Annual Holiday Rock & Roll Bash Raises More Than $1 Million for the Lustgarten Foundation

All Money Raised Goes Directly to Pancreatic Cancer Research

DJ Cassidy and Radio City Rockettes Performed to Support the Fight Against Pancreatic Cancer

The Madison Square Garden Company and AMC Networks Hosted Event

at Tao Downtown in New York City

NEW YORK, Dec. 04, 2019 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- On Tuesday, Dec. 3, The Madison Square Garden Company (NYSE: MSG) and AMC Networks (NASDAQ: AMCX) hosted the 19th Annual Holiday Rock & Roll Bash benefitting the Lustgarten Foundation, the world’s largest private funder of pancreatic cancer research. The Foundation’s premier fundraising event, the Bash raised more than $1 million this year. Thanks to separate funding to support administrative expenses, 100 percent of every dollar raised goes directly to pancreatic cancer research.



Entertainment for the event, held at Tao Downtown in New York City, included a set from world-renowned deejay and producer, DJ Cassidy, who has been at the nexus of music, fashion and nightlife for over half his life as the go-to deejay for music impresarios, entertainment moguls, fashion icons, cultural trendsetters, and even world leaders. Cassidy has performed at high-profile events all over the world including the 50th birthday party and both inaugurations of President Barack Obama; Beyoncé and Jay-Z's wedding; and Oprah Winfrey's school opening in South Africa. Additionally, the iconic Radio City Rockettes performed their finale number, “Christmas Lights,” from the beloved holiday production, the Christmas Spectacular Starring the Radio City Rockettes.



“The Bash is part of our holiday tradition,” said Kerri Kaplan, president and chief executive officer of the Lustgarten Foundation. “Each year, we look forward to connecting with our friends and supporters, as well as celebrating our achievements over the past year. The Bash also serves a critical purpose for the Foundation as our largest annual fundraiser that continues to help us make progress toward finding new treatments and earlier detection methods for pancreatic cancer. We are so grateful to MSG and AMC Networks for supporting our mission to end pancreatic cancer and for hosting this exciting annual fundraising event.”

As the world’s largest private funder of pancreatic cancer research, the Foundation has been the leader in advancing the understanding and treatment of pancreatic cancer and earlier this year opened its fourth dedicated pancreatic cancer research laboratory at Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center at Johns Hopkins in Baltimore, Maryland. The laboratory at Johns Hopkins joins three existing Lustgarten Foundation dedicated pancreatic cancer research laboratories at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, and Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

The Foundation also named Elizabeth M. Jaffee, M.D., the immediate past president of the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR), as its new Chief Medical Advisor. Dr. Jaffee is an internationally recognized expert in cancer immunology, with specific expertise in preclinical and early clinical development of immunotherapies for pancreatic cancer. And, because of long-time Jeopardy! host Alex Trebek’s openness about his personal pancreatic cancer experience and through the support of several competitors in the annual Jeopardy! Tournament of Champions (ToC), the Foundation was able to reach millions of Americans with vital information about the disease. The ToC’s play-along challenge raised more than $67,000.

“Though pancreatic cancer five-year survival rates remain around nine percent, there is cause for optimism and hope,” Kaplan added. “We still have a lot of work ahead of us; fortunately, the Lustgarten Foundation is among the very few organizations that are poised to fund high-risk, breakthrough work that may dramatically impact patients’ lives in a short period of time.”

The Lustgarten Foundation was established in 1998 to honor Marc Lustgarten, who served as the former vice chairman of Cablevision Systems Corporation and chairman of Madison Square Garden, before he died from pancreatic cancer. James Dolan, executive chairman and chief executive officer of The Madison Square Garden Company and former chief executive officer of Cablevision; and Charles Dolan, executive chairman of AMC Networks and former chairman of Cablevision, helped establish the Foundation, and have been closely involved in supporting its mission to advance pancreatic cancer research and paying homage to Mr. Lustgarten’s legacy.

About Lustgarten Foundation

Lustgarten Foundation is the largest private funder of pancreatic cancer research in the world. Based in Woodbury, N.Y., the Foundation’s mission is to cure pancreatic cancer by funding scientific and clinical research related to the diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of pancreatic cancer; providing research information and clinical support services to patients, caregivers and individuals at high risk; and increasing public awareness and hope for those dealing with this disease. Since its inception, Lustgarten Foundation has directed $188 million to research and has assembled the best scientific minds with the hope that one day, a cure can be found. Thanks to separate funding to support administrative expenses, 100% of your donation goes directly to pancreatic cancer research. For more information, visit .

CONTACT:

Vanessa Steil

516-737-1566