Ripley’s Believe It or Not! Wisconsin Dells To Host Exhibit of Fertility Statues in March Blooloop

World Famous Cote-d’Ivoire Statues are linked to more than 2, 000 pregnancies – So proceed with caution!

Ripley’s Believe It or Not! Museum in Wisconsin Dells will host the sixth stop of a three year, multi-city international tour of the world famous Ripley’s Fertility Statues! They will premier in Wisconsin Dells on March 7, following crowd-pleasing stops at the Ripley’s Believe It or Not! Odditoriums in New York’s Times Square, Grand Prairie, Texas, Williamsburg, Virginia, Orlando, Florida and Myrtle Beach, South Carolina.

“Please Don’t Touch – Unless You Want a Baby!”

Thousands of people have seen the statues over the past several years. Some are very serious about touching the statues, believing in their powers to help them conceive. Others want to avoid touching the statues – for the very same reason!

More than 2, 000 women have reported they became pregnant shortly after touching the wooden statues. Many of them had been told by doctors they would never be able to conceive! Since the women’s stories became public in 1994, millions have visited the statues.

From March 7 through March 26, the statues will be on display in the lobby of Ripley’s Believe It or Not! Museum in the Wisconsin Dells, located at 115 Broadway. Would-be parents are invited to come in and touch them for FREE during regular business hours, Monday through Sunday 10 a.m. – 6 p.m.

The five-foot tall wooden statues were acquired from the Ivory Coast (Cote-d’Ivoire) of West Africa in 1993, and were placed in the lobby of Ripley Entertainment’s corporate headquarters in Orlando. Within months, 13 women, including staffers and office visitors were pregnant.

Following a December 1995 story in the Wall Street Journal chronicling the phenomenon, the demand to touch them became international news. In the ensuing years, the edifices made three trips around the world, stopping at Believe It or Not! museums, allowing millions easy and free access.

They were retired to the Ripley warehouse in 2001, but due to great demand, they were put on display at the Ripley headquarters in Orlando where they have been seen by hundreds each month who made a special pilgrimage to see and touch the statues.

“For years now, we have been inundated with requests to make these statues available once again at our odditoriums throughout the world, ” said Edward Meyer, VP Archives & Exhibits for Ripley Entertainment. “Amazingly, people are still finding out about them and call us wanting an opportunity to come in and touch them. Due to this demand, we have decided to tour them again.”

After Wisconsin Dells, the statues will spend a month at the Ripley’s Believe It or Not! Museum in San Francisco, Calif. Then a month at Ripley’s Believe It or Not! in Hollywood, Calif.

To set up an interview with a mother who touched the statues and became pregnant, contact Tim O’Brien at Obrien@ripleys.com.

About Ripley Entertainment Inc.

Ripley Entertainment Inc. (ripleys.com), keepers of the venerable Ripley’s Believe It or Not! brand, is a global leader in location-based entertainment, entertaining more than 13 million annually at its 74 attractions in 13 countries. In addition to its 32 Believe It or Not! museums, the Orlando, Florida-based company has publishing, licensing and broadcast divisions that oversee projects including the syndicated Believe It or Not! television show, best-selling books and the popular syndicated cartoon strip, Ripley’s Believe It or Not!, that still runs daily in 42 countries. Ripley Entertainment is a Jim Pattison Company, the third-largest privately held company in Canada.

Contacts:

Kelly Jo Gehrke
Manager
Ripley’s Believe It or Not! Wisconsin Dells
Office – 608-254-2184
Cell – 608-432-1712
kgehrke@conceptattractions.com

Tim O’Brien
VP Communications
Ripley Entertainment Inc.
Office – 615-646-7465
Cell – 615-496-5949
obrien@ripleys.com