Price v. Hal Roach Studios

Plaintiffs: Lucille Hardy Price & Ida Laurel (widows of Laurel & Hardy) Harmon (owns the exclusive right to utilize and merchandize the names, likeness, characterizations. . . of L & H)

Defendants: Roach (owns the © in L & H movies; had an employment contract with L & H; has the rights to use their names, voices, likeness for publicity purposes)

Feiner (given the world-wide exclusive merchandizing rights to the names and likeness of L & H in a contract with Roach)

Federal court in NY:

1. Roach had the right to use likeness, etc. to promote their movies; but not a publicity right

2. Roach did not have the right to give to Feiner in a contract

3. Privacy is a valuable property right which does not terminate at death

Hicks v. Casablanca Records

[After Price was decided, the federal appellate court which covers NY held that the right of publicity survives the death of the owner BUT ONLY IF the owner had "exploited" his persona during life.] See p. 429

Plaintiffs: Heirs and assignees of Agatha Christie

Defendants: Movie producer and book publisher who want to distribute Agatha, a fictionalized account of her 11 day disappearance.

Federal court in NY:

1. Defendants have a First Amendment defense --absent deliberate falsification --absent any attempt to present the events as true

Groucho Marx Productions v. Day and Night Co.

Plaintiffs: Claim exclusive rights of publicity for the Marx Brothers

Defendants: Have produced a musical (A Day in Hollywood; A Night in the Ukraine)Ña satire about how the Marx Bros. Would have dramatized ChekhovÕs, The Bear.

Federal Appellate Court sitting in NY:

1. there is a "choice of law" issue. CA v. NY

2. CA law should apply --Marx Bros. were CA residents at death --will probated in CA --plaintiff is a CA corporation --contract between def. & MB signed in CA

3. CA does not recognize a broad right of publicity that survives death

--Guglielmi v. Spelling-Goldberg Prod.

--Lugosi v. Universal Pictures

CA response: statute: life plus 50 years

Memphis Development Foundation v. Factors

Plaintiffs: Want to erect a large bronze statue of Elvis. It solicited donations to pay for it: 8 inch replica for a $25 donation.

Defendants: Elvis>>Boxcar>>Factors

Federal Appellate Court sitting in TN:

Policy considerations weigh on the side of NO right of descendibility.

TN response: statuteÑlife plus 10 years

Martin Luther King, Jr. Center for Social Change v. American Heritage Products

Plaintiffs: The Center, Mrs. King, Motown Records (rights to his speeches)

Defendant: Manufactured funeral accessories, one of which is a bust of MLK. It advertised that 90 cents of the $29.95 price would be donated to the Center. The Center refused the money.

Federal Appellate Court sitting in GA: 1. The right of publicity is inheritable, p. 682

2. There is no need for lifetime exploitation, p. 683