Wizard Fires Stephen Shamus, Sues For Practice Of Signing Non-Profitable Celebrities, Then Profiting

I'm sure the papers themselves will flash up on someone's site pretty soon, but I think it's enough to know that the Wizard group of shows has fired Stephen Shamus, longtime Wizard linchpin and brother to Gareb, and is now suing him for asserted malfeasance on the job. It looks like what's being argued is that Shamus signed celebrities to the show series in a way that couldn't benefit the show but might be expected to benefit Shamus by his scoring autographs and the like for his own sideline dealings. That's an interesting construction; the law will have its say on the matter or be kept from having its say via settlement.

I think what will strike many longtime industry observers is that this is in spirit the kind of hustle it was always implied that the Wizard empire specialized in when it was a publishing concern for the most part and Shamus worked in-house, the difference being back then there was a comics guide component which could be seized on or even manipulated for the sake of profit by collectible.

It's difficult to think of another art form where this kind of hustling is so near the core of public elements of its identity, although most media with an object that changes hands has some element of this.

Update: Here's an official response from Shamus' representatives in advance of a formal response to the court.
 
posted 8:55 pm PST | Permalink
 

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