On 10 September, 2009, the U.S. Postal Service added another collectible postage stamp to its Legends of Hollywood commemorative stamps series with their dedication of the first class 44-cent Gary Cooper stamp. Cooper joined 14 other Hollywood personalities in the Legends of Hollywood stamp series, making his stamp the 15th in the series.

The Career of Gary Cooper

According to the USPS Press Release, Gary Cooper was born on May 7, 1901, in Helena, MT, where he spent much of his youth on his family’s ranch. One day, while Cooper was looking for steady work, he ran into a couple of old friends who persuaded him to try his hand at falling off a horse in films for $10 a day.

Cooper, whose birth name was Frank James Cooper, continued to work as an extra in films until a casting agent persuaded him to change his name to Gary, citing the fact that Hollywood already had two Frank Coopers and certainly didn't need another.

Cooper's big break came when he was cast in a small part in The Winning of Barbara Worth (1926). at the last minute, one of the starring actors backed out of his role in the film, prompting the director handed the role to Cooper. Cooper gave a performance that moviegoers and critics praised. From that point on, Cooper’s career grew steadily.

The first starring role for Cooper was in Arizona Bound (1927). His first all-talking movie, The Virginian (1929), became a box office hit.

Over the course of his career, Cooper made more than 100 movies, starring in such notable films as Morocco (1930), A Farewell to Arms (1932), Beau Geste (1939), The Pride of the Yankees (1942), For Whom the Bell Tolls (1943), and High Noon (1952). His performances in High Noon and Sergeant York (1941) provided him with his two Oscars.

Gary Cooper died of cancer on May 13, 1961.

USPS Gary Cooper Stamp Design

The Gary Cooper Legends of Hollywood stamp was designed by art director Phil Jordan using a portrait by Kazuhiko Sano, which in turn was based on a black-and-white photograph of Cooper taken by George Hurrell circa 1940.

The selvage art (or the art in the surplus margin around the sheet of stamps), was based on a still from High Noon (1952) and portrays Cooper as Marshal Will Kane, a role for which he won his second Oscar.