All signs pointed to a Hollywood ending with Disney and Mickey Mouse living happily ever after – at least until a grumpy former employee looked closely at fine print long forgotten in company archives. . . .
Copyright questions apply to an older incarnation, a rendition of Mickey still recognizable but slightly different. Original Mickey, the star of the first synchronized sound cartoon, “Steamboat Willie,” and other early classics, had longer arms, smaller ears and a more pointy nose. . .
The issue has been chewed over by law students as class projects and debated by professors. It produced one little-noticed law review article: A 23-page essay in a 2003 University of Virginia legal journal argued that “there are no grounds in copyright law for protecting” the Mickey of those early films.
Garsh, Mick!
Roger Schechter, a George Washington University expert on copyright, called the article’s argument “a plausible, solid, careful case.” By contrast, a Disney lawyer once threatened the author with legal action for “slander of title” under California law. No suit was filed.
Originally posted 2014-09-24 12:37:07. Republished by Blog Post Promoter
Copyright questions apply to an older incarnation, a rendition of Mickey still recognizable but slightly different. Original Mickey, the star of the first synchronized sound cartoon, “Steamboat Willie,” and other early classics, had longer arms, smaller ears and a more pointy nose. . .
