Well, two out of three isn't bad.
Anheuser-Busch does make a beer whose name is well-known in Pennsylvania, Rolling Rock, a brand it bought last year from the longtime owner based in Latrobe. But Anheuser-Busch decided to stop making Rolling Rock in Latrobe and moved those brewing operations to Newark, N.J.
The company's beers to be served at the inaugural ball will include Bud, Bud Light and Michelob Ultra, inaugural spokeswoman Andrea Mead said.
"Everything else [food and drink] will be from companies based in Pennsylvania," she said.
They will range from ketchup from Pittsburgh-based Heinz, mushrooms from Basciani Foods in Delaware County, cannoli from Termini Brothers Bakery in South Philadelphia, pretzels and potato chips from Utz in York, hot dogs from Yocco's in Allentown, mustard from Herlocher's in State College and others.
And, of course, two of the biggest names in Pennsylvania foods will be there, Hershey's chocolate and hot cocoa and cheese steaks from Pat's King of Steaks in Philadelphia.
Political wags here joke that Mr. Rendell, who is always watching his weight, never met a sandwich he didn't like. So a downtown Harrisburg eatery called The Spot plans to "debut a new sandwich in honor of the governor's 2007 inaugural celebration," Ms. Mead said, without saying exactly what will be in it.
Pittsburgh Brewing Co. President Joseph Piccirilli said he viewed the inaugural not only as a celebration for Mr. Rendell "but also for Pennsylvania's food and beverage industry. We are proud to be a home-grown industry, celebrating 125 years in business, and honored that Pittsburgh Brewing products will be featured at the event."
Ms. Mead said the cost of the big shebang hadn't been determined, but should be "about what it was the last time," or $2.5 million, when Mr. Rendell was inaugurated in January 2003.
She said all the money would come from private donations, not public tax money. Many donors are from Mr. Rendell's long list of political contributors, who ponied up $40 million last year to help him defeat Republican candidate and ex-Steeler Lynn Swann.
"We don't have a comprehensive list of everyone who donated at this point," she said. The names of the sponsors will be included in Tuesday night's program, but the amounts they give won't be released for several weeks.
Besides Iron City and Heinz, the inaugural celebration will have another Pittsburgh angle, the much-hyped art of 1960s and '70s icon Andy Warhol.
The plan is to take well-known Pennsylvania landmarks and "regional images," such as the state Capitol building, Philadelphia's Liberty Bell, pictures of Pittsburgh's bridges, Scranton's steam engines and others, and "Warhol them," Ms. Mead said. That means putting them in the famous four-part Warhol style used to depict actress Marilyn Monroe, a soup can and others.
Four big rectangles will be projected onto a screen, with identical images of landmarks in each rectangle, but in different and contrasting colors, yellow on a blue background, green on a red background, etc.
Ms. Mead said the Warhol museum in Pittsburgh "is working with us to create these images. We want to celebrate this famous artist from Pittsburgh and that is why we are theming him."
There will be one big difference this time from the 2003 celebration. There won't be a big parade through downtown Harrisburg with marching bands from around the state. Instead, various forms of art will be celebrated, Ms. Mead said, with people taking a walking tour during the afternoon from the Capitol to the Whitaker Center two blocks away, where art will be displayed in the afternoon.
The inaugural activities will come in four parts, taking up the whole day Tuesday.
First, Lt. Gov. Catherine Baker Knoll will be sworn in for her second term at 10:30 a.m., followed at 11:30 a.m. by Mr. Rendell. Those activities will take place on a temporary stage that was built last week next to the state fountain on the eastern side of the Capitol.
The walking tour of arts will take place in the downtown area from 2 to 4:30 p.m. Sixteen different groups or individuals will perform at the Whitaker Center in the afternoon, including the Pittsburgh CLO Mini-Stars and the Indiana University of Pennsylvania Jazz Ensemble.
Other types of music, including youth choral, gospel and opera, will be performed at the nearby Market Square Presbyterian Church and the state Museum, next to the Capitol.
At 7 p.m., the state Farm Show complex, where a weeklong annual agricultural show featuring hundreds of animals and thousands of visitors, ended Saturday, will be the site of the Inaugural Gala Concert and Ball. Farm Show officials began to clean up the place Saturday night and say they'll be ready for tomorrow's festivities.
The concert will feature a dozen individual singers and musical groups, mostly from Philadelphia. The biggest name is Jon Bon Jovi, lead singer of Bon Jovi as well as an actor and the owner of an arena football team in Philly. He is also renovating a block of 15 homes in North Philadelphia.
Other performers include Jill Scott, a Grammy award-winning jazz and rhythm and blues singer; Frankie Avalon, a 1960s teenage heart throb and star of numerous "beach'' movies; the Dixie Hummingbirds, a gospel group; singer and concert performer Monica Mancini, daughter of composer Henry Mancini of West Aliquippa; the Trammps , a disco group from Philly; and the Intermezzo Choir, another Philadelphia group.
The state's first lady, federal Judge Marjorie Rendell, will be wearing a Pennsylvania-made product, a fancy gown designed by Paula Hian, of Philadelphia.
A news release describes it as a "navy silk, velvet floor-length, off-the-shoulder evening gown with a fitted bodice and flared trumpet hemline." The gown is "intended to complement a diamond and sapphire necklace given to the first lady by the governor."
Mrs. Rendell said she loved the "elegant, contemporary work" of designer Hian, adding, "As a fellow Pennsylvanian, it's a great source of pride to showcase one of her creations."
