The Distinguished Americans series is a set of definitive stamps issued by the United States Postal Service which was started in 2000 with a 10¢ stamp depicting Joseph Stilwell.[1] The designs of the first nine issues are reminiscent of the earlier Great Americans series, but less austere. The first nine issues were done with black lines on a white background, but in 2008, with the James A. Michener issue (#10), the USPS added color toning. Like the Great Americans series, the first twelve issues measured 0.84 inches by 0.99 inches overall,[2] and were all designed by Mark Summers of Waterdown, Ontario.[3][4] In 2011, with the Oveta Culp Hobby stamp, the series went to a larger format with full color images and colored backgrounds.[2][5]
The 2004 Rudolph stamp is the only one in the series to have been issued in both a sheet (pane) and booklet format.[6] Both the 2001 Caraway issue and the 2002–2003 Ferber issues have perforation differences.[7]
The stamps issued in this series include the following (rank, date of issue, denomination, depicted person):[2][3]
2017, April 11. 70¢, first-class mail, two-ounce rate stamp. Teacher, pioneer of deaf studies Robert Panara.[2][15]
^ abWozniak, Maurice D., ed. (2001). Krause-Minkus Standard Catalog of U.S. Stamps. Iola, Wisconsin: Krause Publications. p. 166. ISBN978-0-87349-321-5.