Fort Thomas hosting music hall of fame exhibit
- The N. Ky. music exhibit will be at the Fort Thomas Military and Community Museum June 5 through Sept. 27.
FORT THOMAS – The Northern Kentucky Music Legends Hall of Fame will have its second induction ceremony and concert at Tower Park on June 5.
John Mendell, of Fort Thomas, a board member for the hall of fame, said the volunteer group found a perfect fit in Fort Thomas to have induction ceremonies.
"There's a museum to display the artifacts, and you've got a concert venue next door," Mendell said.
The first induction ceremony, on June 2, 2013, was at Behringer-Crawford Museum in Covington.
Organizers are setting up a second-floor exhibit in the Fort Thomas Military and Community Museum that will open at noon June 5 and continue to be part of museum exhibits through Sept. 27. The museum, at 940 Cochran Ave., Fort Thomas, is open from noon-4 p.m. each Wednesday through Sunday.
"We're going to have an exhibit in the museum, old pictures and posters, and some of their instruments, too," he said.
Induction ceremonies on June 5 will be at 6 p.m. ahead of a 7 p.m. concert. Admission to the concert is free, but donations will be accepted. Some members of the 2014 inductee class, as they are able and willing, will perform in the concert and former inductees will join in a jam session afterward, Mendell said.
"We're going to have an exhibit in the museum, old pictures and posters, and some of their instruments, too," he said.
Since Rosemary Clooney was inducted last year and members of the family were unable to attend, someone from the family will come to this year's ceremony, Mendell said. The family will also send a surprise piece of memorabilia from Rosemary's collection to be on display at the museum, he said.
The 2014 inductees class is:
• Bill Hinds, a Fort Thomas native who played drums for Pure Prairie League.
• Mike Hodges, of Florence, who has played drums for Adrian Belew and David Bowie.
• Gary Burbank, of Alexandria, hosted a nationally syndicated radio show under his name on 700 WLW in Cincinnati and is a musician who plays blues songs on the slide guitar.
• Mickey Foellger, of Fort Thomas, a former Campbell Circuit Court judge who plays drums in The New Lime Band, and previously played in the band Wheels.
• Panny Sarakatsannis, of Fort Thomas, a bass player in the Northern Kentucky area who played at the original Guys and Dolls night club in Cold Spring in the 1960s and 1970s as a member of the band Black Orchid.
• Dennis Hensley, of Latonia, owner of Jordan Recording Studios in Taylor Mill and a country and gospel singer.
• Dave Otto, of Fort Thomas, owner of Otto Printing in Dayton, Ky., a producer of security badges and backstage passes for concerts around the world.
Jerry Gifford of Dayton, a singer for the band Strange Brew, and a board member for the music hall of fame, said the idea is to recognize local musicians who have lived in Northern Kentucky and worked as a musician for 20 years, Gifford said. There are at least 350 names of people the board knows about who are eligible for the hall of fame, and they want people to tell them about more potential honorees, he said.
"You don't have to be a star that made national headlines," Gifford said.
The group is also starting an NKY Music Legends Scholarship fund for student musicians at Northern Kentucky University, he said.
"The plan has always been to recognize the musicians and put something back into the comnunity," Gifford said.
"We're going to have an exhibit in the museum, old pictures and posters, and some of their instruments, too," he said.
A few weeks before the induction ceremony, Bobby Mackey's World will host a fundraiser for the Northern Kentucky Music Legends Hall of Fame. The benefit will take place at Mackey's, 44 Licking Pike, Wilder, at 8 p.m. Saturday, May 17. There will be door prizes, raffles, and auctions, Mackey is a member of the inaugural inductee group of the N. Ky. Music Legends Hall of Fame.