The Forever Stamps focus on two phases of Chamberlain’s career: his days in Philly, where he led the 76ers to an NBA title in 1967; and his days with the Lakers in Los Angeles, where he left with another NBA title.
Chamberlain made history during a game against the New York Knicks, when on March 2, 1962, he scored an astonishing 100 points—a feat that has not been matched. Wilt Chamberlain, a Philadelphia native, was born Aug. 21, 1936. He attended Philly’s Overbrook High School, where he racked up more than 2,200 points on the court. He was also an honor roll student. Friends called him “Wilt the Stilt” and “The Big Dipper,” supposedly because of his height (he is 7 feet 1 inch) which sometimes required him to duck under doorways. He was a student at the University of Kansas and briefly spent a season with the Harlem Globetrotters before joining the Philadelphia Warriors.
The movement to put Wilt on a stamp started with a seven-word headline: “Postal Service Should Put Wilt on Stamp.” Donald Hunt, a sports columnist at the Philadelphia Tribune, wrote the 2008 article. Hunt, who recalled as a child watching in person Chamberlain play for the 76ers against Oscar Robertson and the Cincinnati Royals, believed “The Big Dipper” had the credentials to join Jackie Robinson, Babe Ruth, Joe Louis and Jesse Owens among the sports legends with their own stamps.
Hunt lobbied the Philadelphia 76ers, the Kansas Jayhawks and Chamberlain’s friends, fans and family to get involved in the effort. “People should remember the great ones,” Hunt said. “They don’t come any bigger or better than Wilt Chamberlain.” Chamberlain starred in the NBA from 1959 through 1973, when he played for the Philadelphia (later the San Francisco) Warriors, 76ers and Lakers.
The 31,419 points Chamberlain scored during his career stood as a record until Kareem Abdul-Jabbar broke it in 1984. Chamberlain, who never fouled out in 1,205 regular-season and playoff games, also holds the rebounding record with 23,924.
Source: USPS, NY Times and ESPN
