REAGAN STAMP A HIT AT LIBRARY GIFT SHOP PACKED AS PEOPLE TRY TO BE AMONG FIRST BUYERS.

Byline: Eric Leach Staff Writer

SIMI VALLEY - Some of the most popular items for sale at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library these days are the new commemorative Reagan postage stamps and an array of related items.

The gift shop was packed Wednesday with shoppers buying the stamps along with special gift cachet envelopes, post cards and framed combinations of Reagan memorabilia.

Also for sale are T-shirts emblazoned with the Ronald Reagan stamps, mugs, pins, key chains and even mouse pads.

Sue Morris, postmaster of Simi Valley, expected crowds on Wednesday when the stamp was officially issued at the Simi Valley Library, but was still surprised by the turnout.

``It's just amazing. I'm meeting people from Chicago and Washington state.''

She said having envelopes postmarked is like creating a work of art for some collectors.

``A lot of people tell us exactly where they want it stamped. It's an experience just to watch a first-day-of-issue, even if you are not a stamp collector. It's very interesting. Everybody's very excited and happy to be here.''

In addition to the items available at the gift shop, the U.S. Postal Service is offering collectibles for sale at its Internet site - www.usps.com - and some post offices. These items include an 11-by-14-inch numbered print of the stamp image autographed by artist Michael Deas for $149.99.

There is also a 7-by-10 inch plaque of the stamp for $24.95, and a 6 3/8- by-7 9/16 inch Keepsake Folio set that commemorates Reagan's life through photographs for $12.95.

On Wednesday, hundreds of stamp collectors and Ronald Reagan fans lined up for hours at his Presidential Library to buy the new commemorative postage stamp featuring the smiling face of the former president.

The hilltop library served as the official first-day-of-issue site for the commemorative stamp, but because the stamp was so popular, official ceremonies were also held Wednesday at the Ronald Reagan Building and International Trade Center in Washington, the California state Capitol in Sacramento and in Dixon, Ill., childhood home of the 40th president.

``The Reagan stamp is important in the history of stamp collection because it is so popular,'' said Cathy Stauffer of Garden Grove, who collects new commemorative stamps. ``Just look at all the people here.''

David Brown of Studio City spent about $50 in the gift shop Wednesday buying stamps, canceled cachet envelopes, a Reagan memorial DVD. ``I'm not necessarily a stamp collector, but I'm a Reagan fan. This a very rare occasion. I was here with all five presidents when the library opened.''

As an ex-president, Reagan became eligible for a commemorative stamp in the year following his death. Postal Service policy restricts stamps honoring people other than presidents to those who have been dead at least 10 years.

For Ruth Ann Fornot of Northridge, the stamps were worth the wait in long lines.

``There are a lot of friendly people in line. We're going to send the stamps to all our relatives.''

Caryn Fate of Simi Valley said she woke at 4 a.m. Wednesday to write letters to 20 family members before coming to the Reagan Library to get the stamps and mail the first-day-cancellations to 20 relatives, including her son working for the U.S. Army in Afghanistan.

The post office has 170 million of the new 37-cent stamps on hand and is also offering a series of Reagan collectibles.

Stamps will receive the first-day-of-issue cancellations through March 9 if they are mailed to Simi Valley in self-addressed envelopes, officials said.

``We wanted to produce a stamp that embodied Ronald Reagan's warmth, personality and humanity,'' James Miller, chairman of the Postal Service board of governors, said in prepared remarks in Washington, D.C. ``This stamp captures the twinkle of his eyes and the charismatic grin that reflected Ronald Reagan's eternal optimism.''

Miller, who served as head of the Office of Management and Budget under Reagan, recalled the former president as a down-to-earth man who could help others break the tension.

Once, when Congress and the president couldn't agree on a budget and the government was faced with a shutdown, Miller said, ``he turned to me, put his hand on my shoulder, and said, 'Jim, Jim, just settle down. Let's close 'er down and see if anybody notices.'''

Joining Miller in Washington and Postmaster General John Potter for the dedication were Edwin Meese III, Reagan's senior adviser and later attorney general; Sen. Ted Stevens, R-Alaska; Rep. Danny K. Davis, D-Ill.; Frederick J. Ryan, chairman of the Ronald Reagan Foundation, and Kenneth M. Duberstein, who served as Reagan's last chief of staff.

During the ceremonies at Reagan Library in Simi Valley, officials read letters drafted for the occasion by former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher and former Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev, who said that Reagan was a ``remarkably prolific letter writer ... faithful to his words.''

It is the tradition of the Postal Service to honor prominent Americans with a stamp no sooner than 10 years after death. The single exception to that policy is for a U.S. president, who may be honored with a postage stamp as soon as the first birth anniversary following death.

Reagan, who was president from 1981 until 1989, was born on Feb. 6, 1911. He died at his Bel-Air home on June 5 at the age of 93, ending a 10-year struggle with Alzheimer's disease.

Associated Press contributed to this story.

Eric Leach, [phone]

eric.leach(at)dailynews.com

CAPTION(S):

4 photos

Photo:

(1 -- color -- ran in Simi edition only) Hannah Taylor, 6, of San Diego, looks at a poster-sized version of the Reagan stamp at the presidential library. Her father is the postal officer on the USS Ronald Reagan in San Diego.

(2 -- 3 -- ran in Simi edition only) Above, Ray Holm, 72, of Thousand Oaks, lays out his 30 sheets of 20 stamps each to let the ink dry from the first-day cancellation. Above left, Mary Tucker, 9, of Thousand Oaks, shows her postcard-size stamp at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library. Her mother, Julie, is at right. The just-issued stamps already are in great demand at the library gift shop.

(4 -- ran in SAC edition only) Margaret Houck, a postal clerk from Camarillo, sells 37-cent commemorative stamp showing former President Ronald Reagan on Wednesday at the Reagan Presidential Library.

Tina Burch/Staff Photographer