Diva fans gearing up for the Cher Convention

Friday, July 12, 2002 | 10:15 a.m.

What: 2002 Cher Convention.

When: 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday.

Where: Riviera Grande Ballrooms B through D.

Admission: $15.

Information: 734-5110.

In her 1999 dance single "Believe" Cher asks the pivotal question, "Do you believe in life after love?"

For Cher fans the bigger question might be, "Do you believe in life after Cher?"

As the pop diva nears the halfway mark of "Living Proof: The Farewell Tour," her fans are converging in Las Vegas for the 2002 Cher Convention.

The two-day convention, which begins today with a banquet and shows at the Riviera, is a celebration of everything Cher. Several hundred Cher fans from around the world are expected to attend.

Cher memorabilia, a Cher career seminar, Cher impersonators, Cher karaoke, a Sonny & Cher music seminar and a Sonny & Cher museum are among the event's highlights.

The convention is open to the public both days, but the expo is on Saturday.

"There are some people coming to this who have been fans since 1965," said Kim Werdman, spokeswoman for the convention and a longtime Cher fan.

Organizers have been planning the convention following the success of the first Cher convention held two years ago in Chicago. The Chicago convention, complete with Cher bingo, drew more than 700 fans and was formed following the success of "Believe."

"Believe" was released in the fall of 1998 but the single didn't top the charts until the spring of 1999. During the interim fans had bombarded radio stations with e-mails and phone calls requesting the song be played, Werdman said.

"About one month after it hit No. 1 we said, 'We ought to get together and celebrate,' " she added.

The conventions not only provide an opportunity for Cher fans to meet and share Cher, they serve as a fund-raising event for the Children's Craniofacial Association, which strives to improve the quality of life for people with facial deformities.

Cher became national spokeswoman for the Dallas nonprofit organization after starring as the biker mother of a child suffering from the condition in the 1985 movie "Mask."

Proceeds from entrance fees and from auctioned items (even the $5 fee for writing a message to a Cher autograph book that will be given to Cher) will go directly to the organization.

Cher fans will also have a chance to sign petitions that request Cher be inducted into the Rock 'n' Roll Hall of Fame and that she appear on the cover of Rolling Stone magazine.

Some fans who attend the conventions had met prior to the event through chat rooms on the websites cher.com and chertalk.com, Werdman said. Some had already connected with each other after recognizing familiar faces each night of the Cher shows held in Las Vegas.

"You'd go to the first concert and everybody was new," Werdman said. "You'd go to the second concert, you'd recognize them. The third night you'd see them and you'd say, 'You're a fan.' "

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