1984 Los Angeles Olympic Sam the Eagle Press Pose Pin ~ Camera ~ LAOOC

A 1984 Los Angeles Olympic cloisonné pin of Sam the Eagle in his "Press Pose," with a camera. Sam strides forward in his red and white striped top hat, with the Olympic rings on the blue hat band and a white press card tucked into it, its lettering reading "PRE…" before it disappears behind the hat. He holds a silver camera up in his wings, ready for the shot, with a red and white striped bow tie at his neck. Gold-tone metal outlines every part of the design.

The story behind this pin: Sam the Olympic Eagle was the official mascot of the 1984 Los Angeles Summer Games. He was designed by C. Robert "Bob" Moore of Walt Disney Productions, who turned the usually stern bald eagle into a friendly, cheerful bird in a stars-and-stripes hat. The Los Angeles Olympic Organizing Committee (LAOOC) used Sam on its own pins, and the 1985 Pin Collector's Guide lists this one on its page of "Special LAOOC Designs." There, Sam appears in three Press Poses, each one a member of the press at work: with a camera (this pin), with a microphone, and at a typewriter.

The guide tells how these pins reached collectors. The three Press Pose designs were first ordered in a larger quantity than the LAOOC could actually use, so the licensee was allowed to sell the overage. All three were sold in retail stores even though they were never advertised. The guide also notes that Fuji Film used the camera pose heavily. That fits the Games' history: in December 1981, Fuji Photo Film was named the official film sponsor of the 1984 Summer Olympics, with rights to use Sam the Olympic Eagle in its advertising. Fuji also agreed to run a film processing center at the Olympics' main press center, developing film free for accredited news photographers from around the world. The guide puts production of the camera pose at about 10,000, the largest of the three. The microphone and typewriter poses were made in about 7,500 each.

• Year: 1984 Los Angeles Summer Olympics
• Design: Sam the Eagle Press Pose with camera, striped top hat with Olympic rings and press card
• Companion designs: Press Pose with microphone and Press Pose with typewriter
• Guide reference: 1985 Pin Collector's Guide, L1, page 62
• Size: approx. 5/8" x 1 1/8"
• Material: cloisonné, gold tone, cut to shape
• Back stamp: "LA84 ©1980 LA OLY…" (the end of the line sits under the clutch), textured gold back, single post with clutch
• Approx. quantity produced: 10,000 (1985 Pin Collector's Guide)

Packaging: All orders shipped in corrugated box for extra protection, we don't use bubble mailers.

Shipping: U.S. shipping is $4.95 flat per order, and free on orders of $35 or more.