Dead Reunion Show Hits A Snag

Promoters want to bring the surviving members of the Grateful Dead together for the first time since Jerry Garcia's death in 1995.

The two-day concert dubbed "Terrapin Station: A Grateful Dead Family Reunion," would reunite Mickey Hart, Bill Kreutzmann, Phil Lesh and Bob Weir on stage for the first time since Garcia, founder and leader of the Dead, died of a heart attack.

But the highway committee in Walworth County has denied the promoters a license to hold the concert, saying the county's 80 sheriff's deputies would not able to handle the crowd.

The event, planned for Aug. 3-4 in East Troy, Wisconsin, is expected to draw 200,000 fans, said Odell R. Gigante, an official for Walworth County. He said only 35,000 people are allowed in the Alpine Valley Music Theatre, about 30 miles southwest of Milwaukee.

Michael Cotter, an attorney for Walworth County, said the promoters, Clear Channel, can appeal the decision. The company also can sue the county for permission.

Dennis McNally, a publicist for Grateful Dead Productions, and Big Hassle Media, the festival's publicist, had no immediate comment.

During their 30-year history, the Grateful Dead attained a fan base so devoted it reached cultlike status. Some die-hard fans, nicknamed Deadheads, followed the band around the globe for the jam concerts that became the Dead's trademark.