Witness list uncovered for 'Millionaire' suit + H'wd remakes running into copyright trouble? (THRE)

By Nancy Tartaglione

The Hollywood Reporter Esquire blog has tracked down the final list of witnesses in the upcoming "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire" case. The suit brought by Celador against Disney over profits from the show is set to begin on May 26. Included on the list are such high-profile names as Bob Iger, Michael Eisner, Lloyd Braun and Ben Silverman.

Click here for the full list.

Click here for previous coverage of the upcoming trial.

Meanwhile, THRE separately wonders if Hollywood remakes are about to run into serious copyright trouble.

In a lawsuit filed this week in NY, American Rights Management Company claims that a Viacom-distributed film "Singh is King" is a rip-off of the 1929 short story "Madame La Gimp" by Damon Runyon.

The story served as the basis for two Frank Capra films, "Lady for a Day" and "Pocketful of Miracles."

In the suit, it is alleged that the film's director wanted to remake "Miracles" for a younger audience. What makes the case intriguing, says THRE, is how American Rights Management Company acquired the rights to Runyon's work.

The company obtained rights in 2000 from Sheldon Abend's Author's Research Company. Abend, a literary agent who represented the estates of authors including Runyon, George Bernard Shaw, Tennessee Williams and David O. Selznick.

In the 1980s, Abend took on MCA, Alfred Hitchcock, and Jimmy Stewart in court after "Rear Window" was shown on television. Abend controlled the underlying short story. The case resulted in a landmark 1990 Supreme Court decision that established the so-called "Abend Rule," which deals with the continued distribution of a derivative work during the copyright renewal period of the underlying work, explains THRE.

Since Abend emerged victorious in that case, there haven't been many lawsuits targeting distribution of derivative works, but that could be changing, posits THRE.

Related Links

Full 'Millionaire' trial witness list: Iger, Eisner, Braun, Pedowitz, Silverman...(THRE)
Who wants to be a $250M-aire? (HWT)
Will Hollywood remakes run into copyright trouble? (THRE)