FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Contacts: Allison Bennett, Crown Media September 8, 2015 212-445-6692 | [email protected] Mark Stubis, American Humane Association 202-677-4227 | [email protected]
DEREK HOUGH, BINDI IRWIN, DANICA MCKELLAR, PAULEY PERRETTE, ALISON SWEENEY AND LEA THOMPSON AMONG THE STARS SET TO PRESENT AT THE 5TH ANNUAL AMERICAN HUMANE ASSOCIATION HERO DOG AWARDS®
ERIC STONESTREET TO APPEAR IN PRE-TAPED PIECE
ORIGINAL SPECIAL PREMIERES ON HALLMARK CHANNEL OCTOBER 30
Hallmark Channel announced today that the following talent have joined the roster of presenters for the world premiere of the 5th Annual American Humane Association Hero Dog Awards on Friday, October 30 (9pm ET/PT, 8C):
• Derek Hough (Dancing With The Stars) • Bindi Irwin (Dancing With The Stars) • Danica McKellar (Wonder years, Perfect Match) • Pauley Perrette (NCIS) • Alison Sweeney (Days of our Lives, Biggest Loser) • Lea Thompson (Back to the Future, Dancing With the Stars) • Mark Steines (Home & Family) • Cristina Ferrare (Home & Family) • Alicia Witt (Friday Night Lights, Justified) • Kym Johnson (Dancing With The Stars) • Fred Willard (Best In Show, Modern Family) • Cameron Mathison (All My Children, Murder She Baked) • Barbara Niven (Cedar Cove, One Life to Live) • Bruce Boxleitner (Cedar Cove, TRON) • Brandon McMillan (Lucky Dog) • Michelle Beadle (ESPN-Sports Nation) • Additionally, Eric Stonestreet (Modern Family) has agreed to do a pre-taped piece for the show.
As previously announced, TV personality, author, and animal advocate Beth Stern and television veteran James Denton (Good Witch, Desperate Housewives) will return as co-hosts of the program, which tapes before a live audience at the Beverly Hilton Hotel on Saturday, September 19th.
The Hero Dog Awards, presented for the past four years by the Lois Pope LIFE Foundation, is a moving celebration of our four-legged friends and the innumerable ways they enrich, protect, and save lives every day. Each year, the program salutes eight special dogs – one in each of eight categories – chosen in a nationwide online vote. The eight finalists and their human handlers are flown to Los Angeles where they are honored at a red carpet, star-studded awards gala. The evening is capped off with the announcement of the top American Hero Dog of the year. The two-hour special airs October 30 in conjunction with Hallmark Channel’s Pet Project, the network’s on- and off-air campaign designed to celebrate the joy pets bring to our lives, while shining a spotlight on shelter animals and encouraging the public to adopt.
For more information on the Hero Dog Awards, visit www.herodogawards.org.
ABOUT HALLMARK CHANNEL Hallmark Channel is Crown Media Family Networks’ flagship 24-hour cable television network, distributed nationwide in high definition (HD) and standard definition (SD) to 91 million homes. The country’s leading destination for quality family entertainment, Hallmark Channel delivers on the 100-year legacy of the Hallmark brand. In addition to its signature original movies, the network features an ambitious lineup of other original content, including scripted primetime series, such as Cedar Cove, Good Witch, and When Calls the Heart; annual specials like Kitten Bowl and Hero Dog Awards and; a daily 2-hour lifestyle show, Home & Family. Additionally, in November 2014, Hallmark Channel became the exclusive home to world premiere presentations of the acclaimed Hallmark Hall of Fame franchise. Dedicated to helping viewers celebrate life’s special moments, Hallmark Channel also offers such annual holiday programming events as Countdown to Christmas and Countdown to Valentine’s Day. Rounding out the network’s diverse slate are television’s most beloved sitcoms and series, including The Golden Girls, The Middle, Little House on the Prairie, and Frasier. Complementing Hallmark Channel’s light-hearted and comedic fare, sibling network Hallmark Movies & Mysteries presents a unique mix of content that is more dramatic in tone, including original movies and such acquired series Matlock, Murder She Wrote, and Hart to Hart.
Crown Media Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ: CRWN), owns and operates Crown Media Family Networks.
For more information, please visit www.crownmediapress.com Hallmark Channel on Social Media: Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, YouTube
ABOUT HALLMARK CHANNEL’S PET PROJECT Hallmark Channel’s Pet Project is a cross platform on-and off-air campaign devoted to celebrating the joy and enrichment pets bring to our lives, while raising awareness of this country’s epidemic of pet homelessness and promoting adoption. The campaign’s programming elements include annual specials like Hero Dog Awards, Kitten Bowl, and Paw Star Game, as well as original movies like Puppy Love and My Boyfriends’ Dogs that convey pet adoption messages. In addition, Hallmark Channel’s Pet Project features social media outreach, a resource-rich website, and grass roots pet adoption initiatives. Leveraging its digital, social, and linear platforms, Hallmark Channel’s Pet Project also partners with such national non-profit organizations as American Humane Association, North Shore Animal League America, and Best Friends Animal Society, to inform the public about the many wonderful animals in shelters across the country and ultimately inspire them to adopt their next pet.
For more information, please visit http://www.hallmarkchannel.com/petproject
ABOUT AMERICAN HUMANE ASSOCIATION American Humane Association is the country’s first national humane organization and the only one dedicated to protecting both children and animals. Since 1877, American Humane Association has been at the forefront of virtually every major advance in protecting our most vulnerable from cruelty, abuse and neglect. Today we’re also leading the way in understanding the human-animal bond and its role in therapy, medicine and society. American Humane Association reaches millions of people every day through groundbreaking research, education, training and services that span a wide network of organizations, agencies and businesses. You can help make a difference, too. Visit American Humane Association at www.americanhumane.org today.
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