Missouri to get Chuck Berry statue

UNIVERSITY CITY, Mo., June 28 (UPI) -- A bronze statue of rock 'n' roll icon Chuck Berry is to be installed in University City, Mo., this week, officials said.

The St. Louis Post-Dispatch said entrepreneur Joe Edwards and KMOX radio host Charles Brennan headed up the fundraising campaign that paid for the 8-foot statue, created by Harry Weber.

As of Thursday or Friday, it should be located at Ackert Plaza along Delmar Boulevard across from Edwards' Blueberry Hill restaurant and bar, the newspaper said.

A formal dedication is to take place July 29.

"The installation of the statue of Chuck Berry in the Loop is appropriate, will be positive for our community and will be one more reason why people who love and respect rock 'n' roll will choose to come to University City," the Post-Dispatch quoted Mayor Shelley Welsch as saying.

Berry, 84, is a St. Louis native known for his hits "Roll Over Beethoven," "Johnny B. Goode" and "Maybellene."