Sunday, February 20, 2011

USPS Star Wars R2-D2 Mailbox Coin Bank

Princess Leia Organa: "Help me, Obi-Wan Kenobi; you're my only hope." (I hope this letter reaches you)

What if Star Wars happened NOT in a galaxy far far away but right here and in the last century (i.e. 20th century before the advent of the internet a long time ago)? Princess Leia would have to send out her plea via snail mail through one of these R2-D2 Mailboxes :)


400 R2-D2 mailboxes ("80-something postal districts around the country, most of which received four of the R2-D2 boxes each") were installed nationwide in the United States from March 2007 as part of the Star Wars 30th Anniversary celebrations.



The boxes have uspsjedimaster.com emblazoned on the front, but the site is no longer available. The robot / droid post boxes were part of an ad campaign to promote a new Star Wars stamp set (see picture below) unveiled on March 28, 2007.


These were the stamps that were issued as part of the Star Wars 30th Anniversary celebrations in the United States in 2007.


And this was the Star Wars R2-D2 Mailbox Coin Bank produced and released in 2008 by the U.S. Postal Service which I recently bought from the Singapore Philatelic Museum. What a pleasant surprise it was for me to see R2-D2 there!


This is the miniature version of the United States Postal Service (USPS) Star Wars R2-D2 mailbox that stood at some of the prominent streets and corners in the US in 2007 as part of the Star Wars 30th Anniversary celebrations. IMHO I think it's quite NICE and most unique ;)


More pictures of the USPS Star Wars R2-D2 Mailbox Coin Bank including roundabout views






And this is the view of the USPS Star Wars R2-D2 Mailbox Coin Bank from the bottom, showing where you twist to open the cap to retrieve the coins.


Close-up views of the R2-D2 Mailbox Coin Bank showing all the nice details



And here's the Sideshow Collectibles 1/6 scale Princess Leia Organa figure posing with the USPS Star Wars R2-D2 Mailbox Coin Bank. The coin bank is way too small and not in scale (they never said it was 1/6) but it's just too cute to resist.


And in the picture below are some other R2-D2s - 15-inch Interactive R2-D2 unit which responds to more than 40 voice commands, plays games with you and your friends, dances, plays music, and more! Ask him if he remembers famous friends like Luke Skywalker or Princess Leia or enemies like Jabba the Hutt, and each name will stir up a different response. He even guards your room with his sentry alarm. R2 also boasts a secret cargo compartment and a unique swing-down utility arm that doubles as a beverage holder.

R2-D2 Astromech Droid Phone which produces Star Wars sound effects for incoming calls or on demand! Whenever there is an incoming call the R2-D2's head spins, a light flashes and the R2D2 sound is produced.

There's also the Galoob Star Wars Micro Machines R2-D2 / Jabba's Palace Transforming Action Set, Applause R2-D2 with sensorscope vinyl figure, Hasbro's 1997 1/6 scale R2-D2 and the 1998 FAO Schwarz Limited Edition Slave Leia & R2-D2 with serving tray as seen in "Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi (1983)" where R2 operated as both bartender and mobile bar on Jabba's Sail Barge.


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