Leslie Zemeckis Unleashes Her Latest Documentary MABEL, MABEL, TIGER TRAINER For Women's History Month

International Women's Day - multi-award-winning documentarian Leslie Zemeckis and Cinema Libre Studio present a special screening of "Mabel, Mabel, Tiger Trainer," the death-defying tale of the world's first female tiger trainer. The award-winning feature length documentary reveals the empowering story of Mabel Stark, an OUTCAST who was rejected by her family, escaped poverty and abuse in rural Kentucky, and ultimately found her true passion in the eyes of a tiger.

WHAT:

Screening of "Mabel, Mabel, Tiger Trainer" followed by a Q&A with moderator extraordinaire Pete Hammond from Deadline

WHEN:

Thursday, March 8, 2018

6:30 PM press call time

7:30 PM screening begins

9:00 PM Q&A

WHERE:

Laemmle Music Hall, 9036 Wilshire Blvd., Beverly Hills

WHO:

Writer/producer/director Leslie Zemeckis; executive producer Robert Zemeckis; producers Jacqueline Levine and Sheri Hellard; associate producer Donnalee Austin; Cinema Libre Studio CFO/VP Marketing & Publicity Beth Portello and COO/VP Distribution & Acquisition Rich Castro; and other celebrities in attendance

From performing dangerous feats as a stunt double for Mae West during Hollywood's Golden Age, to working in the circus as a sexy blonde cooch dancer, it wasn't until Stark locked eyes with a 400-lb tiger that she found her true calling. In that instant she knew that she wanted to train the big cats, a skill reserved exclusively for men, and something she was told no woman could ever do. Circumventing the chauvinism of her time, Stark clawed her way up the circus hierarchy. Before long she was a superstar in the steel arena, one of the most famous and highly regarded tiger trainers in the world.

"When I first started researching Mabel Stark I thought it was going to be a story about courage," states Zemeckis. "I discovered however, that her story was really a love story. She loved her tigers so much she would give her life for them."

Stark's rise to stardom was not without sacrifices, and after multiple failed marriages she increasingly took solace in the company of her cats. Using only positive reinforcement, she continued training the exotic "stripes," and during her thirty-year career at Jungleland in Thousand Oaks, she transformed the suburban theme park into a world-famous Southern California attraction. Although her body was broken and scarred from numerous attacks by her beloved tigers, it was the scars from her childhood that never healed.

Zemeckis is joined by executive producer Robert Zemeckis, producers Jacqueline Levine and Sheri Hellard, associate producer Donnalee Austin, and the film's narrator, Oscar-winning actress Melissa Leo. The documentary, released to coincide with Women's History Month, continues Zemeckis' career-long exploration of influential but lesser-known women of history.

In addition to the Beverly Hills event, there will be a special screening and Q&A on March 25 at the Chicago History Museum, and an invitation-only screening and Q&A on March 27 at The Museum of Modern Art in New York City, hosted by Susan Rockefeller and Robert Zemeckis. Worldwide rights for "Mabel" were acquired by Cinema Libre Studio in December 2017 and will be released domestically on DVD and streaming platforms beginning April 10.

As a historian of American pop culture, Zemeckis continues bringing to life the stories of marginalized women. She wrote, produced and directed the critically acclaimed documentary "Behind the Burly Q," a Showtime documentary revealing never-before told stories of women from the golden age of burlesque, and her most recent hit, the award-winning documentary "Bound by Flesh" about Siamese superstars Daisy and Violet Hilton, chronicles an important part of American entertainment from a bygone era, delving into the world of circus and carnival life in the early part of the 20th Century.

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