a leopard-owning heiress and Cary Grant as a stuffy paleontologist—and The African Queen (1951), in which she played a prim missionary spinster to Humphrey Bogart’s scruffy riverboat captain.
Hepburn’s long, illustrious career—and perhaps even more, her independent personality—inspired three generations of Americans. She was, in particular, a role model for women who chose to live life on their own terms. In the words of her niece Katharine Houghton, she “provided hope and inspiration and courage for a whole new generation of women.” The stamp portrait is publicity still from the film Woman of the Year (MGM, 1942). The photographer was Clarence S. Bull. The selvage image shows Hepburn as she appeared in the play West Side Waltz.


NOTE TO MEDIA: IMAGES OF MISS HEPBURN AND EXHIBIT ITEMS FROM THE COLLECTION ARE AVAILABLE UPON REQUEST.

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