Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Foundation establishes a $5 million endowment fund for Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum in Cleveland

CLEVELAND, Aug. 16 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Today the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum announced that the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Foundation in New York will create a $5 million endowment fund to ensure the nonprofit museum experience always remains vibrant. The fund was generated by proceeds from the history-making Rock and Roll Hall of Fame anniversary concerts held at Madison Square Garden in October 2009 with a lineup of legendary artists from Jerry Lee Lewis to Bono.

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"Rock and roll is an art form, and arguably one of the most accessible art forms that is well known and loved around the world," said Joel Peresman, president and CEO of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Foundation. "This gift is also about the artists' endorsement of the Museum's mission: to celebrate and preserve the art form and to provide education activities to inform the public about its worldwide impact."

The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Foundation has been the largest single contributor to the Museum and its support has been instrumental in the success of the Cleveland landmark. The Foundation has leveraged its presence in one of the major world capitals to bring artists to Cleveland and to create fundraising opportunities. In the past five years, the Foundation has contributed more than $13 million to the Museum in Cleveland, including annual support for capital improvements, $8 million gift toward the Capital Campaign, $1 million gift to develop a long-term digital strategy and a complete redesign of the Museum's website.

"This support from the New York Foundation helps ensure that we will continue to thrive and I want to thank them for this very generous gift," said Terry Stewart, president and CEO of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum.

The endowment gift comes at a time that the Rock Hall is within $1.5 million of completing an ambitious $35 million Campaign for the Rock Hall. The capital campaign will support a Museum redesign and the construction and operation of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's Library and Archives in downtown Cleveland.

The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame tells the story of rock and roll through its exhibits, education and public programs. Throughout its fifteen year history, the Rock Hall has educational activities such as the Museum's nationally-recognized Rockin' the Schools, On The Road (Distance Learning), award-winning Toddler Rock and upcoming Rock and Popular Music Institute programs. More than 8 million people from all 50 states and 100 countries have visited the Museum.

Now that the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum has established a sustainable long-term model, is nearing completion of the Campaign for the Rock Hall and finalizing plans for the Library and Archives and Museum redesign, the focus will shift to raising long-term funds like this generous endowment gift to help secure the Museum in perpetuity.

Campaign for the Rock Hall

Jann Wenner and Joel Peresman, The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Foundation

Jerry Sue Thornton, Cuyahoga Community College

The Cleveland Foundation

Gregg & Madelyn Foster

Jay and Patty Baker

Brian Ratner, Forest City Enterprises

Henry Juszkiewicz, Gibson Guitars

The George Gund Foundation

Kulas Foundation

John P. Murphy Foundation

Medical Mutual of Ohio

Jules Belkin

Frank Sullivan, RPM International Inc.

Curtis Schenker

John Shiely, Briggs & Stratton Corporation

KeyBank

The Summers Family

Alec Wightman, Baker & Hostetler LLP

ROCK AND ROLL HALL OF FAME 25TH ANNIVERSARY CONCERTS

The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Foundation celebrated its 25th Anniversary in Fall 2009 with a once-in-a-lifetime concert event over two days at Madison Square Garden. The Shows - which include Tom Hanks paying homage to Cleveland's Rock Hall - was broadcast on HBO, will be released on a Time-Life DVD on September 28, 2010 and will be rebroadcast on other television networks around the world. The 25th Anniversary concerts celebrated the 25 year history of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Foundation and served to raise funds to create an endowment for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum in Cleveland. The endowment will be further supported by proceeds from DVD sales of the Time-Life Rock and Roll Hall of Fame 25th Anniversary Concerts.

ROCK AND ROLL HALL OF FAME 25TH ANNIVERSARY CONCERT LINE UP - OCTOBER 29, 2010

Jerry Lee Lewis

Crosby, Stills and Nash

Bonnie Raitt with David Crosby and Graham Nash

Bonnie Raitt and Crosby, Stills and Nash

Jackson Browne with Crosby, Stills and Nash

James Taylor with David Crosby and Graham Nash

Crosby, Stills and Nash with James Taylor

Crosby, Stills and Nash with Bonnie Raitt, Jackson Browne and James Taylor

Paul Simon

Dion DiMucci with Paul Simon

Paul Simon with David Crosby and Graham Nash

Paul Simon Little Anthony and the Imperials

Simon and Garfunkel

Stevie Wonder

Smokey Robinson with Stevie Wonder

John Legend with Stevie Wonder

Stevie Wonder with John Legend

B.B. King with Stevie Wonder

Stevie Wonder and Sting

Stevie Wonder with Jeff Beck

Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band

Sam Moore with Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band

Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band with Tom Morello

John Fogerty and Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band

Darlene Love with Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band

Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band with Tom Morello

Billy Joel and Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band

Darlene Love, John Fogerty, Tom Morello, Billy Joel, Jackson Browne, Peter Wolf and Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band

ROCK AND ROLL HALL OF FAME 25TH ANNIVERSARY CONCERTS (OCTOBER 30, 2010)

Jerry Lee Lewis

Aretha Franklin

Aretha Franklin and Annie Lennox

Aretha Franklin and Lenny Kravitz

Jeff Beck

Jeff Beck and Sting

Buddy Guy with Jeff Beck

Jeff Beck

Billy Gibbons and Jeff Beck

Metallica

Metallica and Lou Reed

Metallica and Ozzy Osbourne

Metallica and Ray Davies

U2

U2, Bruce Springsteen and Patti Smith with Roy Bittan

U2 and Bruce Springsteen with Roy Bittan

U2 and Black Eyed Peas

U2, Mick Jagger, Fergie and Will.i.am

U2 and Mick Jagger

About the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum

The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum, Inc. is the nonprofit organization that exists to educate visitors, fans and scholars from around the world about the history and continuing significance of rock and roll music. It carries out this mission through its operation of a world-class museum that collects, preserves, exhibits and interprets this art form and through its library and archives as well as its educational programs.

The Museum is open seven days a week from 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. On Wednesdays (and Saturdays through Labor Day), the Museum is open until 9 p.m. Museum admission is $22 for adults, $18 for adult residents of Greater Cleveland, $17 for seniors (65+), $13 for youth (9-12), children under 8 and Museum Members are always free, for information or to join the membership program call 216. 515.8425. For general inquiries, please call 216.781.ROCK (7625) or visit www.rockhall.com. The Museum is generously funded by Cuyahoga County residents through Cuyahoga Arts and Culture.

SOURCE Rock & Roll Hall of Fame and Museum