Winnie The Pooh Court Battles

[Fozzie Bear]

This from CNN:

http://www.cnn.com/2006/LAW/06/26/scotus.pooh.ap/index.html

Justices pooh-pooh Winnie the Pooh
Copyright battle has raged in the courts for a dozen years

WASHINGTON (AP) -- The Supreme Court refused on Monday to decide whether the granddaughter of A.A. Milne, British creator of Winnie the Pooh, can recapture control of the copyright for stories featuring the children's book character.

Milne wrote the Pooh books between 1924 and 1928 and granted a U.S. license to Stephen Slesinger in 1930.

Slesinger, in turn, granted his rights to Stephen Slesinger Inc.

The company sublicensed to Walt Disney Productions certain rights to the Pooh works.

When Milne died in 1956, he did not bequeath ownership of the copyright to his family but to a trust that later became known as the Pooh Properties Trust.

Clare Milne, who was not born when her grandfather died, sought to use a 1976 copyright law to terminate the prior licensing agreement and recapture ownership of the copyright.

Lawyers for Slesinger urged justices to reject the appeal, accusing Disney of bankrolling Milne's lawsuit because of a 13-year-old dispute over royalties owed to Slesinger.

Disney is a co-plaintiff in Milne's lawsuit.

The San Francisco-based 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that Milne had no termination right to exercise.

The court said the parties -- the trust, Disney and Slesinger -- entered into an agreement in 1983 designed to block the family from ever regaining control of the copyright.

Copyright 2006 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

 

[christyb]

Okay I voted he should stay. In my opinion Disney has done a good job with him. That and I love all the Pooh stuff I just so happen to have. Seriously, I see no need for the Milnes to try and get him back.

 

[D'Snowth]

How come this is the only forum where only moderators can create polls?

 

[Beauregard]

*gasp* Oh yes! He must go back!

I mean, the original stories were so deep and adult-humored and...the Disney version is such an adulterated, pirated, disgrace in comparison. *has strong views on subject*

 

[Ilikemuppets]

I think if she can regain the rights to Pooh back for the family, she should.

 

[JoeyMuppet]

Even though I'm not a big fan of Pooh anymore.I still like what Disney's done with those characters.

 

[Beauregard]

It's true that they have truely made Pooh a household item, there is no shop on earth (slight exageration) without his merchendice in it, but at what cost? When Piglet starts appearing on pink mobile phones in pink stripes, I get worried...

 

[JoeyMuppet]

I'll be worried too.

 

[Fozzie Bear]

I'll be honest: When I worked at the Disney Store there was a HUGE over-saturation of Winnie The Pooh and much more of Pooh than there was of Mickey Mouse! Ack! I always loved Pooh, but that made me dislike him and the other characters.

Now that I'm away from it all, I like him again. The book(s) are best, of course, as originally written, but the Diz version is loveable, too. Especially Eeyore.

And Muley likes that donkey. Something about bias, I think.

I also wonder if bias will also play a role in how this poll works out?

 

[Don'tLiveonMoon]

Does she plan to do anything with the copyrght or merely keep Disney for perpetuating the Pooh merchandise and such? I like the Disney Pooh, and while I sympathize with his granddaughter, I also hate to see Pooh go away...
Erin