HONG KONG, February 2, 2001: - Today, Inter-Govermental
Postal Corporation. (IGPC) and emaimai unveiled a set of postage
stamps and first day covers and presented them to Hong Kong
superstar Chow Yun-Fat who is being honoured on the series.
The legendary actor participated in a special ceremony at
the Grand Hyatt Hotel where representatives from IGPC and
emaimai as well as government officials from Guyana presented
the stamp set to the world-renowned celebrity.
The Hong Kong born, widely acclaimed actor and star of the
Golden Globe winning film Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon,
joins an incredibly exclusive club of living legends to be
honoured on legal tender.
"I'm honored to be featured on a series of postage stamps
that span my career in entertainment," said the star of more
than 70 feature films.
"Postage stamps are a special form of communication and
they greet people every day when they open their mailbox with
wishes of goodwill. It is an amazing opportunity for me to
not only be seen on TV and movie screens, but now also on
the corner of envelopes everywhere," said Mr. Chow.
Mr. Chow joins only a handful of global entertainment icons
to be recognised in this way. In Mr. Chow's case, it is the
South American Republic of Guyana honouring the star as part
of this year's major international postal exhibition currently
taking place at the Hong Kong Convention & Exhibition Centre.
At stamp exhibitions around the world it is traditional
to honour the host country by creating a stamp featuring an
icon, symbol or landmark of the host nation. Guyana therefore
chose Hong Kong's beloved star Chow Yun-Fat who is currently
one of the hottest actors working today. Guyana also holds
the distinction of having issued the world's most valuable
postage stamp, the British Guiana 1856 1-cent Magenta, valued
at US$10 million dollars.
In the tribute to Mr. Chow, which has been organised by
the New York based agency Inter-Governmental Postal Corporation
(IGPC), the six colourful postage stamps depict Mr. Chow in
various roles that highlight his illustrious career of action
thrillers, slapstick comedies and hard-hitting dramas.
IGPC appointed Hong Kong-based emaimai, the representative
of their Asian operations, as the sole distributor of these
limited edition stamps. emaimai is a leading technology solutions
and collectible company in Asia, specialising in the integration
of technology with many commerce sectors including collectibles
such as stamps, coins and other unique items.
M. Moshe Malamud, Chairman of emaimai and IGPC Diplomatic
Attache, said Mr. Chow was the perfect choice for the new
stamp series.
"Chow Yun-Fat is one of the hottest stars working in both
Hollywood and Asia today so it seems entirely appropriate
that he should be one of the very few living legends to be
honoured. His enormous worldwide popularity warrants such
a fitting tribute and emaimai is thrilled to be the exclusive
distributor of Mr. Chow's limited edition stamps. In addition,
we are looking forward to working closely with IGPC to collaborate
on similar exciting ventures in the future," said Mr. Malamud.
"With Mr. Chow's phenomenal popularity, not only here in
Hong Kong but also all around the world, we expect an incredibly
high demand for this limited edition stamp series," he said.
The six stamp series, entitled, "The Hero of A Thousand
Faces," was designed by award-winning New York stamp artist
Joel Itzkowitz. A portion of the proceeds from the sale of
the stamps will be donated to a charity.
The postage stamps will be available during the Hong Kong
2001 Stamp Exhibition that runs until February 5. They can
also be purchased exclusively online at www.emaimai.com
from February 2 on. Starting from February 6, they will also
be available at over 124 outlets of Circle K, an offline distribution
partner of emaimai. Purchases of the stamp series will be
limited to three sets per person to ensure that all of Mr.
Chow's fans have an opportunity to own this piece of history.
About Inter-Governmental Postal Corporation
Established in 1957 and headquartered in New York NY, Inter-Governmental
Postal Corporation (IGPC) serves as the government representatives
for more than 75 postal administrations worldwide. IGPC is
the world's largest government advisory agency for postal
and telecommunications ministries. Their services include
the postal administration as well as the planning, design,
production, promotion and marketing of the represented countries'
annual postal programs. In essence, IGPC acts as the Ministry
of Post for more than 75 countries in the world.
- ENDS -
About emaimai
Headquartered in Hong Kong, emaimai is Asia's fastest growing
technology solutions provider, focusing on a wide-range of
sectors that include many Asian opportunities such as mobile
computing, as well as the global collectibles market. Through
its strategic partnerships with leading international collectibles
companies, technology providers, philatelic agencies and major
motion picture studios, emaimai offers an unmatched range
of services and products including collectible items such
as rare and new-issue stamps, antique and limited-edition
coins and paper currencies, entertainment, movie and sports
memorabilia, autographed celebrity photos, comic books, trading
cards, and antiques.
emaimai was incorporated in November 1999 and first launched
its business in Hong Kong in August 2000.
Released on behalf of IGPC & emaimai by Octagon Prism.
