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WOODSTOCK CONCERT POSSIBLE


By Alan Wechsler
Staff Writer

(NEW YORK) - Another Woodstock anniversary concert could be coming to Bethel.

Alan Gerry, the new owner of the 1969 Woodstock concert site, will go to New York City next week to meet with Woodstock Ventures, which owns the rights to the ``Woodstock'' name and the dove-on-a-guitarneck logo. And one of the topics of discussion will be a 30th anniversary concert in 1999, possibly on Gerry's Bethel property, said Ventures co-owner John Roberts.

``If it's done properly, it could be profitable,'' said Roberts, who made money off the movie and other results of the 1969 festival, but lost money at the 1994 festival in Saugerties.

Gerry, a Liberty businessman, secretly purchased the Bethel site a year ago and spent the next 12 months buying 1,000 acres around it. He plans to create a performing arts tourist destination, including possible theaters, a museum and other facilities.

Woodstock Ventures has its own plans for the next few years: one or more big concert celebrations at Bethel or Saugerties. There's also the possibility of a Woodstock tour, as well as a chain of Woodstock cafes, similar to the Hard Rock Cafes.

Allan Scott, supervisor of the Town of Bethel, said he would not be opposed to another concert. In the past, some residents have been angry about revelers celebrating the anniversary with parties, alcohol and drugs.

``The town is not soured,'' Scott said. ``We're looking forward to what Mr. Gerry could do.''

Gerry, the multimillionaire founder of Cablevision Industries, will head to the city with members of his company, Granite Associates, including one of Gerry's daughters. Gerry could not be reached Wednesday.

``We're just getting together to talk,'' said Michael Lang, another principal in Woodstock Ventures. ``We pretty much are Woodstock. It seems to make sense to talk to him.''

A likely topic of discussion during the meeting is Gerry's lease of the ``Woodstock'' name. Without it, his $3 million-plus investment would lack the instant recog nition that ``Woodstock'' provides.

How much is Woodstock worth? That's a hard question, said a trademark expert.

One way to determine its value if Gerry wanted to lease it would be to determine how much he could make off the Woodstock name in, say, five years, and agree on a percentage to give to Woodstock Ventures, said Edward Short, director of marketing for Leverage Marketing Corporation of America in New York City.

``It's difficult to put a dollar amount on that,'' he said. ``If you have a genuinely well-recognized, well thought of trademark, the monetary value of that is nearly inestimable.''


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