Hillary Clinton Helps Debut a Commemorative Line of Oscar de la Renta Stamps

Hillary Clinton at the FirstDayOfIssue Stamp Dedication Ceremony for the Oscar de la Renta commemorative stamp.
Hillary Clinton at the First-Day-Of-Issue Stamp Dedication Ceremony for the Oscar de la Renta commemorative stamp.Photo: Getty Images

Today, the United States Postal Service launched a collection of Forever stamps commemorating Oscar de la Renta. While the news was announced last year, the line of stamps did not go on sale until today. The collection features 11 different designs, ten of which feature details of the iconic late designer’s fashions. The eleventh stamp is a portrait of Mr. De la Renta himself, photographed by Inez and Vinoodh.

In honor of the occasion, the fashion house hosted a first-day-of-issue ceremony this morning at New York’s Grand Central Terminal. Speaking before the event, Alex Bolen, chief executive officer of the company and the husband of Mr. De la Renta’s stepdaughter Eliza, explained how exactly this all came about. “I got a call from the U.S. Postal Service, and I literally thought some package had gotten waylaid,” he said. Not exactly, and after nearly two years in the works, the latest Forever stamps are finally here. And what of the striking portrait that appears on one such stamp? Bolen conceded that the designer was never especially fond of his own portraits, but said, ”[Oscar] actually loved this picture that Inez and Vinoodh took, and we all think it really captures him.”

Indeed, and as wonderful as the stamps themselves are, the event had plenty more in store. Secretary Hillary Clinton, former New York City Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg, and Anna Wintour, Artistic Director of Condé Nast and Editor in Chief of Vogue, all appeared as guest speakers. Anderson Cooper served as the event’s emcee.

The ceremony was both a touching and inspiring affair—with some humorous moments interspersed. Former Mayor Bloomberg joked a bit about his relationship with fashion, saying that he debated whether to wear a dark blue suit, or a darker blue suit, to the ceremony. But Bloomberg also kicked off one of the morning’s main themes by noting how De la Renta was one example of the many extraordinary immigrants who have come to New York. Anna Wintour wryly noted that while she had never known De la Renta to write a letter, he was “an extraordinary communicator.” After concluding her own speech, which poignantly incorporated her memories of the late designer, Wintour introduced Secretary Clinton, who beautifully wove together personal stories about De la Renta while touching upon the fact that he had moved to the U.S. from the Dominican Republic.

“Oscar de la Renta was an immigrant, and aren‘t we proud and grateful that he was,“ Clinton said, causing one of the many thunderous rounds of applause from the audience. She spoke of her first encounter with the designer, and the times that their two families had spent together. The former secretary of state concluded her speech by saying, “And let there be many, many, more immigrants with the love of America that Oscar de la Renta exemplified every single day.” A statement with which we absolutely agree.

Below, a closer look at the line of stamps.