What:
The U.S. Postal Service is celebrating one of America’s favorite pastimes with its Carnival Nights stamps. The first-day-of-issue ceremony is free and open to the public. News of these Forever stamps is being shared with the hashtag #CarnivalNightsStamps.
Who:
June Martindale, U.S. Postal Service, Alabama-Mississippi District manager
Lynda Franc, North American Midway Entertainment, corporate marketing director
Matt McDonnell, Mississippi Coast Coliseum and Convention Center, executive director
Greg Chiecko, Outdoor Amusement Business Association, president and CEO
When:
Thursday, June 6, 2024, at 6 p.m. Central.
Where:
South Mississippi Summer FairMississippi Coast Coliseum and Convention Center
2350 Beach Blvd.
Biloxi, MS 39531
RSVP:
Attendees are encouraged to register at usps.com/carnivalnights
Background:
Celebrate the thrill and nostalgia of carnival nights with this colorful pane of 20 stamps featuring 10 new images that convey the energy and color of a summer carnival after the sun goes down.
A variety of rides is shown in vibrant neon hues against a black night sky. Fireworks burst from behind a panorama of lights, and a row of glittering amusement booths invite passersby to try their luck.
The photographs depict:
Row one (left to right)
1. Wave Swinger Ride; photograph by Annette Shaff
2. Midway Gondola Wheel and a Ring of Fire; photograph by Annette Shaff
3. Gondola Wheel; photograph by Joe Sohm
4. Round-Up Ride; photograph by Bob Davidson
Row two (left to right)
5. Gondola Wheels; photograph by Aleff Gripp
6. Gondola Wheel; photograph by Pamela Hennessey
7. Carousel; photograph by Sarah Beard Buckley
8. Gondola Wheel and Wave Swinger; photograph by Anthony Totah
Row three (left to right)
9. Gondola Wheel; photograph by Phil Roeder
10. Gondola Wheel, Wave Swinger and Midway Food and Game Booths; photograph by Timothy Hughes
The next 10 stamps repeat in the same order as the first 10.
Greg Breeding, an art director for USPS, designed the stamps using existing photographs.
The Carnival Nights stamps will travel this summer
The Postal Service will brand a North American Midway Entertainment Ferris wheel with a Carnival Nights stamps banner at the fair. The branded wheel and banner will travel to four fairs throughout the summer:
- Marion County Fair, Indianapolis, June 28 to July 7
- Northern Wisconsin State Fair, Chippewa Falls, WI, July 10 to July 14
- Indiana State Fair, Indianapolis, Aug. 2 to Aug. 18
- Du Quoin State Fair, Du Quoin, IL, Aug. 23 to Sept. 2