August playwright Forever Heritage Stamp
By Vinette K. Pryce
Playwright August Wilson is
now a national treasure.
Chances are on any given
day his image could decorate
the right hand corner of envelopes
delivered by the United
States Postal Service to your
mailbox.
Honored in the Black Heritage
Series of Forever Stamps
the dramatist is being acknowledged
by the USPS to commemorate
Black History Month.
The stamp features an oil
painting based on a 2005 photograph.
In the background is
a picket fence that represents
his Pulitzer Prize-winning play
“Fences.”
Now available in panes of 20
stamps, they are priced at first
class rate regardless of future
price increases imposed by the
USPS.
The 44th edition of the series
features the Pennsylvaniaborn,
trailblazing playwright
who is acclaimed for helping
to bring non-musical African
American drama to the forefront
of American theater.
“The Postal Service is honored
to issue the August Wilson
Forever stamp,” Joshua Colin,
Vice President, Delivery Operations,
Caribbean L 20 ife, MARCH 5-11, 2021
U.S. Postal Service said
at the dedication ceremony.
“Wilson is hailed as a trailblazer
who brought fresh
perspectives and previously
unheard voices to the stage.”
“August Wilson was a literary
master,” actress Phylicia
Rashad added, “he understood
the inherent power of
language.”
During his lifetime, the storyteller
managed to deliver 10
productions to the Broadway
stage. Some returned as revivals
.B
est known for a series of
10 plays collectively known as
the Pittsburgh Cycle, Wilson
chronicled the experiences and
heritage of the African-American
community in the 20th
century.
Among Broadway’s best
are: “Jitney (1982), “Fences
(1984), “Ma Rainey’s Black
Bottom (984), “Joe Turner’s
Come and Gone (1986), “The
Piano Lesson (1987), and “King
Hedley II (1999).
His treasury also includes
“Two Trains Running,” “Gem
of the Ocean,” “Radio Golf” and
“Seven Guitars.”
In addition, he penned
“Recycle (1973) “Black Bart
and the Sacred Hills” (1977)
“Fullerton Street” (1980) “The
Homecoming” (1989) “The
Coldest Day of the Year” (1989)
and “How I Learned What I
Learned” (2002-2003).
Wilson is the most produced
Black playwright in America.
Wilson collected innumerable
accolades, including seven
New York Drama Critics’ Circle
Awards; a Tony Award for 1987’s
“Fences” and two Pulitzer Prizes
for “Fences” and 1990’s “The
Piano Lesson.”
Last Sunday when the Golden
Globe Awards were presented
to the elites in film and
television, the late actor Chadwick
Boseman posthumously
won the best actor honor for
his final role in the adaptation
of the stage play “Ma Rainey’s
Black Bottom”
The film was released last
year on Netflix.
The coveted prize seemed
a fitting end to Black History
Month and an honor the
widow of the “The Black Panther”
exalted in expressing the
pride her spouse would have
eloquently voiced.
August Wilson Forever stamp. Screen grab from https://
store.usps.com
Virtual Open House
Start Here. Go Anywhere.
SATURDAY, MARCH 20, 2021
TEXT OR CALL: (347) 305-4497
www.bmcc.cuny.edu/cng
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