Thank you.
This is CNN.
This is Larry King.
Welcome to CNN Millennium 2000.
This New Year's, see more, experience more, know more.
Be a part of history in the making.
CNN brings you the world at 2000, hour by hour, moment by moment, as a new century and a new millennium unfold.
We'll bring you the first moment of the new millennium from Kuribati in the Pacific,
and then we'll follow midnight around the world from Auckland, New Zealand, to the South Pole,
to the Fiji Islands, Australia, Tokyo, Beijing, New Delhi, Red Square, the Egyptian pyramids, Jerusalem, Johannesburg, Rome,
Paris, Lagos, Nigeria, Rio de Janeiro, and across the United States, from Times Square to Chicago,
across the Midwest and the South, to Texas, Los Angeles, Honolulu.
With more than 50 CNN correspondents, including,
As the clock strikes midnight around the world, we'll be there to bring you the celebrations and the spectacles.
Join CNN to ring in the new year, the new century, and the new millennium.
Spend New Year 2000 with the world.
This is Friday, December 31st, the last day of 1999, and we are now on the eve of a new year and of a new century.
That's right, and CNN is bringing you the most extensive coverage possible.
60 correspondents and hundreds behind the cameras are set to bring it to you live, as only CNN can do.
That's right, so hold on tight folks, we're going to take you all around the globe, sweeping across all 25 time zones.
The first people to ring in the year 2000 on Earth are on Kiribati Island in the South Pacific.
Now, to mark this occasion, part of the area has been renamed Millennium Island.
It used to be Caroline Island, now it is Millennium Island.
Ceremonies with tribal dancing and music and a lot of chanting will usher in the new year there.
It's a major undertaking for the island because it's normally unpopulated.
They actually changed the way the dateline goes through that group of islands,
actually extended it out to include Millennium Island so that they could lay claim to being one of the first places to see the new millennium.
And you're actually looking at live pictures now from the Kiribati Islands where 70 performers have traveled for some three weeks,
some of them even coming by canoes to get to this island called Millennium Island for the celebrations that you're looking at now.
It's a Micronesian celebration of hope.
You're looking at a very traditional celebration going on there.
That's one of the wonderful things about our coverage, you're going to see things that are very traditional like this, very modern.
This is an ancient ceremony going on on Millennium Island by the Micronesian people who live there.
The Micronesians are from the very small islands in this Pacific area.
The claps are part of their chant and the song that they're singing is a song asking for unity in the new millennium.
And they apparently have it because they are now unified and they are all together dancing and chanting and it is now 2000.
It's January 1st, the year 2000 of the island of Kiribati.
You're now seeing the pictures there, the first pictures of the millennium.
Right, and now we want to take you to another region, this is a region actually of New Zealand,
about 800 kilometres south of New Zealand to the Chatham Islands where Millennium celebrations are about to get underway and our Mike Chinoy is there.
This is Mike Chinoy on New Zealand's Chatham Islands, 800 kilometres out in the South Pacific Ocean.
Let's listen and watch.
It's the Chatham Islands!
I want to show you some of the pictures that we're getting in from New Zealand, another one of these Millennium marriages.
We're seeing couples on the islands there in that part of the ocean, in the part of the world,
all racing to be the first married couples of the new millennium.
There you're seeing a couple tying the knot in Auckland, New Zealand.
No better way to do it.
We're starting to see some fireworks now as well that are starting to light up the sky.
This is the largest fireworks display ever in New Zealand.
Each one of these shells that you see weighs about 70 kilos and is about 24 inches long.
There was some concern that we wouldn't be able to see some of the higher fireworks here because of the cloud cover.
It has been raining in New Zealand most of the day.
But as you can see, the sky is definitely illuminated in Auckland as the year 2000 has arrived.
You are watching an incredible fireworks display to usher in the new millennium in New Zealand's largest city and its largest port.
See it has Tom Menteer standing by in Auckland, New Zealand.
And we believe that we may have an announcement or two coming from down there.
Tom, what's going on?
We do, Leon. I do have the STORC report for you.
At one minute after midnight, the first child was born and about 14 minutes later the second,
the first being a boy born here in Auckland, in West Auckland in the hospital, mother and son doing fine.
14 minutes later, a baby girl was born in Christchurch, New Zealand.
Mother and daughter both doing fine.
The year 2000 falls on a midsummer's night in Sydney, although it is a bit cool and windy there.
Well, Sydney greets the new year with a $3.5 million fireworks display that should warm things up.
And that's going to be launched from the Harbour Bridge and the Opera House.
And CNN's Michael Holmes is in Sydney and joins us now live. Michael?
You're looking at a beautiful picture there, Colleen, of the Opera House and the Sydney Harbour Bridge.
It's ironic, you know, that the Opera House now considered one of Australia's icons.
And the first of the fireworks have begun. Magnificent.
And the first of the fireworks have begun.
And the first of the fireworks have begun.
The year 2000 in Sydney, Australia.
A magnificent fireworks display underway here. It will continue for 23 minutes and will cost some $3.5 million.
They're claiming it's going to be the biggest fireworks display on Earth.
And you can see in your picture there, even the Opera House taking part.
It's the first and only time the Opera House will be used to launch fireworks.
It's the first and only time the Opera House will be used to launch fireworks.
This is the largest fireworks display ever seen in Australia and, they say, around the world.
It covers seven kilometres from east to west. There's something like six barges out there firing fireworks,
all fired by a central computer which, now that it's after midnight, we assume is Y2K compliant.
The largest burst, by the way, is a 16-inch shell which will shoot more than a kilometre into the sky.
Twenty tonnes of fireworks set off to mark the new century.
There's been a big crowd here since the day. Yeah, I've never seen such a big crowd.
I've got you under my skin.
There ain't nothing but a hound dogger, hound dogger.
Diamonds all over the place.
And my old friend, it's been a hard day tonight.
Round, round, get around, I get around.
Fireworks are on, as you can see, and they're playing a medley of music,
most of it modern from the 20th century and most of it from America.
Look at that vantage shot. Apparently it's a helicopter shot they got above the fireworks.
An incredible shot there.
When my baby smiles at me, I go to Rio.
I push because I'm close to the edge.
Sydney, Australia, as an enormous firework goes off there, brings in the new millennium.
It's a magnificent display, as you can see.
The man who designed this fireworks display, by the way, is the man who designed the opening and closing ceremonies
for the Los Angeles and Barcelona Olympics. His name is Rick Burch.
He'll also be doing the Sydney Olympics this year. That'll be in September.
The crowds around the harbour, they are going crazy here.
There's all the ooh-ing and ah-ing that Tom Minter referred to from Auckland just an hour or two ago.
Lots of cheering. People are setting off their own firecrackers as well,
hardly competing with what you're seeing now.
Twenty tonnes of fireworks going up over Sydney Harbour right now.
The smiley face on the bridge there was brought in last year.
Later we will see the word eternity.
You know, I've been looking around the crowd, the traditional New Year's hugging and kissing.
Nobody's doing it. They're all watching the fireworks.
You know, a major credit card company did a survey in Europe of Europeans, a rather large survey,
and found that the place most Europeans wanted to spend this moment was right here in Sydney, Australia.
And there are a lot of visitors here. You know, another interesting fact is that there are a lot of people,
some several hundred, who will watch tonight's magnificent fireworks display here in Sydney
and get on a plane in a few hours and fly to Hawaii, where they will cross the international deadline
and get to do it all over again.
We're now awaiting the largest firework of all, this massive 16-inch shell,
which we're told will spread fireworks over 400 metres.
Absolutely enormous, and it should be going off any minute now.
And it was indeed huge.
Just to give you a sense of how big this current display is,
the harbour bridge is a kilometre wide, and look at it, completely lit up.
A kilometre wide shower of fireworks.
And just as a sidebar, I can record, as Tom Menteer did from Auckland,
and it is now nearly 25 minutes past midnight here in Sydney.
There's probably a dozen buildings in the city too, which you may or may not be able to see at the moment,
that are all shooting fireworks at the moment. Very spectacular.
The whole display is probably covering something like seven miles, by my reckoning.
Magnificent.
It is less than two minutes until midnight in much of East Asia,
where some of the 20th century's most productive economies and bitterest rivals will pause for the new millennium.
CNN's coverage takes us live to Japan and South Korea for the countdown to 2000.
We'll be in Tokyo for a religious ceremony that will literally ring in the new year,
and the new century begins over a divided Korea will go live to Seoul.
And the dawn of the new millennium goes across Asia now.
The speakers live both from Tokyo and from Seoul, South Korea.
We'll be visiting both cities as our coverage continues.
Right now we're following the dawn of the new millennium in Tokyo,
and we bring in our Tokyo bureau chief, that is Marina Kamamura.
She's been covering the story for us, and she joins us now with more. Marina.
The lights have just been dimmed here on the grounds of Zojoji Temple,
now that we're into the final seconds of 1999 here in Japan.
You can hear the crowd getting extremely excited. They've got 5,000 clear balloons prepared here,
with wishes attached for what they want to come true in the new millennium.
Here comes the countdown now. Let's listen in.
And there you have it, the new year in Tokyo.
As they say here in Japanese, or Happy New Year from Japan,
what you just heard was the ringing of a massive bell.
As you can see behind me now, Tokyo Tower is also lit in some brilliant colors.
It's got a 2000 sign on it, a 2000 sign also adorning the main temple of Zojoji Temple here.
You can see the balloons heading off into the atmosphere.
5,000 balloons were prepared for this occasion.
They're clear plastic balloons that we're told are friendly for the atmosphere,
and as I said, they're containing these little messages,
personal wishes from the Japanese that set them off.
We spoke to some people earlier on.
Some said they were simply wishing for good entrance exams,
good results for entrance exams next year.
Others, of course, making wishes for better prosperity, better times for the Japanese economy,
which as you know has been going through some difficult times.
In any case, absolute excitement here as Japan welcomes the new millennium.
Marina Kamamura covering the story for us in Tokyo.
We'll ask you to stand by as that party goes on.
And now for another part of Asia, here's Jim.
Well, we want to go straight across the Sea of Japan to South Korea,
take a look at some of the live pictures that are coming into us there.
Of course, the Korea's, the first baby born in Seoul is now being displayed on the television feed from there.
And we don't know what the name of this child is yet,
but all around the world we're hearing these reports of first babies.
There have been street celebrations as well,
but I'm sure for the parents of this little boy or little girl
that there's no celebration greater than the one that's going to be in their arms this day.
And look at that.
We saw President Kim Dae-jung there presiding over the festivities,
fireworks and cheers from thousands upon thousands of people that line the streets in Seoul.
And then we heard Korea had its first millennium baby.
We even saw some live pictures of that when we were able to get to them
because we were in Tokyo looking at events there.
And that is how it went at the stroke of midnight in Seoul, South Korea.
Let's take a closer look now at what's going on in Beijing.
Just a few moments ago we saw President Zhang Jemin greeting people there outside the Millennium Tower.
You can see the shower of fireworks.
And we want to bring in now CNN's Beijing Bureau Chief Rebecca McKinnon for the latest.
Rebecca, can you hear me?
Yes, I can hear you, Tim.
A massive song and dance extravaganza is underway at the same time as a massive fireworks display.
Right at the stroke of midnight, Chinese President Zhang Jemin lit a flame.
It's going to be kept lit, supposedly eternally.
It's called the eternal flame of the Chinese people.
And it's meant to represent 5,000 years, nearly 5,000 years of continuous Chinese civilization.
It was very interesting during Chinese President Zhang Jemin's speech.
He reminded the Chinese people and the world that a millennium ago, a thousand years ago,
China was in fact the most advanced civilization on earth.
He mentioned that China fell behind in the latter part of this past millennium.
It was surpassed technologically and in other ways by Western countries.
But he said that under the guidance of the Chinese Communist Party,
thanks to the communist revolution under Chairman Mao Zedong 50 years ago,
he said that he was fully confident that China would rise again.
This entire ceremony is full of nationalistic themes.
It is showing the Chinese pride in their very long culture.
One other theme that is very prevalent during this ceremony are dragons.
The coming year, which in February of this coming year, there will be the Chinese New Year,
which will mark the beginning of the year of the dragon.
Now the year of the dragon comes every 12 years,
and it is considered by Chinese lore to be a very special year, but also in many cases a turbulent year.
12 years ago was in 1988, there were massive student demonstrations very soon after.
24 years ago, two dragon years ago, marked the death of Chinese Chairman Mao Zedong
and a major upheaval and also a major earthquake killing hundreds of thousands of people.
So in many ways China is entering the millennium full of hope,
both for its country and also for the coming year and hoping that it will be a lucky year.
He's saying that the ceremonies are now officially over,
and the Chinese leaders will be leaving the scene as the crowds here cheer them on.
CNN's Beijing Bureau Chief Rebecca McKinnon there.
Quite a celebration on in Beijing, a celebration as well in Hong Kong.
Let's go there now and take a look at the festivities.
CNN's Karuna Shinshou is standing by to give us the latest with a look at the harbor and the celebrations underway.
That is right Jim, you're looking at the famous Hong Kong skyline.
It's about what, a minute past the midnight hour, and it is now officially the new year here in Hong Kong.
Authorities here were saying that they were expecting about 1.2 million people to be out on the streets tonight,
out here on the promenade in front of the skyline.
There are thousands of people milling around,
and we are now going to the Happy Valley Racecourse I believe,
which is the official event the Hong Kong government has put on here.
And you are seeing Jackie Chan I believe, actor Jackie Chan, flying in to the stage right now.
And we are now back to the skyline here.
As I was mentioning earlier, they're expecting over a million people to be out here.
Thousands are about here, and earlier when the clock hit the hour, there were lots of cheers out here,
and obviously as Rebecca was mentioning earlier, there's a sense of optimism and sense of hope here
that perhaps the year 2000 will be a good year for everyone here.
You're looking at live pictures from Bangkok, Thailand,
and it is also midnight in Jakarta, Indonesia,
two spots in the world that are now celebrating a new millennium.
In other parts of the world, in addition to Thailand, they are celebrating midnight right now.
Let's go live to Jakarta, Indonesia.
Indonesia, we should note, is the world's largest Muslim nation, so this isn't New Year's there either.
We're in the ninth month of the Muslim calendar, Ramadan,
so one thing religious authorities in Indonesia have been careful to remind people
is to keep their mind on this as a holy time, not just a party time,
but it looks from this image that the partiers are winning in this corner of Indonesia at least.
It is the world's largest democracy with nearly a billion residents.
The new century starts in India in less than four minutes,
and CNN takes you there as Millennium 2000 moves across the rapidly growing subcontinent.
Everything is perked up here in New Delhi, thousands of people out in the streets,
and everywhere that you can see there is a new edge, there is a new festivity.
We are now waiting, and in just about a minute, the world's largest democracy,
home to one billion people, that's one in six people in the world,
will usher in the new year, the new millennium.
It is a dramatic time in Moscow. You see Red Square celebrating this moment.
The fireworks in the less than 20 seconds now to midnight in Moscow.
It has been a day of dramatic events.
In terms of the Moscow government, we're not even sure how much of Russia knows
what has happened to its leadership in the course of this day.
You watch the final seconds now to midnight.
As you see, the celebration, more than a million people expected to turn out.
As you see, the fireworks, the pyrotechnics going off throughout the area,
round Red Square there in Moscow, a great celebration.
This is the area that is the traditional celebration point for events in Moscow.
But this is also a dramatic day in terms of events for that city and for the country.
It's been an extraordinarily dramatic day, a change of government.
In fact, Boris Yeltsin decided to close out the 20th century by closing out his presidency
and passing the reins to a younger and more vital leader,
at least in an interim basis, on an acting basis,
apparently counting on the fact of some political momentum to carry him, Mr. Putin,
into the 21st century, elections within 90 days.
Vladimir Putin, the president, Mr. Yeltsin's hand-selected prime minister and now successor.
There has been great debate about Mr. Putin's future.
The elections were originally expected in June, but they will be moved up now to three months.
And since Mr. Yeltsin did select Mr. Putin himself,
it does put him in the catbird seat going into that time.
And for those who watch these events and for those who watch Russia and Moscow
and such things, this becomes a truly, truly transitional moment in this country.
It is far more than just these fireworks we're seeing, Joey.
It is really about the direction of the nation.
Pilgrims from all over the world are gathering in Jerusalem and in Bethlehem.
Egypt will use the Millennium celebrations to show off its pyramids,
its old pyramids and a new light.
And new freedom will be on display as South Africa looks with hope
away from a century of apartheid and toward a century of equality.
All of that's coming up as our coverage of Millennium 2000 continues right now.
And here you see in your split screen, Bethlehem, Giza, Egypt,
the site of the great pyramids and South Africa,
all of which are preparing to usher in the new year.
You see the excitement at Giza now, this huge celebration,
a spectacular showing of lights and fireworks, pyrotechnics there.
We'll see more in a moment.
Let us watch this. You know, part of this show,
2000 school children will be entering this site,
each with a candle, each to mark a year.
And there it is.
They haven't had a little problem in Giza with the weather,
but you can see parked right in the center of your screen,
the Sphinx, the standing figure of the ages
against these modern lights in this modern show.
And let me tell you what the Egyptians had to say
when they issued invitations to this event.
If you were lucky enough to receive one in the mail,
it said Caesar stood here, so did Napoleon.
It's the sole surviving member of the Seven Wonders of the World.
And now you and your friends can greet the year 2000
as the sun rises up out of the African desert
and seven millennia of Egyptian history.
Looking down to another picture, another scene
where history has been so much a part of the community,
that would be Bethlehem in the lower part of your screen there.
You see the celebration started out subdued
and actually fairly political in Bethlehem earlier in the evening,
but has now launched into full celebration and excitement,
marking this historic occasion.
It will culminate with the release of 2000 doves,
one for each year in great hopes for peace.
And in fact, the Middle East is at a very dramatic moment
on the threshold of peace,
or the hopes of those who live and work in this region,
as the Israelis and the Syrians will mark the new year,
January 3rd as a matter of fact,
by gathering in Washington, just outside of Washington actually,
to start some very dramatic peace talks.
Joey in Manger Square as well.
The celebrations are going to include a special performance for Ramadan,
short Palestinian films, and a hundred strong children's choir,
which will sing an ode to religious tolerance,
as a message the world very much wants to hear.
It certainly is a balancing act, Frank, for Bethlehem
to engage all the different faith and culture
that comes together in this particular community.
Of course, we know that this is the end of Ramadan,
and so for the Muslim faith, an important holiday.
Of course, this is also the Jewish Sabbath,
and so there had been a great deal of concern
about the level of celebration.
And it is midnight in Bethlehem, as you see,
and the year 2000 has arrived on the Gregorian calendar,
and Walt Rogers is right there.
Walter?
Frank, it was an amazing night here.
The fireworks are still resounding through the air
in Bethlehem's Manger Square,
but at the very same time, and just a few moments ago,
the Palestinians released 2,000 doves,
white pigeons, symbols of peace, into the air.
At the same time, they were setting off fireworks.
Still, perhaps these doves were sent out as symbols of peace.
The doves prefigure perhaps a new Middle East.
Bill Delaney is down on the square here
in Manger Square in Bethlehem.
Bill, what's it like in the crowd?
I don't know if you can hear me there.
Maybe I think we just kicked in there.
We're in venerable Manger Square.
It's never quite seen a night like this.
As we move into the year 2000,
the strains of Beethoven's 9th mingling
with this cataclysm of firecrackers
that has been blasting over our heads.
Otherwise, very much a subdued crowd.
They're looking up at the firecrackers.
This has been a long night of a lot of speeches,
a lot of politics intermingled
with the celebrations here tonight.
And as we look out across the crowd,
one thing you think is this is such a very old place.
As I said, this night of celebration
also laced throughout with politics
now turning much more to festivity
than what we've seen all night.
We'll go back up to you, Walter Rogers,
in the municipality just above my head.
Thanks, Bill.
You can hear the strains of Beethoven's
Ode to Joy, the night symphony
floating through Bethlehem's Manger Square
intermingled with the fireworks.
Perhaps that's a bit of Tchaikovsky's 1812 overture.
The fireworks have been blasting
for over five minutes now.
The fireworks have been blasting
over five minutes now
over the Church of the Nativity
in Bethlehem's Manger Square.
Perhaps a little risky.
That church has had roof fires before,
but perhaps tonight
we'll be blessed with good fortune.
A joyous event here in Bethlehem,
the cradle of the millennium,
the birthplace of the millennium,
the fireworks being ignited
over the Church of the Nativity,
a fourth-century church
built in the reign of the emperor Constantine
over the traditional site of Jesus' birthplace.
Frank?
Walter and Joey, you know,
after all the concern that's been expressed
about security, about Y2K,
you're struck when you see this
that it really is an ode to joy.
It really is a moment to celebrate
and to ponder what the future may hold.
As Walter pointed out, prospects for peace,
clearly the hopes of those who are gathered there
very much hinge on a better tomorrow.
Yes, and if you think about the words,
the ode to joy,
let each man and every nation live in peace and brotherhood,
and I think they are attempting that tonight.
The dog's notwithstanding.
Let's go now, as you see in the upper part of your screen,
to Giza, the Great Pyramids there,
and you see the celebration.
Let's see, dusk to dawn celebration
at the pyramids
with the music of the French composer
Jean-Michel Jarre,
who had developed
this all-night program
of music, song involving
hundreds of children, thousands of children.
The 12 Dreams of the Sun called this
with each act culminating
at a point of midnight,
at a point of the New Year being ushered in
somewhere in the world.
And of course, the pyramids are associated
with the sun, the important god
to the Egyptians, the sun god Ra,
also an important inspiration
for Jean-Michel Jarre as he
developed this particular composition
for this event, a dramatic one
that is said to draw some 50,000 people
to the Giza Plateau.
And Joey, there had been talk, very, very serious talk
of a helicopter coming in and placing a
golden cap on the Great Pyramid
just as midnight approached. Now that was
scrapped because these are precious relics,
wonders of the world,
and there was great concern that that could cause
damage to the structure.
This is one of the three main events
of the world that international travelers wanted to go to
for the millennium. Well, you can certainly see
why, and the light show that
is promised up against the pyramids
is something that we have yet to
see here, but clearly
the significance of
these structures, the ancient
civilization that emanated from
Egypt itself, the fact that Egypt
is celebrating its seventh millennium
as the world marking on the Gregorian
calendar celebrates
the year 2000, it makes this
a key, a key
location. And we should remember, not everybody's
calendar, at least culturally and religiously,
is tuned into the year 2000 and
where the Gregorian calendar sits.
For the Jewish calendar, it's another
240 years.
This is before another millennium strikes.
It's 5760 on the
Jewish calendar. Muslim calendar,
it's the year
2020. And there are, of
course, different new years celebrated
marked by each of those cultures.
We want to move over
now to another part of the world, to Pretoria
in South Africa. The
celebration underway there,
there's been a big celebration by Cape Town
at Robben Island, which of course
has great significance to
the South African leadership, to Mr. Mandela,
of course, to Thabo Mbeki as well, both
who were held as political prisoners at
Robben Island for many, many years themselves.
This really is an event which
marks South Africa's emergence,
trying to emerge into an African
millennium, one that has been emphasized by
the leadership of South Africa in its
planning for this particular millennium celebration.
Seen in Charlayne, Hunter Gault
is following events in Johannesburg
now. She joins us from there.
Charlayne.
Hello to everybody and happy
New Year. It's raining here in
Johannesburg, but in Africa, rain is
a very good sign. And
indeed, we have seen tonight
Nelson Mandela, the man who
represents the greatest hope
for South Africa,
who has represented the greatest hope for South
Africa in the future,
celebrating the coming millennium
in the very place where he stayed
for so many years, 18
years, as a prisoner of
conscience, trying to liberate his
people. Tonight he joined,
I'm told, some 10,000 people
on Robben Island
to commemorate
what has gone on in the past
and to look forward with the new
president of South Africa, Thabo Mbeki.
They passed a
symbolic torch, a
lighted candle, President Mandela
to President Mbeki
to symbolize what
President Mbeki has called
the coming of the African century, the
African renaissance.
We're looking at
four very historic places
there, Paris, Berlin, Rome,
Lagos, Nigeria. Three of the great
capitals of Europe, the city of
lights, Berlin, as we said, the
Brandenburg Gate, the center of celebrations there,
and again, at St. Peter's Square,
looking at the thousands who have
thronged there. Also, though, this
hour, we're going to look at Lagos, Nigeria.
We're going to move on now to Paris,
elsewhere, one of the other great capitals of
Europe. Paris, where there has been
a little bit of a problem
on the Champs-Elysees, but, of course, the
Parisians have style and must have some way to
handle the little clock problem. CNN's
Jim Bitterman is there to explain it to us, Jim.
Joy, absolutely true. The big clock
over on the Eiffel Tower has stopped
this evening just five hours
before midnight after successfully counting
down for more than a thousand days
just five hours before midnight had stopped.
I'm speaking to you, as you mentioned,
from the Avenue des Champs-Elysees, where
all the celebrations are going to be taking
place this evening. In fact,
I'm speaking from the very building where Thomas
Jefferson, who back then was an
American diplomat at Paris, passed
his first New Year's 211
years ago in Paris.
It's also, if we can get the camera
to take a picture down the street here, you may
just be able to see off in the distance
beyond the ferris wheels there,
the Louvre Museum, which back
then was called the Tuileries Palace, where
kings and emperors from Philippe Auguste
to Napoleon III
passed their New Year's.
This has always been the avenue where
the French have come to celebrate,
even if tonight's celebrations are a bit
low-key. The fireworks
will slowly climb
up the side of the Eiffel Tower,
being launched
from 8,000 different positions
along the sides
of the Eiffel Tower.
Sort of think of this as a shuttle
launch with warm-up and then blast-off.
And in Rome,
they're waiting too with anticipation.
Counting down.
Counting down at Rome as
well for the Pope's Urbiate
Urbi message, the message of the Pope
to the city and to the world as well.
There you see Square
at St. Peter's. You see some of the fireworks
in the background. Rome, a city which
has undergone a major renovation.
Also in Berlin, midnight
is nigh. That from the Brandenburg
Gate and elsewhere, the Brandenburg Gate, not far
from where Ronald Reagan said once upon a time,
not very many years ago, Mr. Gorbachev
teared down this wall, and that
too changed history.
There you see the Brandenburg Gate, which
stands for so much and speaks so
loudly about this period of
world history we're in and entering now.
It's coming up on a minute before
midnight here, and we're looking at two of the great
celebrations, one at Rome, one at Paris.
Of course, the Paris one seems to be
contained with the great pyrotechnics,
as Jim Bitterman told us. They say that the Eiffel
Tower will rock, or it looks like it's at least
going to dance as this thing
looks like it's going to take off. And in fact, I understand
that the fireworks have been pointed
downward, aimed downward in an attempt
to make it look as though this is in
fact a rocket ship. Well, you know, Joey,
we heard Jim Bitterman talking about the mountain climbers.
In fact, they had mountain climbers carrying
20,000 light bulbs scaling that
thing to wire this up. 800
strings of lights, 20,000
firework launches over this
monument. So what you're seeing here is a
warm-up of what is going to be a very dramatic
millennial act. And the clock
doesn't work, but I don't think it
matters at this point. Ours does. Ours does.
It's 22 minutes to midnight. I don't know
if the folks in Paris can see our clock,
but their clock on the Tour de Félandes
does not work at this point, probably
caused by the weather problems they had earlier.
And down on the left-hand side of your screen, you see
a picture of St. Peter's Square
there, where the Pope, as you mentioned, Joey, is going
to be talking to
those assembled and the world, offering
his vision of the new century
and the new millennium.
An important message to hear from the Pope.
There goes the eye for time.
Let's watch.
Let's go.
The Pope is here.
The Pope appearing before the
mass crowds there at
St. Peter's Square, giving
a brief message, his Urbian army message,
one he gives every year at this time.
But you are also
looking as well at the celebration in Paris.
We're trying to show you both
of these major events happening at the same time,
of course, as midnight comes to Western
Europe, both in Paris and in Rome,
as well as in Berlin, which we'll see in a moment,
the excitement there. But this,
at the City of Lights, is quite
a visual demonstration.
This is a relatively
shorter message that the Pope will give.
He will give another one at dawn at
the Vatican, at Vatican City,
as well, laying out further his
thoughts and his prayers and his hopes
for the new millennium as well.
And this Polish born, part of who himself
has seen so much change
and so much upheaval
in his lifetime, from World War II
and the tumult
and turmoil that
wrecked his native land of Poland
right on through
the communist period and
solidarity, which he
encouraged from the sidelines,
which the Catholic Church was
so instrumental in supporting.
Finally, Poland throwing off
the yoke of communism along with the rest of
Eastern Europe. And now, Joey, to
Madrid, as our tour continues.
It's going to be good. You don't have to pay for it.
We'll take you all over Europe and the world.
This is the Puerto del Sol Plaza,
which is considered the center,
the geographic center of this wonderful
city of Madrid, as they
commemorate midnight there
as well with fireworks
and I think we could say
literally a star-studded gas.
Stars over the skies there in Spain.
I want to move
a little bit further south to Lagos
in Nigeria. A party, something
dance party underway in
Lagos. This is a square
in the capital, well, in the
traditional capital of Nigeria,
which is Lagos. The country now has an
official capital at Abuja,
but this is a
ceremony in the place
where Nigerians have traditionally gone
to celebrate and share their
joy. This has been, of course,
an interesting political year for Nigeria.
A rich and culturally diverse
society in its own right. About 114
million people or so
have religiously divided.
About 50% Muslim in this country,
40% Christian, 10%
indigenous beliefs.
CNN's Jim Bitterman is out on the street.
I can't imagine, Jim, that the party could be
over. The party
is not over by any means.
In fact, Joey, no, the party
looks like it's just beginning. In fact,
what's happened here is that I think a lot of
people who were over at the Eiffel Tower,
which is about a mile from here,
over at the Eiffel Tower for the big
fireworks display have now gravitated
in this direction and are now filling in
the Champs-Elysees. There's going to be
celebrations all throughout the night here
and they're going to move tomorrow.
There's going to be a rather
major parade that starts about 2 o'clock
in the afternoon involving about
5,000 people parading through the streets
and the boulevards of Paris. So it is
a weekend here
of action in Paris.
I think it may be perhaps raising French
spirits after the week that they've been through
after these terrible storms that have swept
through Paris.
All right, Jim Bitterman, in Paris. We want to take it
to Berlin now. And Bettina Luzer,
who's there for us. Bettina?
Amazing pictures here at the Berlin Brandenburg Gate.
This old symbol of
the division of Europe,
a symbol of the Cold War tonight.
This place of celebration
as the Germans are looking forward
to a new century, a century
that they hope will be peaceful.
The Brandenburg Gate
was of course in the
old east of Berlin. At the other
side of the four and a half
kilometer long street party
is the Victory Column, and all
in between are hundreds of
thousands of people. And
they are celebrating that the century
is over. They're looking with optimism
to the future. But when you talk to the people
they mainly say that they hope for health
and for peace. Joey, Frank?
CNN's Bettina Luzer
reporting to us from Berlin. The
festivities there underway, inaugurating a new
Germany, a new century for Germany as well.
Indeed, a welcome new century. And we're about 30
minutes away from midnight
Greenwich Mean Time, which means 30 minutes
away from midnight in London, England.
Greenwich Mean Time, where we are right now, is the
Greenwich Meridian, considers itself
the arbiter of universal time, and as
such, considers the millennium will not
start officially until it starts
here. With that in mind, the British
over the last few years have been determined
to make the biggest and the best splash for
the millennium, and the centerpiece of their
party is the dome, the millennium dome
where we are right now. This
incredible structure, which you can see
from our overhead camera, but it
has taken many, many months, almost a
year to build. It's supported by these 12
huge pylons. It's an enormous,
the world's biggest roofed
structure, twice the size of
the Georgia Dome in Atlanta, which until now
was the biggest roofed structure.
The titbits say that it can contain
the Great Pyramid of Giza, the
Eiffel Tower on its side, and indeed
18,000 of those red
double-decker buses. That huge
material that
covers it spans about 50 meters
and it can even move, if there is
a hurricane, it can move about 3
feet higher to accommodate any
high winds. Now, you're watching the
London Beacon, which has already been
illuminated by the Queen. She
sort of flipped a laser switch, if you like,
from a barge on the river and
that has triggered the lighting of that
beacon. After this beacon is lit
and it's huge, really very wide
and very tall, this beacon,
3,000 or so around
England, Scotland,
Wales will also be lit.
So this is really the
beacon, a theme, if you like,
of the millennium celebrations here
in England. We've heard the Prime Minister, Tony Blair,
over and over again talk about
Britain being the beacon
for the world. So this is a great
example of that. As we get
closer,
people will start the countdown.
We're looking right now at Trafalgar Square,
traditionally the British party zone
on New Year's Eve. They were going
to freeze Trafalgar Square and make it
into a giant skating rink for the evening,
but that proved too difficult and too
expensive. Nonetheless, you can see
that people are crowding into Trafalgar Square,
as they also are along the banks
of the river. Great street parties have been
held in London along the
banks of the River Thames, and
the people there obviously hope that their
patience will pay off, because this is the site
of what has been built as
the greatest pyrotechnics of
the world's millennium celebrations.
There will be what is known as a river of fire,
the illusion of a fire wall
racing up the Thames
at the speed of sound.
There will also be a 15
minute millennium
spectacular fireworks. Let's listen
as we head into the countdown.
Music
Music
Music
If you had any doubt that this is the largest fireworks demonstration you have ever seen,
let us assure you that this, in fact, is the case.
In fact, they claim that this is such an elaborate demonstration of the pyrotechnic power of
the British that you would be able to see this from space if you had been in space to
watch all this.
It's 39 tons of fireworks, all operated by remote control, and you can see on the River
Thames, they put them out on the barges for safety and then lit them by remote control.
There were 16 barges up and down the Thames and a light show, as you can still see remnants
of that.
And I actually believe that you might have been able to see this from space.
Christian, we're looking at the River Thames and know that you are just down the way a
bit from where the location is on the beacon.
It is extraordinary to think that over the past 24 hours we've watched, for the first
time in the history of our planet, all peoples of the world, different nationalities, different
cultures, different religions, celebrate the same event.
This is Larry King in Los Angeles, it's midnight, approaching in the Western Hemisphere and
the first city to get it, major city, is Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Copacabana-Cabiche.
There is the scene, it's summer in Brazil, and it's five seconds to go.
Let's watch together.
Two thousand has arrived in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, and in the Western Hemisphere, and
there you see the celebration in one of the world's more beautiful cities.
What a day this has been.
CNN brilliantly, I think, has covered this.
We're going to check in momentarily with Charles Ziwe, who is on the scene in Rio de Janeiro.
There's the fireworks going off at Copacabana Beach, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, two thousand
has arrived.
Charles Ziwe, where are you and what's happening?
Larry, I'm standing in the surf here on Copacabana Beach, and the third millennium, Larry, has
arrived in the Americas.
This is the scene, fireworks overhead, beautiful fireworks in the colors of the Brazilian flag
of yellow and green.
This is supposed to go on for about eighteen minutes before it finally finishes in a twenty
thousand shell explosion of gold and silver and white shells.
Two million, perhaps as many as three million, two million people are on the beach here.
They're saying it could be three million, five million overall in Brazil on beaches
here, tourists, Brazilians alike.
They call them cariocas.
This is a country that is celebrating what it hopes will be a new birth of its economy
in the new millennium.
Brazil has long been considered a third world country, but the president of Brazil told
me today he hopes this New Year's marks the end of that, that this country will go and
become a modern country.
This is still a country, though, where most of the people earn only a hundred and sixty
five rials a month, that's about the equivalent of seventy five U.S. dollars.
So here's the scene.
This is expected.
This party is expected to go on all night long.
Larry.
Thanks, Charles.
There's the scene in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, that is, as he said, it's expected to go on
all night long.
It is summer there, isn't it, Charles?
It is summer.
What you're watching right now, Eric, this is a tribute that most Brazilians who are
wearing white down here on the beach engage in.
They are throwing waters.
This woman dousing herself with champagne.
This is in a tribute to La Mangia.
She is a mythical god of the sea.
This is a custom that is a couple of hundred years old, perhaps older here in Brazil.
It is meant to bring good luck and health and happiness in the New Year.
This is a combination of carnival and New Year's and the biggest party you've ever seen
all rolled into one here.
This summertime, people have been enjoying the beach, no Y2K worries here.
People have been more intent on having one heck of a party, and you can see they're doing
that right now.
One other thing, Charles, why the white?
Why is everyone in white?
It has to do with tradition, Larry.
They're called cariocas, which is an Indian term that means white hut.
When the Portuguese first discovered Brazil and settled Brazil 500 years ago, and this,
by the way, is the 500th birthday of Brazil, they built white huts on the beach.
It's an Indian term that got adopted here.
That's why they're wearing white tonight.
The officials here have been organizing this celebration, have said that they expect at
least three million people along Copacabana Beach was about two miles long, shaped in
a crescent here in Rio, and another two, maybe three million on other beaches in Brazil.
Thanks, Charles.
Charles Ziwe on the scene.
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
It's the year 2000 in the Western Hemisphere.
In the two big cities we are focusing on at this hour, New York City and Washington, D.C.,
two of CNN's very finest, Fred Hickman and Wolf Blitzer, and we are setting you two up.
We want you two to tell us why your city has the biggest celebration.
Well, considering this is New York, Wolf, I think I should go first.
All right.
Go ahead, Fred.
I mean, you know, you look around, we have two million people here looking back behind
me toward the south, past One Time Square, all the way back to 34th Street, and then
back north, all the way down to 59th, 6th Avenue, 8th Avenue.
It is wall-to-wall people down here, and they're well-behaved.
They're having a great time, and if that's not enough for you, I've got the great balloons
going on down here.
I've got 160 puppets going.
I have 24 different Broadway shows that have gone on today.
Pyro Technics out the wazoo when midnight hits.
I've got a crystal ball up on top.
If that's not enough, I've got 7,000 gallons of coffee donated by Timothy's delicatessen
all ready to go.
Now, how can you top that?
Well, Fred, I've got Muhammad Ali and Elizabeth Taylor here in addition to the President
of the United States and the First Lady, but we have tens of thousands of people who have
simply packed around.
It's unbelievable.
When I came here at around 5 this afternoon, and it was not very crowded, but with every
15 minutes, this place simply got going.
It's been packed, and as you can see and as you can hear, the excitement is only just
beginning because in a little while, what we're going to see behind the Lincoln Memorial
is a sound and light show and fireworks that will make that little crystal ball in New
York City, which we see every year, which is no big deal.
It comes down, and it's over with.
People kiss and hug in Times Square, and that's about it.
What you're going to see here in the nation's capital is a fireworks display that has never
been seen before.
In fact, you'll see stuff going down this reflecting pool, the reflecting pool from
the Lincoln Memorial all the way down to the Washington Monument.
It's not only going to stop there, it's going to go up to the top of the Washington Monument.
You'll see something that the nation's capital has never seen, certainly New York City has
never seen anything like this before.
Fred, what do you got to top that?
Well, let me go back to my little crystal ball thing.
I'm a little hurt by that.
This crystal ball has never been seen before.
Waterford Crystal, it is hand carved.
It will only be seen this one particular time.
It weighs 1,070 pounds.
It has 504 individually cut crystals, and it's a beautiful thing.
But if I'm not convincing you, let me go down to my colleague, Gary Tuckman, who's down
in the crowd down here.
He's down with my two million friends, and he's going to tell you what's going on as
we close it on Midnight in New York.
Gary?
Fred, I got to tell you, it helps to be six foot one in this situation so you can see
me, but I wish I was six foot five, it would be easier.
A lot of very happy people right now.
I am standing in the midst of what may be two million people, the largest gathering
ever in Times Square New Year's history.
They've been doing this since 1904, and the turnout's incredible.
Amazingly, a very small percentage of these people are New Yorkers.
These people are from all over the world.
Like this guy, he's from Ecuador.
You having a good time?
Yeah, sure.
It's the best place to be.
Washington, D.C., New York City, and the countdown on the East Coast is underway a matter of
seconds.
Less than 45 seconds now as we go down to approaching 30 seconds before the new millennium
on the East Coast of the United States.
The fabled ball, now a water for crystal creation, is about to drop in Times Square.
We will be there.
Wow.
Wow.
Wow.
Wow.
Wow.
Wow.
Wow.
Wow.
Wow.
Wow.
Wow.
Wow.
This is the first time I have been to a concert like this in a long time.
I've been to a lot of concerts, and I'm very excited.
I've been to a lot of concerts, and I'm very excited.
I've been to a lot of concerts, and I'm very excited.
I'm very excited.
There was a poll that CNN in time did not long ago, and what will you be doing at midnight on New Year's Eve?
There was a poll that CNN in time did not long ago, and what will you be doing at midnight on New Year's Eve?
62% said kissing someone.
62% said kissing someone.
62% said kissing someone.
This is how it looks outside, inside Penn Station.
This is how it looks outside, inside Penn Station. Let's go back to Frank Buckley.
Bernie, we are at Penn Station right now. This is some of the crowd that is heading back from Times Square.
Bernie, we are at Penn Station right now. This is some of the crowd that is heading back from Times Square.
Some of them have been called. Excuse me. I was hoping to talk to some of the people here to ask them about their hopes on New Year's Eve.
Some of them have been called. Excuse me. I was hoping to talk to some of the people here to ask them about their hopes on New Year's Eve.
Tell me your name again. I'm Cassandra Denham from Cleveland, Ohio.
Tell me, did you get down to Times Square tonight? How did I get down? Is that what you said? Did you get to Times Square tonight?
No, I was unfortunate to get to Times Square, but I did enjoy seeing the ball drop, which was very interesting because I've never seen that in real life.
I've always had to see it on TV, but it was awesome. It was beautiful.
Inside here, the McCormick Place Convention Center, however, considerably warmer and they are dancing it away.
The Chicago 2000 International Millennium Celebration is on in full swing.
Outside, there will be big-time fireworks in about a half an hour.
And inside, you know, you spent a lot of money and time at CNN today talking to people all around the world.
Well, the fact is, all you had to do was come to Chicago because it's a veritable United Nations of people that have been brought here,
two people from each country in the known world.
And I have a group of them with me, and I'd like to first just ask you, what is your name and where are you from?
My name is Berit Kristoffersen. I come from Norway.
And you, sir?
Hans. I'm from Norway.
Hi, I'm Craig from Scotland.
I dedicate my job from Nigeria.
I'm doing a body job from Nigeria.
I'm Dean Nick Moose from Morocco, Casablanca.
In your upper left-hand corner, the Windy City, the largest fireworks display in Chicago's history, about to get underway.
We are at a minute and eight seconds and counting.
People in Granbury, Texas are poised in the town square.
We are here in Granbury, Texas. What you're looking at is the courthouse, which really is the centrifugal force of this town,
around which all of the New Year's Eve activities have gathered.
Right now, they're listening to the tones of Larry Joe Taylor, a Texas-bred country-western singer.
He is the one that is going to lead the countdown to New Year's here in this small town of about 6,000.
Now you're ready to party!
Let's show Granbury something they've never seen before, the good folks at CNN.
Let's show it around the world.
And now we want to go to...
Mexico City. Our bureau chief there, Harris Whitbeck.
...fireworks continue, as you can see.
And I know that earlier, you and Judy were talking about couples getting engaged and pregnant women out there celebrating.
I can't offer you that, but I can offer you a square full of people wearing red underwear.
And let me try to explain that to you.
The tradition here in Mexico says that if you're wearing red undergarments,
the New Year arrives that will assure a lot of prosperity, a lot of love, and a lot of good luck in the New Year.
I can assure you that at least some of those 200,000 people who are out there are wearing bright red underwear tonight.
As we leave you during this segment, this was the Millennium in Acapulco, to the south and on the Pacific coast of Mexico.
Happy New Year!
Happy New Year!
Happy New Year!
It is 2 minutes and 30 seconds to midnight Pacific Standard Time.
The Millennium Sweep returns to the Pacific as CNN tracks 2000 to the west coast of North America.
In the upper left-hand corner of your screen, in the City of Angels, Los Angeles is counting down.
And in the upper right-hand corner, Las Vegas, the biggest party in town, we're told, a downtown light show and concert covering four city blocks.
And from Knob Hill to the waterfront, this is San Francisco.
And finally, Vancouver, the westernmost big city in our neighbor to the north, Canada.
First night, a family-oriented, we are told, alcohol-free event.
Everyone counting backwards now as the new Millennium hits the western United States and Canada.
Forty seconds to go until these four great cities and the rest of the Pacific time zone.
And that includes the states of Washington, Seattle, the state of Oregon, California.
And we're looking here at Nevada and the westernmost portion of Canada.
Countdown. Maybe we should be quiet and listen to what's going on.
San Francisco.
Happy 21st Century!
Happy 21st Century!
Happy 21st Century!
Happy 21st Century!
Grab somebody you love, everybody, and toast to the dawning of a new century!
Paul, for Kevin, what's the mood there in Las Vegas, too?
In Las Vegas, they say it's a city of great hedonism. It's just sheer exuberance here.
One of the newest hotels in Las Vegas is the Paris and the Eiffel Tower here.
Sort of simulated a giant champagne bottle that was being uncorked for all the world to see.
The top of it was spouting all sorts of sparks and confetti and fireworks.
There are a lot of people right now in Las Vegas who are, for lack of a better term, partying on the street.
But there's an awful lot of people indoors, some 1,300 of them, in fact, indoors watching Barbra Streisand right now and a myriad of other concerts.
So it's sort of a dual-pronged party here with a lot of the revelers out there having a good time and many other people taking in their favorite artists.
A lot of huge acts. We talked about Barbra Streisand and Carlos Santana and Bette Midler with her trademark voice,
ushered in the New Year with her own version of New Year's Merriment.
The divine Miss M wishing everyone a very happy new millennium.
You're now looking at live pictures of millennial celebrations underway in Hawaii.
As millions have done before them, Hawaiians are now ringing in the year 2000.
Hello and welcome from the CNN Center in Atlanta. I'm Colleen McHenry.
And I'm Leon Harris. We're just getting buckled up and sitting in here now and we thank you for joining us.
As we continue our coverage of millennium celebrations around the world.
And we want to take you now to live shots of Hawaii.
There you see the fireworks going off there in a display in Honolulu's harbor.
These fireworks are being launched actually from a barge out there somewhere in the Pacific Ocean.
You can see where they're being launched from out there. It's off the beach there. Actually, it's quite a beautiful shot.
One of the downtown hotels is also hosting a Hawaii-style welcome.
What they describe as a Hawaii-style welcome. There's lots of music and dance from Hawaiian performers.
Now it's the dawn of a new year, a new century and a new millennium.
And there's only one thing left to say. Fortunately, there's a way to say it in every language of the world.
Happy New Year. Happy New Year. Happy New Year. Happy New Year.
Happy New Year. Happy New Year. Happy New Year. Happy New Year.
Happy New Year!
Happy New Year!
Happy New Year!
Happy New Year!
Happy New Year!
This is the first time I'm celebrating my new millennium.
Happy New Year!
Happy New Year!
Happy New Year!
Happy New Year!
Happy New Year!
Happy New Year!
Happy New Year!
Happy New Year!
Happy New Year!
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