Gary Friedrich Sues Marvel and Related Companies Over Ghost Rider Copyright

At least that what's Reuters says. Apparently the suit was filed in federal court in Illinois on April 4, claims that Friedrich created the character three years earlier and then brought it to Marvel, that Marvel in its Magazine Management stage didn't register the work and thus the character returned to him in 2001, and that, in what one would guess is the bulk of the suit, managed the character poorly since that time.

I don't want to waste your time with a lot of fake-lawyer Internet-blowhard expounding on the various issues as if I have a clue, but a few things pop out at me. For one, I always thought that Roy Thomas and maybe Mike Ploog were credited with the character's creation. Two, if it continues, it strikes me that this could become really interesting in terms of delineating how some of Marvel's licensing deals work. Friedrich's claim of previous creation kind of pops out, too; I recall that this was part of the basis by which the late Dave Cockrum secured his final pension/deal with the company, so maybe that has an impact.
 
posted 3:20 am PST | Permalink
 

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