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http://business.timesonline.co.uk/article/0%2c%2c9071-1137051%2c00.htmlKerpow — Batgirl creator sues Time Warner From Abigail Rayner in New York THE 79-year-old creator of Batgirl, the Batmobile and a host of Batman villains, is suing Time Warner and the comic that once employed him, demanding $4 million (£2 million) for breach of copyright. Carmine Infantino, the illustrator, also revived Batman’s image, which paved the way for the Batman television series in the 1960s. “Batman was dying,” said Mr Infantino, speaking from his home in Manhattan. Mr Infantino also created a character called Poison Ivy, formerly Dr Pamela Lillian Isley, a botanist from Seattle with immunity to all poisons. Mr Infantino’s The Flash — The fastest man alive — is also still hugely popular in the US. The illustrator’s creations were used on the covers of the comics, made into toys and featured in numerous television series. Mr Infantino said he decided to sue while watching an interview with a Warner Bros executive, who named the characters but did not name their creator. “They never once mentioned me. I was really insulted,” Mr Infantino said. He contacted Warner Bros two years ago to claim compensation but was insulted by its $25,000 offer. “I said, ‘I’ll give you $25,000 and you give me the characters.’ That shut them up.” In the 1950s and 60s when The Elongated Man, Captain Boomerang and Detective Chimp were leaping off his drawing board, Mr Infantino had few rights to his own creations. Between 1943 and 1967 he was working as a freelance, providing characters for DC Comics. DC Comics, or Warner Bros, which later acquired it, would draw up a cheque, which all parties would sign. Once it was cashed, the creator relinquished all rights. Mr Infantino said: “That was thrown out some years later when a judge decided that you gotta eat.” Warner Bros declined to comment “as a matter of company policy”.
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Inglourious Basterd!!! 15000+ posts
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http://www.rkmbs.com/showflat.php?Cat=&Number=283470&page=1&view=collapsed&sb=5&o=&fpart=1I would think that a publication like The Business Times would delve a little deeper into a news story, specifically its history, in order to give a balanced report. But I guess that would be asking too much of our media... Pricks. And Infantino has really disappointed me with his hypocrisy.
Uschi said:I won't rape you, I'll just fuck you 'till it hurts and then not stop and you'll cry. MisterJLA: RACKS so hard, he called Jim Rome "Chris Everett." In Him, all porn is possible. He is far above mentions in so-called "blogs." RACK him, lest ye be lost! "I can't even brush my teeth without gagging!" - Tommy Tantillo: Wank & Cry, heckpuppy, and general laughingstock ![[Linked Image from i6.photobucket.com]](http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y203/JoeMama13/RedSoxBanner05.png)
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Quote:
Dave said:
THE 79-year-old creator of Batgirl, the Batmobile and a host of Batman villains, is suing Time Warner and the comic that once employed him, demanding $4 million (£2 million) for breach of copyright.
Unless Infantino is really some guy named "Bob Kane", then that's a bunch of bull. The Batmobile was used in the Batman daily strips Kane wrote back in '39 and '40.
...though, I'm sure Jim Jackson will try to correct me on that, too... 
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Oddly enough, Dc haven't been using Carmine's version of Batgirl for years in their mainstream comics, but still sell lots of Batgirl merchandise. I wonder if Carmine timed it with a resurgence of inetrest arisng from Batman Adventures?
I always hated his art.
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He was a good artist in his day.
But apparently a lousy human being.
He's one of the guys who, when in charge of DC, had no problem enforcing work for hire on other guys and now he's upset the same rules apply to him?
Sheesh
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He claims to have "redesigned" Batman?
The only "redesign" was to put a yellow oval on the guy's chest.
Other than that there was no real difference between his Batman and the Batman that had been published for more or less 25 previous years.
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Your death will make me king! 15000+ posts
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It's like going to a garage for a tune-up, then getting sued for your car by the auto mechanic.
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That's a brilliant analogy. Really.
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Quote:
the G-man said:
He claims to have "redesigned" Batman?
The only "redesign" was to put a yellow oval on the guy's chest.
Other than that there was no real difference between his Batman and the Batman that had been published for more or less 25 previous years.
I have to disagree. The stories pre-yellow oval were worlds apart from the stories after the little yellow target made it's way onto Batman's chest. Aliens and puesdo Sci-Fi were definitely the main ingredients of most any given plot at that time and Bats was heading rather quickly into the crapper prior to the "big change" that brought him back to Earth.
-----once over and twice twisted---------
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Quote:
LLance said:
Quote:
the G-man said:
He claims to have "redesigned" Batman?
The only "redesign" was to put a yellow oval on the guy's chest.
Other than that there was no real difference between his Batman and the Batman that had been published for more or less 25 previous years.
I have to disagree. The stories pre-yellow oval were worlds apart from the stories after the little yellow target made it's way onto Batman's chest. Aliens and puesdo Sci-Fi were definitely the main ingredients of most any given plot at that time and Bats was heading rather quickly into the crapper prior to the "big change" that brought him back to Earth.
But were the post-yellow oval stories completely new for the character? Or was the new direction basically going back to earlier types of Batman stories and merely heading in that direction again.
You can make the same argument with Morrison's JLA.
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Quote:
LLance said:
I have to disagree [that there was no real difference between his Batman and the Batman that had been published for more or less 25 previous years]. The stories pre-yellow oval were worlds apart from the stories after the little yellow target made it's way onto Batman's chest. Aliens and puesdo Sci-Fi were definitely the main ingredients of most any given plot at that time and Bats was heading rather quickly into the crapper prior to the "big change" that brought him back to Earth.
I meant in terms of character design alone, which is what Infantino is claiming credit for, not stories. Other than that oval (and the fact that Infantino draws more realistically than Bob Kane), there is little difference in the character's design between 1940 and 1964.
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Quote:
Chewy Walrus said:
Quote:
Dave said:
THE 79-year-old creator of Batgirl, the Batmobile and a host of Batman villains, is suing Time Warner and the comic that once employed him, demanding $4 million (£2 million) for breach of copyright.
Unless Infantino is really some guy named "Bob Kane", then that's a bunch of bull. The Batmobile was used in the Batman daily strips Kane wrote back in '39 and '40.
...though, I'm sure Jim Jackson will try to correct me on that, too...
Nope. Don't know enough Batman history.
JJ
We all wear a green carnation.
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Quote:
Chewy Walrus said:
Quote:
Dave said:
THE 79-year-old creator of Batgirl, the Batmobile and a host of Batman villains, is suing Time Warner and the comic that once employed him, demanding $4 million (£2 million) for breach of copyright.
Unless Infantino is really some guy named "Bob Kane", then that's a bunch of bull. The Batmobile was used in the Batman daily strips Kane wrote back in '39 and '40.
...though, I'm sure Jim Jackson will try to correct me on that, too...
Not to sound too much like Jim Jackson  but....
Kane's uncredited co-creator Bill Finger actually wrote the stories.
Kane only drew them (or assigned a ghost artist to draw them).
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Quote:
Batgirl vs Infantino
Dude... Batgirl's in a wheelchair...
Thing is- I can’t spell or type. I spell so badly my spell check doesn’t even know what I was trying to spell. And I have five Eisners HAHAHAHHA!!
-Brian Michael Bendis
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Danny said:Dude... Batgirl's in a wheelchair... If you've seen a photo of Infantino lately (the last one I saw he was very shriveled and fragile-looking, remarkably similar in appearance to E.T.) that might just be a fair fight ! But seriously, I happen to like Infantino's work a lot. I think aside from Jack Kirby, few artists have contributed more to comics, particularly to Silver Age DC. I don't think Infantino has a strong case, but I wish the guy luck. We have Infantino to thank for: - Barry Allen FLASH (at least in the form we know him),
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- Adam Strange/MYSTERY IN SPACE,
. - Kid Flash,
. - the "New Look" Batman in DETECTIVE COMICS,
. - STRANGE SPORTS STORIES (in BRAVE & THE BOLD),
. - endless DC covers throughout the 60's and early 70's,
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- FAMOUS FIRST EDITIONS,
. - LIMITED COLLECTORS' EDITIONS,
. - 48-page comics,
. - 52-pagers,
. - 80-pagers,
. - 100-pagers,
. - AMAZING WORLD OF DC COMICS,
. - SUPERMAN VS SPIDERMAN and other Marvel/DC collaborations,
. - a buttload of off-the-wall series that probably no one else would have published, from Kirby's Fourth World series, KAMANDI, THE DEMON, O.M.A.C. (and Infantino's big role in getting Kirby to DC in the first place), to mystery titles like HOUSE OF MYSTERY, HOUSE OF SECRETS, WITCHING HOUR and SWAMP THING, to pulp adventure comics like THE SHADOW, JUSTICE INC., and another of my all time favorites, Grell's THE WARLORD.
Without Infantino, much of this wide-ranging material might never have been published. Since the guy was booted from DC unceremoniously in 1976, likely with no pension, I don't fault Infantino's reaching for the brass ring in court. But although I think Infantino deserves compensation for his many contributions to DC, I think his claims on these characters are about as solid as Joe Simon's alleging he (Joe Simon) alone created Captain America. If Kirby were alive, he would definitely have a different perspective on Simon's recollection of that. --------------------  "This Man, This Wonder Boy..."
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Quote:
Dave the Wonder Boy said:
Quote:
Danny said:
Quote:
Batgirl vs Infantino
Dude... Batgirl's in a wheelchair...
If you've seen a photo of Infantino lately (the last one I saw he was very shriveled and fragile-lookin, remarkably similar in appearance to E.T.) that might just be a fair fight !
Hell, Batgirl's just a drawing on a piece of paper. It could be Paper vs. Infantino and the paper would win.
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I think a sample of Infantino's contribution would be a nice addition here:             DETECTIVE COMICS 359 (pictured above) is the issue where Infantino's lawsuit-relevant new Batgirl first appeared. I was surprised to discover that even a number of the Neal Adams DC covers were actually begun by Adams over Infantino layouts. One of the Two Morrows books, THE AMAZING WORLD OF CARMINE INFANTINO, says that in reader polls, Infantino is consistently the most fondly remembered penciller of the Silver Age. That surprised me, because I'd think most would pick Jack Kirby. Although for me, it's a close race between Kirby, Ditko, Infantino, Murphy Anderson, Swan, Al Williamson, Wood, Joe Kubert, Gil Kane, and later greats like Adams, Steranko, Wrightson, Smith, and Kaluta. But regardless, Infantino is a big contributor.
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If Infantino had any kind of rights over Batgirl would he be liable for copyright infringement due to her similarity to Batman?
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If he does win the rights to Batgirl, I would love to see the Kane estate try this! 
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Quote:
Steve T said:
If Infantino had any kind of rights over Batgirl would he be liable for copyright infringement due to her similarity to Batman?
Infringement has to be unauthorised. This was authorised.
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Quote:
Chewy Walrus said:
If he does win the rights to Batgirl, I would love to see the Kane estate try this!
The "Kane estate" has nothing to do with the creation of Batgirl, so I'm wondering what you mean by this. Bob Kane hadn't contributed to Batman comics since the early 1940s.
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...nevermind...
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Bob Kane estate net worth: $10 millionJust curious, relative to the last point above. I wonder why Kane was so well compensated, while Shuster and Siegel were so thoroughly dicked over. Likewise, why Infantino was not well compensated for his enormous contribution to DC, not only as penciller and co-creator, but also as a very creative managing editor and publisher.
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Bob Kane estate net worth: $10 millionI wonder why Kane was so well compensated, while Shuster and Siegel were so thoroughly dicked over. Kane had preptime
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Bob Kane estate net worth: $10 millionI wonder why Kane was so well compensated, while Shuster and Siegel were so thoroughly dicked over. Kane had preptime Bob Kane is dead many years now. But a great question in an interview would be "Did DC try to dick you over like they did Schuster and Siegel?" I suspect they did, or at least weighed the possibility. I don't know for certain, but I'd assume Bob Kane was a little older and had a better understanding of his creator rights, and perhaps legal representation as well. And thus secured a better creator/publisher deal. Ironically, it was Bob Kane who dicked over Bill Finger, Jerry Robinson, Dick Sprang and Sheldon Moldoff sharing neither credit or compensation for their enormous contribution to the Batman franchise. Kane was the dicker, rather than the dickee. Infantino in the late 1960's finally gave Bob Kane a new contract for payment even without his doing artwork as "Bob Kane" (ghosted by Sheldon Moldoff), so that Infantino could replace them with better storytellers like Frank Robbins, Irv Novick, Dick Giordano, and later Dennis O'Neil and Neal Adams, and finally move the series in a direction with more wide appeal. Infantino himself in the 1964-1967 era saved BATMAN and DETECTIVE from the brink of cancellation with the "New Look" Batman. A property that got even hotter with the Batman TV series and related licensing. It's hard to believe in retrospect that a now-billion-dollar franchise like Batman was almost cancelled.
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Bob Kane is dead many years now. But a great question in an interview would be "Did DC try to dick you over like they did Schuster and Siegel?" I suspect they did, or at least weighed the possibility.
I don't know for certain, but I'd assume Bob Kane was a little older and had a better understanding of his creator rights, and perhaps legal representation as well. And thus secured a better creator/publisher deal. IIRC, Kane had a family member who was a lawyer and negotiated him a relatively sweet deal. SoM?!? You're back?!?
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I hope so, Son of Mxy's very fun to have around.
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