Shudder's Joe Bob Briggs Holiday Fundraiser Raises More Than $40,000

Earlier this month, Shudder and Joe Bob Briggs teamed up to deliver the double-feature special Joe Bob Saves Christmas, which not only offered an opportunity for horror fans to come together on social media to celebrate some oddball films, but also featured a variety of unique items being auctioned off for charity, with Shudder revealing the event raised more than $44,000. These numbers came from not just the 20 items being auctioned off on eBay, but also from hosts Briggs and "Darcy the Mail Girl" making personal donations, as well as viewers themselves who donated directly to the event.

"I was amazed by the generosity of our Last Drive-In family, especially since many of the auction items had minimal to zero actual value and had meaning only to fans of the show," Briggs shared in a statement. "The opening bids were so high that many of our viewers were not rich enough to participate but went ahead and made separate individual donations to the four charities, so our final impact is far greater than we could ever have hoped for, especially in this tough year of 2020. It was truly a Christmas miracle."

Per press release, "20 items in all were put up for auction during the five-hour special, which introduced new lots between segments of two holiday horror films, the 1989 French film Deadly Games (also known as Dial Code Santa Claus) and the 1980 slasher, Christmas Evil. The items ranged from one-of-a-kind signed props, like a replica Demons mask which went for $7,900, to more esoteric memorabilia, like Shadows, the 1986 vinyl LP recorded by Atanas Ilitch, the actor who played the driller killer in cult classic Slumber Party Massacre II, which sold for $1,025."

Briggs made a personal donation of $1,000 while Darcy contributed $2,000 from sales of photos.

The proceeds of the event will be going to the below charities.

The Trevor Project, the leading national organization providing crisis intervention and suicide prevention services to lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer & questioning (LGBTQ) young people under 25.

The National Women's Law Center, fighting for gender justice — in the courts, in public policy, and in society — working across the issues central to the lives of women and girls to change culture and drive solutions to gender inequity.

The Peaceful Valley Donkey Rescue, whose mission is to provide a safe and loving environment to all donkeys that have been abused, neglected, or abandoned, as well as protecting wild burros under threat of destruction.

Organization For Autism Research, dedicated to improving the lives of everyone affected by autism by supporting research that produces meaningful and practical results.

You can learn more about the fundraising efforts at https://joebobsaveschristmas.com/.

The host will be returning for a third season of The Last Drive-In with Joe Bob Briggs in 2021.

Are you surprised by these totals? Let us know in the comments below or contact Patrick Cavanaugh directly on Twitter to talk all things horror and Star Wars!