So, comedians, as we all know, set out to make people laugh when they’re at work. But the funny thing is, they sometimes also make people angry and mad as hell. In fact, so mad that sometimes some of these people actually do attack them. As in, (gasp!) attack them physically, that is. Cut to…
Category: Comedy Legal
This category deals with what happens when comedians get in trouble with the law and get taken to court
The Defeat of Matt Hoss: A Copyright Lesson for Comedians
Nowadays we live in a new era of comedy where copying a comedian’s work can seem like removing money from his pocket. Needless to say, this is the sort of situation where the aggressor can expect some pretty hard pushback. Yet, as comedian Matt Hoss (full name: Matt Hosseinzadeh) learned not that long ago, just…
Fighting The Daily Stormer: When a Comedian Sues a Rogue
When a comedian sues a non-comedian for damaging his reputation, one can expect the sort of unusual scenario where ‘the usual suspects’ become the ones trying to restore sanity. So, as the hunter becomes the hunted and people wonder just how well the shoe will fit on the other foot, the recent case of Muslim…
Louis CK, Saturday Night Live & Tig Notaro: Will the Joke Thief Please Stand?
Not long ago, Saturday Night Live (SNL) stepped into yet another joke theft controversy. And, this time, to give the matter some serious color, the controversy had some big names in the mix: First, there is the brash comic Tig Notaro, the star of Amazon’s One Mississippi series. Then, caught in the crosshairs of the…
Spinal Tap vs. Vivendi SA : Crusading for Artists’ Rights or Re-Playing a Familiar Old Script?
The practice of “bizarre” accounting by Hollywood studios and the corresponding resentment of this perceived injustice by the creative artist community are nothing new. And from all indications, the passage of time has done little to ease the tension and confrontation between the two sides, as is demonstrated by the latest David and Goliath-like confrontation…
Going to Jail for a Joke: A Contemporary American Look at German Comedy
The saying that America is a ‘free country’ is something that Americans in the comedy business in contemporary times would probably appreciate better than most people. But in other places, however, thanks to their laws, comedians actually live in a different world and in some cases can actually go to jail for the content of…
When Comedy Met Hypnosis in Court
As life goes, the chance of witnessing something weird at a show goes with the territory in comedy. And when weird things do happen, it’s fair to say that an audience member taking matters to court may well find himself in plenty new territory when it comes to pulling out a win, whether they’re suing…
Jim Belushi: Sticking Up for a Name and a Brand
Lately, comedian/actor Jim Belushi seems to be spending quite a bit of time in court trying to protect a prized asset: his name and its brand. In show business, there can be plenty to a name, especially if money is riding on it. Obviously, this knowledge isn’t lost on Belushi as he makes his adventures…
THE HAPPY DAYS’ ROYALTY LAWSUIT: Grabbing the Gravy After the Party Ends
Sometimes in show business, especially when you’re dealing with a successful TV comedy, such as CBS’ Happy Days, just because the party is over (and as some folks like to say, ‘Elvis has left the building’) doesn’t mean that the gravy from the show’s success may not continue to flow. Yet, the lucky folks who…
GEORGE WALLACE’s Lawsuit: A Million-Dollar Lesson at the Bellagio
This past April, something really nice happened to George Wallace: A friendly nod from a Las Vegas jury made the funnyman more than a million dollars richer and sent him smiling to his bank. And for working comics everywhere who either travel for gigs around the country or do their gigs locally, Wallace’s win is…