The Red Band Project

Next time you open your mailbox, you might see Wall•E, Buzz, Lightning, Remy and a few other Pixar characters in there with your mail.

I know that in the age of the Internet, who really sends mail things anymore? It’s easy to see why when you can stay connected with people through Facebook and any number of social media outlets, pay bills with a few clicks of the mouse, and hell . . . even text messaging is starting to supplant email as the most efficient way of sending a message to someone. Yeah sure we all GET mail, but aside from a few bills, most people I know hardly ever send anything of consequence via the United States Postal Service (USPS).

Maybe it was the two years that I worked in the mailroom during college that gave me an appreciation for our postal service (or at least a better understanding of it anyway), but I still like writing people letters and actually sending things via snail mail. I don’t know, just call me old fashioned I guess.

So what does it take for the topic of mail to end up on a movie blog? Well the answer’s simple when Disney and Pixar are involved. Just yesterday the USPS issued the latest batch of stamps that are part of the 2011 campaign and some of your favorite Disney/Pixar characters will now be making their way across the country on some very vibrant and colorful postage stamps. Together Lightning McQueen & Mater, Remy & Linguini, Wall•E, Buzz Lightyear & the aliens, and Carl & Dug each grace their own stamp:

The five stamps come together as a set of 20 and will set you back $8.80.

Since I send cards and letters to people pretty frequently, I was really excited when I heard that we were going to be getting Pixar stamps earlier this year. For me, it’s about adding just a bit more style and personally to the letters I send. And since I like movies so much–it just fits.

These stamps are also part of a larger USPS and Disney/Pixar letter writing campaign:

The U.S. Postal Service invites you take a moment and send a handwritten note to a friend, loved one, co-worker, dog sitter or whomever else comes to mind. Then, it would like you to stamp that letter — ideally using one of the new series of Disney/Pixar-themed stamps unveiled this afternoon — and drop it into your nearest mailbox.

The rest of the piece can be found over at the LAT Nation Now Blog. The USPS Disney Pixar “Send a Hello” stamps can be purchased at your nearest post office as well as online through the USPS.com website.

And here are larger images of the stamps themselves as well:

Backside of the stamp sheet. Click for a larger image to read.