GILLETTE &lt;GS> SEEN OBJECT OF GLOBAL BIDDING WAR
  Ronald Perelman, head of Revlon Group
  Inc &lt;REV>, may be trying to ignite a bidding war for Gillette
  Co that could draw some big international players and in the
  process make a lot of money for himself, Wall Street analysts
  said.
      Several hours before a regularly scheduled board of
  directors meeting, Gillette disclosed that Perelman requested
  consent of its board for an offer of at least 40.50 dlrs per
  share. Perelman needed the consent because he agreed in
  November not to buy stock for 10 years without permission.
      "I think Ronald Perelman is less interested in Gillette and
  more interested in putting Gillette into play because he stands
  to make a ton of money," said Andrew Shore, analyst at Shearson
  Lehman Brothers Inc. "In play" is a term used on Wall Street to
  describe what happens when a company becomes an unwiling
  takeover target.
      Shore noted that according to the 1986 agreement Revlon
  gets paid if there is any acquisition of Gillette through
  November of this year at a price higher than 29.75 dlrs per
  share. Gillette rose three to 40 today, following a gain of
  three yesterday.
      The agreement would be calculated on the basis of
  Perelman's previous holding of 18.4 mln shares, adjusted for a
  split. For example, a deal between Gillette and some other
  company at 44 dlrs per share would make Revlon richer by 262
  mln dlrs under the formula. Neither Perelman nor his spokesmen
  returned telephone calls seeking comment.
      "Revlon stands to make a substantial amount of money if
  someone else takes over Gillette," said Analyst Deepak Raj of
  Merrill Lynch and Co. "I'm not saying that is going to happen
  but Gillette is an undervalued stock with a breakup value of 45
  dlrs per share."
      Shore of Shearson Lehman said there are a couple of reasons
  why Perelman may not be really interested in acquiring
  Gillette. He said Perelman, in the process of taking Revlon
  private after acquiring control of the cosmetics company two
  years ago, probably wants to concentrate on improving Revlon's
  operations. "He's trying to overhaul and improve the image of
  the dearptment store business." Another reason is that Revlon
  has recently made two other acquisitions.
      Under those circumstances, Shore would not be surprised if
  some company such as Unilever plc &lt;UN.AS> or Procter and Gamble
  Co &lt;PG> decided to take a look at Gillette.
      Shore mentioned half a dozen other potential buyers for
  Gillette including Sir James Goldsmith, Hanson Trust plc &lt;HAN>,
  RJR Nabisco Inc &lt;RJR>, American Brands Inc &lt;AMB> and Ralston
  Purina Co &lt;RAL>.
      "Perelman is trying to put the company in play," said a
  Wall Street arbitrageur. "He gets to share in the upside if the
  company is sold." Another arbitrageur said he expects Gillette
  to resist Perelman's overture. "I can't see the board
  consenting, what has changed between November and now," he
  said.
     
      Another arbitrageur said he was not sure what was going on.
  "Perelman never does anything without a fair amount of
  calculation," he said. But he added, "The Gillette board has to
  be careful. They just can't say no or they'll be sued by
  shareholders." Gillette's board was still meeting at 1700 EDT,
  three and one-half hours after the scheduled starting time.
      According to a copy of Perelman's letter released by
  Gillette, he would be prepared to sign a defnitive merger
  agreement without any financing condition. He said Citibank
  N.A. is his lead lender and First Boston Inc is his financial
  adviser.
  

