It didn’t take long. Yesterday, I told you about Artoo Detoo mailboxes appearing around the country as part of a joint marketing effort between Lucasfilm and the US Postal Service.

Meredith Heagney of The Columbus Dispatch in Ohio has already mentioned the mailboxes in two articles, and we see an attempt to start a controversy.

On Thursday, Heagney reported:

Once the Postal Service does talk, it will have to explain who paid for the custom mailboxes, in light of a proposed increase in first-class postage to 41 cents. Mark Haberman wasn’t impressed with the special mailbox[…]. “I think it’s a waste of money,” said Haberman, the assistant director of the Ohio Building Authority.

Yesterday, she continued the angle:

The Postal Service says it was a “Jedi mind trick.” Here on Earth it’s called a “publicity stunt.” […] [Melissa] Dodge [a spokeswoman for the U.S. Postal Service] refused to say how much the graphics cost the Postal Service, calling it “proprietary information.” She said the cost was “very minimal.” Star Wars’ parent company, Lucasfilm, did not provide funds for the mailboxes, and the Postal Service didn’t pay to use R2-D2’s image, Dodge said.

Associated Press reports yesterday also seemed to confirm the obvious, that the big announcement on March 28 is indeed for Star Wars stamp(s).

* * *

Will the announcement be as simple as that, though? Or will the post office deliver up another Elvis-style contest? Rather than 50s Elvis vs. 70s Elvis, it could be Vader vs. Yoda, for instance.

While the same person cannot be honored on more than one US stamp within the same decade, there is no such restriction on fictional characters. Any such contest would be only a marketing ploy. And they would never do that, would they?

Primary Information Sources
The Columbus Dispatch: Mysterious it is, this R2-D2 mailbox that left in a flash
The Columbus Dispatch: ‘Star Wars’ mailbox sequels debut today
The Associated Press: `Star Wars’ droid R2-D2 to collect mail

Starting today, if you live in the US, you will be able to deposit your mail in officially sanctioned Artoo Detoo mailboxes around the country.

No, this is not an early April Fool’s joke.

In an unprecedented marketing scheme, Lucasfilm has teamed up with the US Postal Service to promote a new web site. Official US Postal Service mailboxes in many areas have been transformed to look like the popular astromech droid.

The mailboxes promote http://www.uspsjedimaster.com, which promises a major announcement on March 28 about a collaborative project between the postal service and Lucasfilm.

I don’t think I’m going very far out on a limb here by predicting the announcement will include a Star Wars stamp or set of stamps. After all, entertainment stamps tend to be huge profit-makers for the postal service since they often are saved by collectors rather than actually used.

A 1993 stamp featuring Elvis Presley remains the most popular US stamp of all time. Other popular entertainment stamps include last year’s DC Comics Superheroes set and various Walt Disney stamps.

As long as I’m making predictions, I also foresee some sort of general public outcry over the Artoo mailboxes. Perhaps a Congressional investigation into whether or not taxpayer money went into the marketing gimmick and how the President is likely to blame.

I know, I know, I’m nearly as great as Carnac the Magnificent.

Primary Information Sources
StarWars.com: R2-D2 mailboxes coming to your galaxy
WashingtonPost.com: Elvis remains the King of postage stamps