National Comics Publications, Inc. v. Fawcett Publications, Inc.
National Comics Publications v. Fawcett Publications | |
---|---|
Jerome Frank, Learned Hand | |
Case opinions | |
Majority | Hand, joined by Chase, Frank |
Laws applied | |
Copyright Act of 1909 |
National Comics Publications v. Fawcett Publications, 191 F.2d 594 (2d Cir. 1951). was a decision by the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit in a twelve-year legal battle between National Comics (also known as Detective Comics and DC Comics) and the Fawcett Comics division of Fawcett Publications, concerning Fawcett's Captain Marvel character being an infringement on the copyright of National's Superman comic book character. The litigation is notable as one of the longest-running legal battles in comic book publication history.
The suit resulted in Fawcett Publications shuttering the Fawcett Comics division and cancelling all of its superhero-related publications, including those featuring Captain Marvel and related characters. In the 1970s, National, rebranded as DC Comics, licensed the rights to Captain Marvel and revived the character. DC Comics then purchased the rights completely by 1991.[1]
History
Pre-trial
Captain Marvel was not the first
However, Fawcett decided to fight Detective's allegations that Captain Marvel, the star character of their
Initial hearing
Detective Comics tried and failed to both have Fawcett cease publication of Captain Marvel comics and have Republic Pictures withhold release of the Captain Marvel serial via a cease and desist in June 1941.[2] When the action went unheeded, Detective and Superman, Inc. filed suit against Fawcett in September 1941,[2][3] naming Republic as a co-defendant.[3] The lawsuit between Detective and Fawcett proceeded for seven years before trial finally began in March 1948.[3] By this time, Detective Comics and Superman, Inc. had merged to create one company called National Comics, which became the sole plaintiff in the case.[3]
National's argument was that Captain Marvel's main powers and characteristics (super-strength, super-speed, invulnerability, a skin-tight costume with a cape, and a news reporter alter ego) were derived directly from those of Superman.[4] Fawcett's counterargument was that although the two characters were indeed similar, the similarity was not infringing.[5]
National presented as evidence a binder over 150 pages in length, featuring panels from their comics of Superman performing superheroic stunts juxtaposed with panels of Captain Marvel doing the same stunts in magazines published at a later date than the Superman example.[5] Fawcett countered in two ways: by providing examples of Captain Marvel performing those feats at even earlier points of publication, or by providing examples of other heroic comics characters such as Popeye or Tarzan performing those feats in earlier published comic strips.[5] Testimony from Fawcett employees and artists hired by Fawcett on a freelance basis offered differing positions on whether or not the Fawcett creative teams had been required to copy from Superman comics.[3]
The trial was decided in Fawcett's (Captain Marvel's) favor because of information Fawcett's lawyers had uncovered about Superman's copyright status. The defense lawyers provided evidence that National Comics and the
The trial judge did find, however, that Captain Marvel was an illegal copy of National's Superman.[4][3]
Appeal
National appealed the decision in 1951 to the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, with Judge Learned Hand presiding. Judge Hand's ruling in National's favor reversed a part of the trial court's decision.[6] National's Superman copyright was held valid but the McClure strip was not under copyright, and the finding that Captain Marvel was an infringement of that copyright was affirmed.[6] Judge Hand did not find that the character of Captain Marvel itself was an infringement, but rather that specific stories or super feats could be infringements, and this would have to be determined in a retrial. He therefore sent the matter back to the lower court.
Instead of trying to appeal the Second Circuit's decision to the Supreme Court or going through the damage assessment on how much of an infringement Captain Marvel was in district court, Fawcett decided to settle with National out of court.[4] Superhero comics sales had decreased dramatically during the early 1950s, and Fawcett decided that it was not worthwhile to continue fighting National.[4][7] National agreed to settle with Fawcett out of court, and Fawcett paid National $400,000 in damages and agreed to cease publication of all Captain Marvel-related comics.[5]
Results of the lawsuit
Fawcett Comics ended up cancelling all of its superhero comics, selling the reprint rights for Hoppy the Marvel Bunny to
Captain Marvel remained out of print for the rest of the 1950s and the entirety of the 1960s, a period during which superhero comics regained their popularity. In 1967
In 1987, DC Comics relaunched Captain Marvel in a miniseries,
National v. Fawcett is still an often-referenced case in the areas of copyright law and plagiarism because of its readily-accessible subject matter, and the popularity of its author, Judge Hand, among legal scholars. It was occasionally nicknamed Kent v. Batson, a reference to the two superheroes' respective secret identities: National's Clark Kent and Fawcett's Billy Batson.
Superduperman vs. Captain Marbles
In Mad #4, 1953, the story "Superduperman" was published. While it did not specifically reference the lawsuit, the story recounts the battle between Superduperman and "Captain Marbles", which ends in the defeat of Captain Marbles.
See also
- Kimble v. Marvel Entertainment, LLC: Another comic-related intellectual property rights case (concerning Spider-Man)
- Detective Comics, Inc. v. Bruns Publications, Inc.: Another comic-related intellectual property rights case (copyright infringement)
- Warner Bros. Inc. v. American Broadcasting Companies, Inc.
Notes
- ^ a b Thomas, Roy; Jerry Ordway (July 2001). "Not Your Father's Captain Marvel! An Artist-by-Artist Account of a Doomed Quest for a 1980s Shazam! Series". Alter Ego. 3 (9). Two Morrows Publishing: 9–17.
- ^ a b Hughes, Bob. "DC Timeline". supermanartists.comics.org. Archived from the original on February 3, 2006. Retrieved August 9, 2005.
- ^ a b c d e f g Coxe (District Judge) (April 10, 1950). "National Comics Publications v. Fawcett Publications, 93 F. Supp. 349 (S.D.N.Y. 1950) District Court, S.D. New York". CourtListener. Archived from the original on September 6, 2014. Retrieved September 6, 2014.
- ^ a b c d Ingersoll, Bob. ""The Law is a Ass" Installment # 66". World Famous Comics. Retrieved January 16, 2014. Originally printed in Comics Buyer's Guide.
- ^ a b c d e Lage, Matt (2001). "Visual Expression: Will Lieberson - Fawcett Comics Executive Editor". In Hamerlinck, P.C. (ed.). Fawcett Companion: The Best of FCA (1st ed.). TwoMorrows Publishing. pp. 92–97.
- ^ a b Hand, L. (Circuit Judge) (1951). "191 F.2d 594: National Comics Publications, Inc. v. Fawcett Publications, Inc. et al United States Court of Appeals Second Circuit. - 191 F.2d 594 Argued May 4, 1951 Decided August 30, 1951". CourtListener. Retrieved September 6, 2014.[permanent dead link]
- ^ Gore, Matthew H. (June 24, 2001). The Origins of Marvelman. Wayback Machine. Retrieved January 16, 2014. Quote: "With avenues of appeal still open but their outcome obvious after the first court ruled for National Periodicals, Fawcett Publications settled out of court in late-1953. Fawcett agreed to cease publication of all Captain Marvel related titles. However, Fawcett's decision to give up the legal battle came when all of the company's superhero titles were reporting greatly diminished sales was no circumstance".
- ^ Rogers, Vaneta (January 26, 2012). "Exclusive: GEOFF JOHNS Hopes Lightning Strikes SHAZAM!". Newsarama.
External links
- Superman v. Captain Marvel: compares similar Superman and Captain Marvel comic book covers used in trial