Nobel Peace Prize Recipient and former Leader of the Soviet Union, Mikhail Gorbachev to Speak at Hard Rock Live, April 16

HOLLYWOOD, Fla., April 9 /PRNewswire/ -- Nobel Peace Prize Recipient and former Head of State of the Soviet Union, Mikhail Gorbachev will speak at Hard Rock Live on April 16 at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are on sale now.

Gorbachev, one of the most influential political leaders of modern times, will speak to "Peace in the 21st Century" at Hard Rock Live. The audience will also have the opportunity to participate in a question and answer session with Mikhail Gorbachev. A Russian reformer in favor of democracy over communism, Gorbachev served to ease tensions between the Soviet Union and Democratic nations of the West and contributed heavily to the end of the "Cold War." Gorbachev is currently the leader of the Union of Social-Democrats, a Russian political party.

Mikhail Sergeevich Gorbachev was born in the village of Privolnoye near Stavropol, Russia. From the age of 13 he worked on a collective farm, where his father was a mechanic. He was an exceptional student and earned a law degree at Moscow University where he joined the Communist party and became Secretary of the law department's Young Communist League. After returning to the Stavropol area he rose in the League hierarchy to become Regional Secretary of the League, and in 1961 first became a delegate to the Party Congress. He spent the 1960s working his way up through the territorial bodies of the Party and continuing his education in agronomy and economics.

By 1989 the demand for reform had spread to the Soviet satellite states of Central Europe. Gorbachev notified the Communist leaders of those countries that he would not intervene militarily to keep them in power as his predecessors had done. Without the support of the Red Army, these dictatorships were quickly forced to yield to their democratic opposition, and Gorbachev began the withdrawal of the remaining Soviet forces from Central Europe. In 1990 he was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for his foreign policy initiatives.

Gorbachev continued to press for democratization in the Soviet Union and permitted free elections in Russia and the other republics of the Soviet Union. He survived an attempted coup by Communist hardliners in 1991 but relinquished office after the elected presidents of the constituent republics undertook to replace the old Soviet Union with a Confederation of Independent States.

Since leaving office, he has continued to advocate the development of private ownership in a market economy, and the non-violent resolution of conflicts in a democratic society. He is President of the International Foundation for Socio-Economic and Political Studies, known as the Gorbachev Foundation, which conducts political and economic research, and promotes international exchange. He is recognized around the world as one of the most influential statesman of the 20th century.

Tickets cost $85, $70 and $55.* All seats are reserved and available at the Hard Rock Live Box Office, open Monday -- Saturday from noon to 7pm and on Sunday -- only open on event days at noon. Tickets also are available at all Ticketmaster outlets online at www.ticketmaster.com or charge by phone: Miami- Dade (305) 358-5885, Broward (954) 523-3309, and Palm Beach (561) 966-3309. Doors open one-hour prior to show start time. *Additional fees may apply.

About Hard Rock Live

Hard Rock Live, a spectacular state-of-the-art facility has quickly emerged as the entertainment capital of South Florida. Attracting music, comedy and sports fans, this 5,500-seat indoor arena further expands the ultimate entertainment experience at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino. For more information please visit www.hardrocklivehollywoodfl.com.

About Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino

Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino is South Florida's leading entertainment destination featuring Vegas-style slots on a 145,000-square-foot casino with 50 live action poker tables and more than 2,500 of the most popular machines. Property enhancements include a high-limit gaming room offering a cashier booth, check cashing services, ATMs, and safety deposit boxes, the VIP Plum Lounge, an exclusive area for loyal Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Players Club card members, Chef's Table celebrity show kitchen, and non-smoking gaming room with ATM and redemption machines and its own Players Club Booth. This Four-Diamond, AAA rated, 500-room hotel offers 17 restaurants and lounges, 40,000 sq. ft. of meeting room space, a full-service, European-style spa, environmentally friendly hand car wash and auto detail salon, and 22 retail shops and 11 nightclubs in Seminole Paradise. Entertainment aficionados can enjoy national and international musical acts, comedic performances, and more in Hard Rock Live--a state-of-the art and acoustically-sound arena located on property. Lucky Street parking garage offers guests an additional 2,300 spaces for parking. The Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino is located on State Road 7 (U.S. 441) exit Stirling and travel west (1 Seminole Way) in Hollywood, Florida. For more information, call (954) 327-ROCK, 1-800-937-0010 or visit us online at www.seminolehardrockhollywood.com.

    Contacts:  Ryan Rogers, Seminole Hard Rock, 954-327-7631,
               ryan.rogers@seminolehardrock.com

               Fran Folic, Bitner Goodman, 954-730-7730, ext. 117,
               fran@bitnergoodman.com