Down the tubes for Gene Kelly project

1.00pm

Organisers of a project to memorialise Pittsburgh's native son Gene Kelly haven't had much to sing about in more than a year.

A plan to put up a statue of the choreographer, director and actor most beloved for the film Singin' in the Rain has been on hold since late 2002. And Kelly's widow has yet to give the necessary approval.

The Gene Kelly Statue Project hasn't heard from Patricia Ward Kelly, who lives in Los Angeles, in more than a year, said Aviva Radbord, co-founder of the project.

"We're prepared to continue our work, but we have heard rumours that she has decided to do something on her own," Radbord said. "We're in the dark."

There were arguments about the location and design of the project, announced in 2001 as a tribute to Gene Kelly, who died in 1996 aged 83.