André van Duin, crowd favorite for 60 years

On June 24, it was exactly 60 years ago that 17-year-old André van Duin broke through with his television performance by winning the talent show 'Nieuwe Oogst'. The stamp sheet 'André van Duin 60 Years Public Favorite' and the six stamps feature photos of moments from his career that André himself is proud of, and which therefore also ended up on the six stamps.

André van Duin 60 years as a crowd favorite – release date June 24, 2024

Issue details: Sandra Smulders from Gouda is the graphic designer, print run of 100.000 stamp sheets with six different stamps, first day of issue Monday, June 24, 2024, printer Joh. Enschedé from Haarlem.

Stamp sheet layout

• In the layout of the stamp sheet, the left and right halves are rotated 180 degrees relative to each other. The same applies to the photos on the three stamps in the bottom left and those on the three in the top right.
• Of the six photos on the stamps (a logical number given the 60th anniversary), three are in color and three in black and white.
• On the top-left margin is a color portrait of André at the beginning of his career, and on the bottom-right margin is a recent photo. These two photos are also rotated 180 degrees relative to each other.

Stamp reflection of special career aspects

On both vertical strips of stamps (earlier – recent), André van Duin literally and figuratively climbs the ladder rung by rung in his development, achievements, and life. 1) Talent show 'Nieuwe Oogst' On June 24, 1964, Van Duin won the final of the talent show 'Nieuwe Oogst'. He received a trophy and an appearance on Willy and Willeke Alberti's Saturday Evening Show on August 8, 1964. Van Duin's band parody of the legendary Rolling Stones performance at the Kurhaus served as the opening act. With this, Van Duin definitively broke through to the general public. 2) Animal Crackers In the first season of the TV program 'Animal Crackers' (from 1988), André himself introduces the clips with the monkey Sabientje in his arms. Van Duin edits humorous voices, sound effects, or music into footage of animals in zoos, with which he also attempts to recruit members for the World Wildlife Fund. 3) Dik Voormekaar Show In the radio and television program 'Dik Voormekaar Show' (from 1974), André van Duin performs as, among others, Ome Joop. The character's name is based on the name of Ferry de Groot's father, who is called Ome Joop by the neighborhood and gets angry easily. When Ome Joop first appeared on the program and brought coffee, he was immediately angry as well. A well-known song by Ome Joop is, among others, "Geef mij maar een neut" (Just Give Me a Shot). 4) Heel Holland bakt In the popular TV program 'Heel Holland bakt' (from 2016), André van Duin acts as presenter, marking a turning point in his career. In this program, alongside Janny van der Heyden, he reveals his more serious side. André consistently opens the program with “Bakers ready? Let’s bake!” During the broadcast, filled with encouraging comments and remarks, André occasionally cracks a joke here and there. 5) National Remembrance Day Speech In 2021, André delivers an impressive speech on Dam Square during National Remembrance Day, in which he expresses his gratitude for being able to live in freedom. Despite the coronavirus measures, we celebrate our freedom: “I do so in the conviction that I am responsible for passing on our freedom to the new generation. Freedom is not something to be taken for granted.” 6) Home studio Working in his home studio, André feels most at ease when editing video and audio, or as he puts it himself: “I’m just tinkering around.”

Graphic diamond faces

Designer Sandra Smulders“60 years is, of course, a diamond jubilee. That is why I have run diamond faces with white lines diagonally across the stamp sheet and the stamps (as an extra layer). This divides each stamp into three or four faces, which not only connects the stamps to one another but also brings more tension to the image. I added the color gradient to the faces using a grey-blue diamond sparkle.”

Postage stamps with meaningful content

• The orientation of one row relative to the other is striking. The reason? With a normal layout of the stamp sheet, the space on the sheet margin to showcase Van Duin's knowledge and skills throughout his career over the years would be far too limited. Hence, a 180-degree rotation per vertical row: “Then there is plenty of room!”
• Smulders honors Van Duin row by row with large portrait photos at the 'ladder top'. In both photos, the actor looks calmly and seriously into the camera. The contrast between the past and present becomes visible through the use and absence of color. At the start of his career, André adds truly remarkable color to his first performance, while the current black-and-white photo shows the sedate Van Duin in a matching color scheme.
• In a phenomenally attractive and varied manner, graphic designer Sandra Smulders has managed to portray André's personal progression as both a (voice) actor and a presenter, from a young, aspiring artist to the serious person he is known as today. By starting André's 'ladder climb' at the bottom left with stamp images (on both rows), Smulders has delivered an unparalleled top performance, both literally and figuratively. Just try coming up with the idea of ​​starting images at the bottom left in such an unusual way!

And finally

Ostensibly, this stamp sheet corresponds entirely to the meaningless foreign picture stamps, yet a message is hidden behind every photographic image. Each image possesses a hidden meaning, as described above. Like many previous Dutch issues, this stamp also provides a great deal of special, personal, and distinctive background information on the subject matter: the career of André van Duin.