Rockford radio station WZOK will bring a pink Cadillac into the King Memorial Commons today between 11 a.m. and 2 p.m. to encourage singer Bruce Springsteen to perform in Rockford.

Paula Radtke, Student Association public relations adviser, said WZOK will park the car west of the Wirtz House in the commons so students can sign the car and a petition. She said the promotion was started by WZOK to persuade Bruce Springsteen to perform at the Rockford MetroCentre.

Students who sign the car and the petition are eligible to win the car after it has been shown to Springsteen, and they also will be eligible to purchase tickets if the MetroCentre hosts the concert, Radtke said.

Kathy Hart, WZOK promotional director and disc jockey, said the only way to get tickets to the tentative concert is to sign the petition. WZOK will pick names from the petition and allow those people to purchase two tickets, she said.

Hart said the pink Cadillac drive has collected about 10,000 signatures, but WZOK hopes to collect about 40,000 signatures.

Hart said Springsteen and the E Street Band will be at the Rosemont Horizon, in the Chicago suburb of Rosemont, on March 16 and 17, and will go to Atlanta, Ga., for another concert around March 22.

Springsteen will be near Rockford for the five day break in his 22-city-tour, and WZOK hopes to get him to come to Rockford, she said.

Hart said WZOK has informed Springsteen’s manager and the Columbia record company of the promotion but has not received a definite answer from them yet.

Hart said the idea for the car petition came when she was reading USA Today and found an announcement that Springsteen would play in some of the smaller concert halls.

“Springsteen had a song called ‘Pink Cadillac,’ and I thought we would get more attention with the car (as a petition) instead of a typical, boring petition,” Hart said.

After all the signatures are collected, WZOK will visit one of Springsteen’s Midwest appearances and show him the car, Hart said.