Topper, a ten and a half year old male German Shepherd owned by Mark Spivak, Comprehensive Pet Therapy’s founder and president, just completed acting in his fourth feature movie. Tim Sullivan’s horror film “2001 Maniacs,” shot in historic Westville, Georgia, is a remake of the 1964 Herschell Gordon Lewis film “2000 Maniacs,” about a group of northern travelers who visit a strange southern town, and find themselves at the mercy of vengeful ghosts of confederate soldiers. “2001 Maniacs” is the first movie produced by Raw Nerve, a new company founded by Eli Roth (Cabin Fever), David Schow (The Crow), Scott Spiegel (Evil Dead 2), and Boaz Yakin (Remember the Titans), devoted exclusively to creating horror and gore flicks. In addition to his role as executive producer, Eli Roth also has a cameo working with “Dr. Mambo” (Topper) in the opening sequence, wherein Dr. Mambo scares apprehensive teenagers, eats blood off cars and tracks blood along pavement. The movie also stars Robert Englund (Freddie Kruger), Andrew Keegan, and Cameron Richardson, among others.
Topper has previously appeared in “Wayward Son” (unreleased) featuring Harry Connick, Jr., Peter Postlethwaite, and Patricia Clarkson; “Run, Ronnie, Run” (now available on DVD and VHS) starring David Cross (HBO’s “Mr. Show”); and a 2002 WB pilot “In My Life.” When not on the screen, Topper has competed at the national level in tracking, obedience, and protection, including winning the 1998 Southeast Regional Championships, and performed agility demonstrations on the Fox Sports Network. As well as operating CPT, Mark Spivak is acknowledged as a “pet expert,” as demonstrated by his television appearances nationally on CNN and locally on CBS, NBC and Fox affiliates. Topper is not the only dog Mark has trained for movies, though this German Shepherd certainly boasts the most extensive resume.
Since its inception in 1992, CPT has trained the pets of over 27,000 Atlanta area customers. CPT offers group classes at six locations (Sandy Springs, Cumming, Acworth, Alpharetta, Lawrenceville, and Marietta), in-home private lessons throughout the Atlanta metro area, and a unique board training program at 15 locations where customer pets reside at a trainer’s home as opposed to a kennel. CPT Head Trainers have competed on world teams, placed in national competitions, won regional titles, placed pets in movies, and appeared frequently as behavioral experts on television news shows.
For more information, please contact Mark Spivak (404) 236-2150.
