What's at Stake in the Shirelles' Lawsuit Against Warner Bros. Over Broadway's 'Baby It's You'

By Eriq Gardner
THR, Esq. | Article Link

On the day that Warner Bros. premiered its new Broadway musical, Baby It's You, surviving members of pioneering American girl group The Shirelles have filed a lawsuit against the studio for using their names and likenesses in connection with the show.

According to the musical's synopsis, Baby It's You tells the story of Florence Greenberg, the woman who changed the recording world forever when she discovered The Shirelles and created Scepter Records, becoming the music industry's first female powerhouse.

Sofa Entertainment Inc. v. Dodger Productions

By Jennifer Tytel

Fordham Intellectual Property, Media & Entertainment Law Journal

IPLJ Permalink

In 2005 the Broadway musical Jersey Boys opened to massive critical acclaim and was later honored at the 2006 Tony Award’s as the year’s best musical. The play told the rags to riches tale of Frankie Valli and The Four Seasons through music, dancing and use of historical footage. Five years after the first curtain opened, the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California held that the unauthorized use of a clip from a television series during a Broadway show is considered a “fair use” of copyrighted work and an affirmative defense to copyright infringement.