Archives for: March 2009

The Art and Crime of Graffiti

The New York Times recently published an interesting story about a Brooklyn event that brought together two typically feuding groups: the artists who paint graffiti and the law enforcement officers who arrest them. These people participated in a panel… more »

Van Gogh Goes to Yale

Yale University has launched a court battle to keep a Vincent van Gogh painting in the possession of its art gallery. The 1888 painting, The Night Café, has been in Yale's possession since a Yalie alum bequeathed it to his alma mater in the 1960s. But… more »

Does the Company Also Sell the Brooklyn Bridge?

Okay, I don't want to beat this one into the ground, and this will be my last post on the subject of the Oscar Wilde photo unless I get some good info to share. But I've now done a little Internet research on American law, British law, and French law (F… more »

Just Wilde About the Right of Publicity

More info has come in regarding the previous post about the photo of Oscar Wilde for which the Little Theatre of Alexandria was charged hundreds of dollars for its use of the photo in its publicity of the play, Gross Indecency: The Three Trials of Oscar… more »

An Oscar for a Fee

I'm still scratching my head a bit over this one. Perhaps someone can offer a little illumination... The Little Theatre of Alexandria (Virginia) is going to be presenting Moises Kaufman's play, Gross Indecency: The Three Trials of Oscar Wilde." As p… more »

The Horse that Dare Not Speak Its Name in China

In China, there’s nothing even remotely like the U.S. First Amendment to provide a great big blanket protection to most speech. Here, even what’s sometimes called “indecent speech” can fall under that protection. Not so in China. But that hasn’t stopp… more »

Someone to Watch Over Art

It's not on the White House's web site yet, but reports are out that President Obama has created a staff position to oversee the arts and culture in this country. The appointee to this role is Kareem Dale, a lawyer who was also appointed recently to be… more »

Musicians Sing the Blues over No-Pay-to-Play Radio

In case you weren’t aware—and don’t feel bad about this if you didn’t, because it’s not something that comes up in conversation very often—local radio stations don’t currently have to pay the performers whose music they broadcast. If you or I want to pu… more »

Novelist Finds It’s an Unforgiving Desert for Exaggerators

The Associated Press reports that a judge has ordered author Clive Cussler, who wrote the novel, Sahara, to pay almost $14 million dollars in legal fees to the motion picture company that made the film version of the book. Originally, Cussler sued Cru… more »

A Moral Law for Art?

I stumbled across this and thought I'd share. It's a New York Times article from 1901 covering a Princeton prof's lecture on the question, "Is there a moral law for art?" Check out the article and judge for yourself whether the arguments over art's p… more »

Barbie’s No Stranger to Court

This month marks a major milestone in American pop culture: the 50th birthday of that blockbuster of the toy industry—the Barbie doll. Not looking a day over 20, Barbie continues to be such a giant of the toy industry that she often gets her very own a… more »

Could Charley's Aunt Be Charley's Uncle?

While at a theater conference recently, someone came up to me with a legal question: How would this person go about getting the rights to produce a published play? Well, simple. Just contact the publisher and find out what their conditions and fees ar… more »

Cover Band Coffee Shops Contend with Copyright

In case you didn’t already know, when a venue such as a bar or a coffee shop or just about any commercial enterprise presents live musical entertainment, it’s that venue’s responsibility to acquire the licenses needed to allow those entertainers perform… more »