Philatelist Collects Signatures Of Famous

Press, Volume CI, Issue 29715, 8 January 1962, Page 13

Philatelist Collects Signatures Of Famous

“The Press” Special Service

AUCKLAND, Jan. 7.

A Cheltenham philatelist, Mr J. A. Cooper, has letters and envelopes from heads of state and governments of almost every country in the world. A former Air Force officer, Mr Cooper found his interest waning after 40 years of collecting stamps. “I got a bit fed up with merely collecting stamps,” he said. He decided to combine philately with autograph collecting by asking persons depicted on stamps to sign them. Where no person was depicted, Mr Cooper asked for the signature of the head of state or a government leader. He posted hundreds of stamps to many countries, and the collection of nearly 100 signed stamps which resulted provided him with material for lectures on world affairs. The stamps have also been shown at exhibitions. Several world dignitaries returned the stamps with personal letters. Among those prized highly by Mr Cooper is a personal letter from the Sherpa Tensing Norkay, who accompanied Sir Edmund Hillary on his successful assault on. Mt. Everest. Tensing addressed the letter: “Mr J. A. Cooper, Ed Hillary’s Honey Land, New Zealand.” When Mr Cooper wrote enclosing some stamps for signature by Princess Grace of Monaco, he received more than he bargained for. Princess Grace returned the stamps signed by herself and her husband, and a wide selection of Monaco stamps unobtainable at the time.

The painter Annigoni posed a problem when Mr Cooper wrote to Rome asking for his signature across the stamp showing his famous portrait of the Queen. The artist did not reply directly to correspondence, Mr Cooper was told. However, a letter to an agent in London produced Annigoni’s signature. The Dalai Lama had just left Tibet when Mr Cooper sought his signature. A hurried letter to a person reported to be meeting him brought success. The collection includes the signatures of Marshal Tito, Dr. Syngman Rhee, King Feisal, Billy Graham, President Nasser, Queen Salote, the Sultan of Brunei, the Archbishop of Canterbury, the Prime Minister of Australia (Mr Menzies). President Chang Kai-shek /md Dr, Soekarno. A former United States President (Mr Truman) also enclosed his visiting card. Mr Cooper’s list of polite refusals includes notes from the Queen, the Duke of Edinburgh. President de Gaulle, Mr Khrushchev, Sir Winston Churchill and Sir Anthony Eden. Mr Cooper hopes to continue his collection for another 40 years. At present he is seeking the signature of Major Yuri Gagarin, the first man in space