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I was home with a two-week-old infant when JFK Jr. disappeared and died, so it was front and center in my awareness, especially with the odd hours you keep when you have a tiny infant. He and his sister were four and seven years old than me, respectively, so they were in the forefront of my awareness much of the time.

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Yeah, that makes sense, Paula. I remember the event but only at a distance, and so I wonder whether perhaps I was camping with the Scouts when it happened.

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The "Young or Old Reagan" thing also references the "Young Elvis vs Old Elvis" debate from 1992 when the US Post Office was going to make a commemorative Elvis stamp. They had two designs, a young Elvis and an Old Elvis, and people voted on it. Young Elvis won, and the stamp was issued 8 January 1993.

https://postalmuseum.si.edu/exhibition/art-of-the-stamp-the-artwork-stamps-with-a-story/the-elvis-stamp-america-elects-a-king

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oh, that's great to know, thank you! I kind of remember the Elvis stamp vote, and it would have been fresh in people's minds then. But it didn't cross my mind when writing about this issue.

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