Big hopes hanging on big bell

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For Kentucky, world recognition only the beginning

Sunday, December 13, 1998

BY MARGARET McGURK
The Cincinnati Enquirer

PARIS, France - Back home, skeptics may see the planned Millennium Monument in Newport as a peculiar, even quixotic, pipe dream.

Kentucky Gov. Paul Patton sees it as a prime opportunity.

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During his four-day visit to witness Friday's casting of the Millennium World Peace Bell at a foundry in Nantes, Gov. Patton packed his schedule with meetings aimed at turning the promise of international import into a reality.

The 66,000-pound bronze bell, when mounted, will be the largest free-swinging bell in the world.

Accompanied by state and local officials and corporate representatives, the governor and first lady, Judi Patton, took in a round of events that covered the major touchstones of the project, from tourism to human rights.

Tourism. Among the governor's first tasks was a meeting with French tour operators, who listened to him extol the region's charms.

"We have hardly tapped the international market," said tourism cabinet secretary Ann Latta. She cited European travelers who increasingly seek destinations other than New York, Los Angeles and Florida when they visit the United States.

"They look for the real America," she said. "Kentucky has a little bit of an advantage because we have the Derby, we have Kentucky Fried Chicken and we have bourbon. So they know something about us."

The bell's value as a tourist attraction will be tested in February, when it is tentatively due to be shipped to New Orleans, then up the Mississippi and Ohio rivers to Newport, with stops along the way for public displays.

During a group press conference after the bell casting, the governor momentarily stunned his official French companions when, describing the potential for the monument, he invoked their beloved global symbol, the Eiffel Tower.

Economic development. Official French eyebrows also jumped skyward when Millennium Monument Co. chairman Wayne Carlisle placed the cost of the entire project at $100 million, most through private financing. Mr. Carlisle, who has borne the entire cost of the project so far, demurred when asked the cost of the bell that will stand alongside the monument.

Newport Mayor Tom Guidugli stressed the monument's role in the redevelopment of the Northern Kentucky riverfront - and briefly befuddled the British interpreter - when he cited plans for a 3-D Imax theater and an aquarium.

The governor likewise had the economy of the booming Northern Kentucky region in mind as he conferred discreetly with potential development partners, whom his spokeswoman, Melissa Forsythe, declined to identify. "Those (meetings) are confidential," she said.

Symbolic power. The main inscription authored by the millennium group's Cynthia Goodman reads: "The World Peace Bell is a symbol of freedom and peace, honoring our past, celebrating our present and inspiring our future." It also bears a dedication to the 50th anniversary of the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights, an event celebrated with enthusiasm by the French.

KENTUCKY PARTICIPANTS

In addition to Gov. Paul Patton and first lady Judi Patton, Kentucky participants in ceremonies for the casting of the Millennium Monument World Peace Bell in Nantes, France, included: Ann Latta, secretary of the Kentucky Tourism Development Cabinet. Newport Mayor Tom Guidugli and city council member Ken Rechtin. Campbell County judge-executive Ken Paul and commissioners Bill Verst and David Otto. Millennium Monument Co. founders Wayne Carlisle and David Hosea, and vice president Cynthia Goodman. Southbank Partners chairman Ray Beil and executive director Wally Pagan. Mr. Beil is also CEO of the Millennium Monument Co. State Rep. James Callahan, D-Wilder.

On Dec. 10, Gov. Patton joined French President Jacques Chirac and a host of other officials at a formal ceremony honoring the declaration, signed in France on that date in 1948. The same evening, Parisians packed a stadium for an anniversary concert featuring guest appearances by Peter Gabriel, Bruce Springsteen and the Dalai Lama.

Ms. Goodman said the bell's significance also attracted the World Peace Prayer Society, a non-governmental affiliate of the United Nations, which asked witnesses at the casting to silently recite the prayer, "May peace prevail on Earth."

The governor's participation in the variety of events surrounding the bell casting held lasting significance for his French hosts, both commercial and governmental, Ms. Forsythe said. "They are impressed that he is here. They are impressed that he would come in person."

Casting of the bell Friday drew 250 visitors and journalists to La Fonderie de l'Atlantique in Nantes.

The bell will cool in its mold until January, when it will be opened, cleaned and tested. It is expected to be shipped to the United States in February.

Visitors to the Kentucky capital should have a chance to preview the creation soon.

Bellmakers from the Verdin Co. of Cincinnati and their French partners, Fonderies Paccard, presented the Pattons with a 2-foot-high replica for display in Frankfort, plus a 1-foot version as a personal gift.

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