In April the United States Postal Service announced the induction of Jose Ferrer to the U.S. Postal Service’s Distinguished Americans Stamp Series.

“… the Postal Service is pleased and proud to bestow upon Jose Ferrer — a groundbreaking Latino movie, theater and television performer and the first Puerto Rican actor to succeed in Hollywood – a new commemorative Forever stamp,”

“Throughout an acting career that spanned more than half a century, Ferrer played a wide range of roles on both Broadway and on the silver screen. His accomplishments extended to many other genres of entertainment. He acted on radio, performed as an opera singer; co-authored a libretto and was a composer. And, as if all this weren’t enough, Ferrer wrote for theater and television, and directed and produced numerous plays, both on and off Broadway.”
– Marie Therese Dominguez, vice president, Government Relations and Public Policy for the U.S. Postal Service

José Vicente Ferrer de Otero y Cintrón (January 8, 1912 – January 26, 1992) was born in San Juan, Puerto Rico. His family moved to New York City when he was six years old. Ferrer was said to be an excellent student and passed the Princeton University entrance exam at 15 years old — but he was too young to attend. As a result of this he spent a year in boarding school in Switzerland and entered Princeton at age 16 and graduated with the class of 1933. He initially intended on becoming a language professor but he discovered his love of acting during his postgraduate work at Columbia University.

And it was a good thing he did – he became the first Puerto Rican (and Hispanic) actor to win an Academy Award. He ultimately donated his Oscar award to the University of Puerto Rico to honor his roots. He also won several Tony Awards and was inducted into the American Theater Hall of Fame.

To order your own Jose Ferrer Forever stamps visit the official USPS website here: Jose Ferrer (Forever)