Art and the Olympic Games, Postal Designs

Am I a serious stamp collector? No.  But with a background in technology, fine arts, eleven olympics, and my Munich '72 experience, how could I not have great appreciation for postal art and collect a bit.  

Some of the finest artists and illustrators in the world design olympic stamps.

I mentioned my appreciation for the design of the Mexico '68 logo in a prior post.  (Which, by the way, was similar to the design for one of Microsoft's first logos after the games. Might possibly be the same artist. )  I began looking closely at stamps during my work with CBS News in Mexico City.  Then, in Munich, low and behold, i became "Mama Graf's" assistant for her international house on WilhelmStrasse in the fabulous Schwabing district of Munich.  Now there was the stamp collecting guru!  She would point out designs, and in instill in me a deep appreciation.  She would carefully arrange her stamps, the beautifully designed stamps of Germany, on her envelopes and post them to me in the USA during the post olympic years.  Mama Graf, Elisabeth Graf, would tell me not to drop my cards in a post box, she would head me to the post office for a proper cancelation.

Among my favorites...