We’re all still in a daze from the amazing weekend we had putting on the 3rd annual MOVIE CRYPT podcast’s 48-hour LIVE marathon to benefit Save A Yorkie Rescue… but one thing we know is that it was the most successful benefit yet! In 2016 the podcast’s hosts Adam Green, Joe Lynch, and Arwen raised just under $14K with the first annual marathon. In 2017 they raised just under $24K with the second. This year they shattered that record with an ending total of just over $36K when they signed off (after hour 49)!!! But it’s still not over as late donations keep trickling in. At this point it looks like we’ll likely end somewhere closer to $38,000.00!!!

This year was actually a 49-hour LIVE marathon. You’d be tired, too.

You can read a wonderfully detailed review of the entire 49 hours here thanks to journalist Nat Brehmer of WickedHorror.com. (Thank you, Nat!)

Here’s the shorter version of what you missed if you didn’t join us: Filmmaker Joe Dante (GREMLINS), a live cast reading of Chris Columbus’ early draft of GREMLINS with Jonah Ray & Deanna Rooney (MYSTERY SCIENCE THEATER 3000), Felissa Rose (SLEEPAWAY CAMP), Markice Moore (ATL), Julia Marchese (OUT OF PRINT), and Matthew Currie Holmes (WRONG TURN 2), filmmaker Don Coscarelli (PHANTASM), filmmaker Bernard Rose (CANDYMAN), The Resistance improv troupe, Tarot Card readings from Sarah Elbert, a SCARY MOVIE commentary with actor Dave Sheridan, filmmaker Spooky Dan and actress Susan Slaughter from SLAY BELLES, an FX demonstration from Robert Pendergraft (HATCHET 1-4), artists Alex Pardee and Greg Aronowitz drawing and sculpting “Brella” – one of the never-made creatures from DIGGING UP THE MARROW, musician Rudy Sarzo (OZZY OSBOURNE), Academy Award winner Marcia Gay Harden (MYSTIC RIVER), musician Jeremy Spencer (FIVE FINGER DEATH PUNCH), a commentary for THE MASK with director Chuck Russell, actor Steven Brand (THE SCORPION KING), a commentary for VICTOR CROWLEY with stars Kane Hodder, Felissa Rose, and Tiffany Shepis, a truly star studded live cast reading for George A Romero’s un-produced screenplay for THE MUMMY (with revisions by Mick Garris) directed by Dave Parker (TALES OF HALLOWEEN) and featuring the vocal talents of Yuri Lowenthal (PS4’s SPIDER-MAN), Tiffany Shepis (VICTOR CROWLEY), Steve Blum (STAR WARS REBELS), Mary Elizabeth McGlynn (SHE-RA and the PRINCESSES OF POWER), James Duvall (DONNIE DARKO), Sarah Nicklin (THE BASEMENT), Matt Mercer (DEMENTIA 2), Peter Atkins (HELLRAISER 2), Jeffrey Reddick (FINAL DESTINATION), and Jared Rivet (JACKALS), a commentary for CUJO with production designer Freddy Waff (BONE TOMAHAWK) and author Joe Knetter (I, SURVIVOR), cinematographer Steve Gainer (EVERLY), musician Ace Von Johnson (LA GUNS), filmmaker Cody Snider (FOOL’S DAY), a commentary for STAR WARS featuring one of ArieScope’s resident ‘Jedi Nerds’ Austin Bosley and the marathon’s Chief Engineer Corey Culp, a commentary for THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK with writer Kyle Anderson (NERDIST) and musician Aaron “P-Nut” Wills (311), a commentary for RETURN OF THE JEDI with filmmaker Mike Mendez (BIG ASS SPIDER), the improv duo “Laurelly” featuring Lauren Pritchard (MODERN FAMILY) and Kelly Vrooman (VICTOR CROWLEY), a live performance from musician Jason Charles Miller (GODHEAD), filmmaker and comedian Bobcat Goldthwait (WORLD’S GREATEST DAD), and writer/actor Thomas Lennon (A NIGHT AT THE MUSEUM). It was so epic we can only remember bits and pieces ourselves!

Adam and Joe with the cast of THE MUMMY reading.

First and foremost we need to thank our engineer Corey Culp who volunteered his expertise yet again to make sure that the event could even happen – let alone run so perfectly on a technical level. We need to thank our incredible ArieScope staff who held everything together doing anything necessary for the entire live marathon – Austin Bosley, Alejandro Cervantes, and Ashley Besh. We need to thank Ryan Plume who provided technical support all weekend long for his third marathon in a row. We need to thank artists Stephen Sharar and Joshua Werner for creating our event poster yet again.  We need to thank all of our friends that generously donated items to Arwen’s Silent Auction including Doug Benson, Adam F. Goldberg, Brian Quinn, Sam Raimi, Vincenzo Natali, RLJE Entertainment, Metal Blade Records, Cinepocalypse Film Festival in Chicago, Derezzed Digital, Jennifer McCarthy and Final Girls Jewelry, GWAR, Tom Six, Rueben Morales, Cody Schibi, Rusted Wave, Jace Whitman, and the many artists above who appeared on the marathon and arrived with their arms filled with items to add to the auction.  We need to thank Mick Garris for providing us with the un-produced screenplay of George A Romero’s THE MUMMY that Mick had done a rewrite of back in the day and also the George A Romero Foundation for so graciously giving us permission to do a live reading of the script. We really need to thank our friend Dave Parker for taking the reigns as director of THE MUMMY reading and putting together such an incredible cast. We need to thank the many friends who brought us food at all hours of the night (shout out to Robert Pendergraft’s pasta salad!) and who kept us fueled.  We need to thank Felissa Rose who went out of her way to come back to the marathon a whopping four separate times over the course of the weekend and who kept us laughing when we needed the boost most.  We need to thank Thomas Lennon who not only appeared on the marathon but who donated extremely generously (twice!) to the cause. We need to thank THE MOVIE CRYPT’s many Patreon supporters (big shout out to our CULT OF ARWEN and MC LIVE members!) who participated in the Patreon live chat thread and who’s 2,859 comments cheered us on all weekend long.

We seriously need to thank our friend Doug Benson who made the biggest donation that we’ll likely ever receive in the history of doing these benefit marathons. Doug also donated the opportunity to be a guest on DOUG LOVES MOVIES to the silent auction and it brought in more money than any other item in the auction this year.  Many, many, many dogs are now going to go on to live wonderful lives solely because of Doug Benson.

Arwen loves you, Doug! (Taken during the 2017 marathon.)

Most of all we need to thank YOU – our audience – for donating so generously all marathon long and for making the efforts of all of the people above go such a long way.  Together we truly made a difference in the lives of the many homeless, abandoned, neglected, and/or horrifically abused Yorkshire Terriers currently (or soon to be) in the safe and loving arms of Save A Yorkie Rescue and the many people that will eventually adopt them. Together we have written a happily ever after ending to a whole lot of dogs’ stories this holiday season.

Last but certainly not least, we need to thank Arwen who inspired this annual event in the first place. We are merely paying her unconditional love and kindness forward when we do these marathons.

We’re already excited for 2019’s marathon as we’re up for the immense challenge of somehow out-doing this year’s event and to try and raise even more donations to save even more dogs. This annual benefit serves as a reminder that the world can truly be a great place and that we’re so, so fortunate to be surrounded by so many wonderful and generous people. We love you all.

If there is someone we forgot to mention it is merely due to exhaustion and you’ll have to forgive us for the oversight.  It’s an incredibly fortunate problem to have when so many people step up to answer your call for help that it’s hard to keep track of them all.