Exhibit to Open in Conjunction with Annual Festival

DUNCAN HINES MORE THAN JUST A NAME ON A CAKE BOX

Bowling Green, Ky. - Duncan Hines was a REAL person?  If you don't believe it, just ask his closest living relative, Cora Jane Spiller. She recently donated his personal ice bucket and hot dog maker to the growing collection of Duncan Hines memorabilia at the Kentucky Museum on Western Kentucky University's campus.

"Recommended by Duncan Hines," an exhibit celebrating the life of a giant in the food industry and one of the most notable Kentuckians, will open in August 2007 at the Kentucky Museum.  This 11-section exhibit includes his birth and upbringing in Bowling Green during the early 1900s, his career as a travel writer and his transition into a household name with the packaged foods industry. Visitors also will see a full-scale exhibit of Duncan Hines' kitchen filled with some of his personal items including his stove, base cabinet and kitchen sink.

Several donations made "Recommended by Duncan Hines" possible.  The Bowling Green Area Convention and Visitors Bureau provided a $35,000 cash gift in addition to a large collection of artifacts.  The Park Foundation has contributed $50,000 and Pinnacle Foods contributed $20,000. WKU provided an $80,000 appropriation from the University Enhancement Fund. The Hines family is supporting the exhibit as well, but wishes to keep the amount undisclosed.

Other nearby locations where visitors can learn about  the legacy of Duncan Hines include his home/office built in 1940, the Duncan Hines Scenic Byway and visit his gravesite at Fairview Cemetary.

The exhibit will open just before Bowling Green's 11th Annual Duncan Hines Festival in August 2007.  Activities at the festival include "Uncle Duncan's Duck Derby," food, live music, a recipe contest and an art exhibition. In past years a 1,200 pound cake was made with 337 boxes of Duncan Hines cake mix, two gallons of vanilla, 502 eggs, 170 pounds of shortening and 650 pounds of sugar.  The cake was 6 feet long and 3 feet wide.

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For more information about "Recommended by Duncan Hines," contact Timothy Mullin, Library Special Collections Department Head, at (270) 745-6261, or Cindy Troutman, Marketing Coordinator, University Libraries, at (270) 745-4502. Museum Website