“S—-y Media Men” list creator Moira Donegan’s legal team filed a letter with Judge LaShann DeArcy Hall, arguing for motions to dismiss Stephen Elliott’s defamation lawsuit and to stay discovery until the judge rules on the motion, citing “the extraordinary weakness of [Elliott’s] allegations.” In a four-page letter, counsel Roberta A. Kaplan argues that Elliott’s self-promotional actions — as a writer and producer promoting his works at ‘publicity events,’ ‘interviews,’ and ‘panels’ — establish him as a public figure, who must therefore prove that Donegan acted “grossly irresponsibly” or “with actual malice” in publishing the claims against him, and that […]
Legal
Choose Your Own Adventure Sues Netflix Over “Bandersnatch”
Chooseco, the owners of the Choose Your Own Adventure series, filed suit in a Vermont Federal court on Friday against Netflix, alleging trademark infringement, trademark dilution and unfair competition over the interactive film Black Mirror: Bandersnatch, released by the streaming service on December 28, 2018. The suit seeks a “conservative initial estimate” of at least $25 million in damages. Citing the early minutes of Netflix movie, in which the the main character refers to the fictional book Bandersnatch as a “Choose Your Own Adventure” book, in which “you decide what your character does,” Chooseco charges that the infringement of their trademark […]
People, Etc.
Lindsey Rose will join Dutton as executive editor, acquiring commercial fiction including thrillers and suspense, starting January 22. Most recently she was senior editor at Grand Central. At Crown, Meghan Houser has been promoted to editor; Rose Fox to associate editor; and Jon Darga and Jillian Buckley to assistant editor. Donna Loffredo has been promoted to senior editor for Harmony Books and Rodale Books, and Michele Eniclerico moves up to associate editor for the two lines. In the Crown rights department, Rachel Berkowitz becomes deputy director of foreign rights and Claire Posner moves up to associate manager, subsidiary rights. Lisa Yoskowitz has been promoted to editorial director, nonfiction at Little, Brown Children’s. […]
Parneros Formally Disputes BN’s Claim He Was a “Faithless Servant”
Former Barnes & Noble CEO Demos Parneros’ determination to dispute the bookseller’s claim he was a “faithless servant” has now resulted in a formal motion: On December 21, after some scheduling confusion regarding an intended postponement, his counsel filed the motion to dismiss BN’s second counterclaim against him. (As for the other two counterclaims, counsel heeded Judge John Koetl’s strongly-established concerns about a motion to dismiss.) Attorney Anne Clark’s 15-page filing leverages legal precedent to dispute BN’s claim that Parneros was a “faithless servant” who sabotaged negotiations with a potential buyer of the struggling company. While Parneros disputes the facts in BN’s […]
Thousands of Books Set to Enter the Public Domain on January 1
Santa has one more delivery on the way: On January 1, 2019, all works published in the United States in 1923 will enter the public domain. The list of books, movies, and songs numbers more than 1000, based on research conducted by Duke Law School’s Center for the Public Domain — and includes work by authors such as Robert Frost, Aldous Huxley, and Edith Wharton. This is the first mass-release of works into the public’s hands in 21 years, thanks to a provision of the Sonny Bono Copyright Term Extension Act that froze the release of works created prior to […]
Tate Publishing Owners Take Plea Agreement, Will Provide Restitution to Defrauded Authors
Ryan and Richard Tate, the ceo and founder respectively of Tate Publishing & Enterprises, accepted a plea agreement with the Oklahoma Attorney General at a hearing yesterday. The Tates were charged with 38 felonies and six misdemeanors for fraudulent business practices that “swindled more than 2,200 individuals out of their property and money they paid to have their music or books published or produced through the companies.” Under the deal, the brothers’ sentences are suspended but they will spend the next two decades on probation and face “revocation” and “prison time” if they fail to comply with the agreement. They will […]