02/10/03
Sharon
Stone and Hal Holbrook Lead
Star-Studded Historic Preservation Initiative
KNOXVILLE, TN
-- The stars are aligning for The National Trust for Historic
Preservation and Home & Garden Television in a partnership
to restore 12 American landmarks.
Celebrities
representing movies, television, fashion, sports and media are
lending their talent to "Restore America - A Salute to
Preservation" to generate support for the National Trust
and Save America's Treasures, the public-private partnership
that is restoring many of the nation's sites, monuments, collections
and archives.
Among the
galaxy of stars who have signed on for the project include Hal
Holbrook, Kathy Ireland, Bryant Gumbel, Joe Torre, Diane Keaton,
Sam Waterston, Kimberly Williams, Nicholas Walker, Ali MacGraw,
Steven Weber, Rick Dees, and Sharon Stone.
They will
serve as spokespeople for the initiative, filming public service
announcements for HGTV as part of the network's million-dollar
public affairs initiative. The celebrities also will provide
voiceover talent for special program segments featuring the
historic sites, each of which is an Official Project of Save
America's Treasures.
"Protecting
our nation's landmarks is a priority because they provide unique
opportunities to experience history firsthand," said Hal
Holbrook, who is well known for his portrayal of Mark Twain.
Twain's Hartford, Connecticut home is one of the featured sites.
Inspired by the popular HGTV series Restore America, "Restore
America - A Salute to Preservation" will recognize ongoing
restoration efforts at selected historic sites through HGTV's
on-air and online programming. Each of the sites will be included
as a regular segment on the network's Restore America series,
now in its fifth season. In addition, HGTV will air two Restore
America specials, one in July 2003 and another in 2004, and
will salute one of the restoration sites each month with one-minute
vignettes to be broadcast at various times throughout each day.
Finally, "Restore America - A Salute to Preservation"
will be featured on HGTV.com, with information on each of the
sites and a link to the National Trust website.
"Preserving
our country's glorious past requires the efforts of many people,"
said Richard Moe, President of the National Trust and Co-Chair
of Save America's Treasures. "Whether it's an ordinary
American working at one of these sites or the celebrity bringing
visibility to our cause, our success depends on Americans committed
to protecting our nation's heritage."
"HGTV
has always aired programming with a preservation theme,"
said Burton Jablin, president of the network. "In addition
to 'Restore America - A Salute to Preservation,' our viewers
enjoy programs such as If Walls Could Talk, Renovations, Homes
of Our Heritage, Old Homes Restored and This Old House Classics.
We hope this is the beginning of a longtime partnership with
the National Trust."
To find
out more about this exciting new partnership, click
here.
About
The National Trust for Historic Preservation
The National Trust for Historic Preservation is a private, nonprofit
membership organization dedicated to protecting the irreplaceable.
Recipient of the National Humanities Medal, the Trust provides
leadership, education and advocacy to save America's diverse
historic places and revitalize communities. Its Washington,
D.C. headquarters staff, six regional offices and 21 historic
sites work with the Trust's quarter-million members and thousands
of local community groups in all 50 states. For more information,
visit the National Trust's website at www.nationaltrust.org.
About
Save America's Treasures
Save America's Treasures is a national effort to protect "America's
threatened cultural treasures, including historic structures,
collections, works of art, maps and journals that document and
illuminate the history and culture of the United States."
Save America's Treasures was originally established by Executive
Order in 1998 as the centerpiece of the White House National
Millennium Commemoration and as a public-private partnership
that included the White House, the National Park Service and
the National Trust for Historic Preservation. Dedicated to the
preservation and celebration of America's priceless historic
legacy, Save America's Treasures works to recognize and rescue
the enduring symbols of American tradition that define us as
a nation. Honorary Chair First Lady Laura Bush leads this effort
along with co-chairs Richard Moe, President of the National
Trust for Historic Preservation, and the noted author, Susan
Eisenhower, granddaughter of former President Dwight D. Eisenhower.
Mrs. Bush succeeds former First Lady Hillary Rodham Clinton
who continues to support the program as its Founding Chair.
About
HGTV
America's leader in home and garden programming, HGTV is distributed
to more than 80 million households, making it one of the fastest-growing
networks in cable history. Additionally, with more than 2.5
million unique visitors on average each month, HGTV.com is America's
leading online home and garden destination. Headquartered in
Knoxville, Tenn., with offices in New York, Los Angeles, Chicago,
Detroit and Atlanta, HGTV is wholly owned by The E.W. Scripps
Company (NYSE: SSP), which also operates the Food Network, DIY
- Do It Yourself Network and Fine Living.
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