Jack Kirby Estate Goes After Marvel Properties
Filed under: Comic/Superhero/Geek
It's as inevitable as the tides. Once something becomes a genuine industry to the tune of a $4 billion dollar marriage, the lawsuits quickly follow. On the heels of the Siegel and Shuster lawsuits that dismantled the world of Clark Kent comes a lawsuit from the estate of Jack Kirby that targets all things Marvel. According to The New York Times, the Kirby heirs have sent 45 notices of copyright infringement to Marvel, Disney, Paramount, Fox, Sony, Universal, Hasbro, and just about everyone else in the world. Kirby created (or co-created alongside Stan Lee) just about all the big Marvel characters so anyone using them must now face the the Kirbys and Toberoff & Associates. (The same law firm that handled the Siegel and Shuster lawsuits, which is no coincidence.)The Kirbys seek to win the copyrights back to Hulk, Thor, Iron Man, X-Men, Fantastic Four, etc., and claim some (or all) of the profits. If they win back the copyright, it wouldn't kick in until 2014 so presumably they wouldn't be able to claim the "back profits" the characters have made, but anything going forward would be a problem. As Bleeding Cool notes, Disney and Marvel will always own the trademarks, and the movie studios would probably also be safe in their acquisitions, but continuing to publish anything Kirby created would be problematic.
The attorney Marc Toberoff declined to comment on the case, but Disney released an official statement that shrugged off the lawsuit, noting "the notices involved are an attempt to terminate rights 7 to 10 years from now, and involve claims that were fully considered in the acquisition." This will undoubtedly be a case fraught with as many tangles as the Siegel and Shuster suit was. Will Marvel end up owning Iron Man's armor, but the Kirbys will own Tony Stark and Pepper Potts? Will it create problems for Marvel Studios down the line? We shall watch and see.
Tom Cruise and J.J. Abrams Reunite for 'Mission Impossible 4'
'Big Top Pee-Wee': The Original Benicio Del Toro Wolfman
Spin-ematical: New on DVD and Blu-ray for 2/9
Watch This: Brilliant Oscar-Nominated Short 'Logorama'
Chris Nolan to Lead 'Superman' Reboot!?
_thumbnail.jpg)
_thumbnail.jpg)
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
9-21-2009 @ 3:00PM
Scott K. said...
Hm... since I have the Hulk and Supes in my avatar, I wonder if they are going to sue me in the future...
Anyway, I don't understand copyright law, but I thought if characters were created while in the employ of a company, then they would be the property of the company. Though I read something that stated there was some copyright law passed that muddied the waters...
As long as they keep making quality movies, I don't care who gets paid. Though when an estate does the suing, I care even less. Aside from hiring lawyers, they didn't do anything to earn anything - that was all done by the creative person who has since passed on.
Reply
9-21-2009 @ 3:58PM
Nicolás said...
It only includes Silver Age Characters, what about Cap America and ones from the Golden Age?
I think it's gonna be more difficult than the Superman case. Stan-Lee co-created several of the characters Kirby has created. Also this characters universes have been greatly expanded by other writers and artist. I remember Stan Lee claimed money from the Spidey Movies, what happened with that?
Reply
9-21-2009 @ 5:33PM
Stan Winsome said...
How does that work with statute of limitations exactly? I mean old Jack didn't make up these characters last week exactly... Greedy lawyers and clueless heirs do not a good case make.
Reply
9-21-2009 @ 6:36PM
Cyhort said...
As a capitalist I want to say that if they truly think they're getting screwed out of something they own then they should sue but as a comic fan I have to say SHUT THE FUCK UP! Unless you were completely screwed over by Marvel and are living in the projects because they won't pay you a dime then just let it go. There's no reason to screw up not only any future Marvel movie possibilities but you risk the comics as well. Granted both Marvel and DC seem to be driving their comic franchises into the ground these days but the movies are incredibly popular and make millions of dollars. Now these idiots want to ruin all that because they feel left out of a deal that never should have happened in the first place? Bull.
I have no problem with people making money. What I do have a problem with is decedents living off the work of their father/grandfather/whatever and then suing and potentially ruining something that millions of people enjoy because they want more money that they never earned.
Reply
9-22-2009 @ 8:12AM
Kamandi said...
If this really would delay any future Marvel movies I wished they would have done this before the Hulk, Daredevil, Electra,Fantastic Four (ugh!) X-Men 3, Spiderman 3, and Wolverine were made.
All crap.
I recommend reading the first 100 issues
of the Fantastic Four that Kirby drew/ created. First appearance of Galactus, Silver surfer, Black Panther, The Inhumans on and on.... Jack Kirby was a true artist.
Reply