Riveting entry captures June cartoon caption contest win

U.S. Stamp Notes by John M. Hotchner

There are things only a human can do, and welding together the parts of a skyscraper 1,000 feet in the air is one of them. The intrepid men who did this work when the Empire State Building was under construction in the 1930s are remembered on one of the forever (46¢) stamps (Scott 4801h) in the 2013 Building A Nation pane of 12 (4801).

That Riveters on Empire State Building commemorative was the cartoon caption contest stamp for June.

John Barrera of Concord, N.C., theorizes that all preparation for this work was useful. He imagines the welder as having philatelic experience with this line, “I only hope using my stamp tongs was good practice for this delicate task.”

Jeffrey Feinman of New York, N.Y., represents a group of entries that picture the building as a possible living space with, “New York City high rise, river view, wide open space, $350/month. I knew this apartment rental price was too good to be true.”

The nonphilatelic winner of the contest is shown here. It is from Joe Petitto of Tyler, Texas.

On the philatelic side of the contest, Jim McCarty of Slidell, La., takes the prize with the question, “If I mail a letter from here, will I need to use an airmail stamp?”

Both winners will receive a 13-week subscription to Linn’s (a new subscription or an extension).

Here are the best of the other runners-up:

“Kong wants us to use Gorilla Glue,” by Rich Wolf of Westminster, Md.

“Some of the new stamp designs are riveting!” from Fred Zinkann of Montgomery, Ill.

 “I don’t understand why we can’t get carryout?” sent by Conrad Fuerstenberg of Appleton, Wis.

“NOW I remember my wife gave me a letter to mail without fail this morning,” from George Schaetzle of Sheboygan, Wis.

“I thought a stairway to Heaven would be a bit fancier,” by Mildred Barylski of Warrenton, Va.

“Smile, George; I think OSHA is down there watching us,” from Sebastian Glentz of Sheboygan, Wis.

Thanks and a tip of the hat to all who entered. The next contest will be announced in the Aug. 12 issue of Linn’s.

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