Statue battle led to law to protect Elvis' image
EP4Me2
Rob Robertson
Visitors to the Tennessee Welcome Center on Riverside Drive may not realize
it, but the nine-foot tall bronze statue of Elvis Presley that dominates the
lobby was once the subject of a legal battle that extended all the way to
the U.S. Supreme Court, the effects of which still resonate like one of the
late singer's hit songs.
To understand the genesis of the case, one must travel back to the dark days
just after Elvis' death.
During his lifetime, Elvis had been a remarkably generous celebrity, but not
a particularly savvy financial manager. He had no long-term investments, and
he never bothered to shelter his income from taxes.
When Elvis died at Graceland on Aug. 16, 1977, as arguably the most famous
entertainer in the world, he had $1.4 million in a regular checking account
and about $750,000 in savings. Including his Graceland mansion and other
personal items, his total worth was estimated at $7.6 million.
While the estate he left was by no means broke, "there was a cash flow
problem," says Jack Soden, chief executive officer of Elvis Presley
Enterprises, Inc.
In 1981 the remaining trustees of Elvis' estate formed EPE and hired Soden
to plan and execute the opening of Graceland to the public in 1982, which
was needed to generate revenue quickly in order to keep the estate from
falling into a deepening financial hole.
In addition to opening Graceland to tours, EPE sought to retain the value
from the public use of Elvis' name, likeness and image for the estate. To
that end, EPE granted exclusive rights to the manufacture and marketing of
commercial products related to the late singer to a third-party firm.
The wrangling over the statue began after the Memphis Development Foundation
sought to have the sculpture created as a lasting monument to the city's
most famous son. Sculptor Eric Parks was commissioned to create the artwork.
To expedite the fundraising for the project, the MDF promised small
statuettes -- replicas of the original -- to donors who made particularly
generous contributions to the project. When the MDF began advertising for
contributions featuring the statuettes, EPE -- through its licensee, Factors
Etc., Inc. -- demanded the foundation end the advertisements and brought a
lawsuit to stop production of the statues.
"The family name, image and likeness was all they had, since Elvis had given
away almost everything else before his death," says Brad Champlin, executive
vice president of Union Planters Corp., which eventually bankrolled the
project. "That's why it was so important to secure the rights to those
items. They were worried that the estate might be in trouble by the time
Lisa Marie was ready to take it."
EPE, through Factors, argued that the rights to the use of the name and
likeness of Elvis were assets of his estate, and could be protected as such.
The Development Foundation took the position that due to Elvis' status as a
public figure, his name and likeness became part of the public domain after
his death, and the estate's rights were terminated.
"Honestly, the entire episode was very unfortunate," Soden says. "The people
were well intended, but if the estate had turned a blind eye, it would have
in essence forfeited control of future rights worth millions."
Factors was initially successful in getting an injunction on the production
of the smaller statues through U.S. District Court in Memphis, but the
favorable ruling left open the possibility for the foundation to build a
single statue.
"Theirs was a cutting edge legal argument at the time," says local attorney
David Cocke, one of the lawyers that represented the MDF.
In an appeal to the 6th Circuit, the District Court ruling was reversed,
with the court siding with the defendant's argument that the estate had no
inheritable right to the name and likeness under the particular
circumstances involved.
The case continued to wind through the legal process, eventually making it
all way up to the Supreme Court, which subsequently declined to hear the
case -- effectively agreeing with the decision of the 6th Circuit.
Shortly afterward, the legal team for Graceland -- recognizing that the
unfavorable decision from the High Court could have a ruinous effect on
future efforts by the estate to control the rights to its greatest asset --
settled.
"This was a case that never had to go to litigation," Soden says. "It could
have been solved over lunch."
The ruling left Graceland in a highly vulnerable position, one that
officials from the estate worked quickly to rectify. After an intense
lobbying effort, in 1984 Graceland was able to convince Tennessee lawmakers
to pass new legislation that recognized the rights of the estates of public
persons to protect an individual's name and likeness even after their death.
More and more states have followed suit, generally treating the issue as an
extension of the right to privacy.
"Until the body of law started changing there was little doubt individuals
could exploit historical figures for their own purposes without worry about
facing legal challenges from the estate," Cocke says. "Could the heirs of
George Washington get royalties for every dollar that is circulated now? The
case created a lot of interesting issues."
The statue itself was completed in 1979. After covering the cost, Union
Planters donated it to the city. It was originally located on Beale Street
before being moved to the Welcome Center.
A later case brought by EPE after the legislation had passed was
subsequently upheld by the same 6th Circuit court that ruled against the
estate.
"Upholding the statute Graceland had successfully lobbied for in the state
Legislature effectively declared the rights of publicity defendable to
heirs," Soden says. "That gave it teeth on a national level.
"Elvis worked his ass off; this has never been just about greed and money.
It's about protecting his hard work and the legacy he created for himself."
Link to article:
http://memphis.bizjournals.com/memphis/stories/2004/01/19/story2.html?page=1
Devildog
>From: ep4...@yahoo.com (EP4Me2)
>Statue battle led to law to protect Elvis' image
>Rob Robertson
>
>Visitors to the Tennessee Welcome Center on Riverside Drive may not realize
>it, but the nine-foot tall bronze statue of Elvis Presley that dominates the
>lobby was once the subject of a legal battle that extended all the way to
>the U.S. Supreme Court, the effects of which still resonate like one of the
>late singer's hit songs.
You know, I never really liked that statue anyway. I just never thought it
really looked like him, just some artist's vision. Am I the only one that feels
this way? If you are really going to do a sculpture of Elvis, then really make
it look like he did at some point in his life, not a fantasy version.
Bill Burk
vision. Am I the only one that feels this way? >>
I was there when the statue was unveiled, photographing it from every
conceivable angle.
The sculptor, Eric Parks, knowing I was the "Elvis writer" for the paper,
asked what I thought of it.
Very candidly, I told Parks: "It's pretty good. WHO is it ? !!"
Ouch !!
Unrelated, I met a Winston Churchilll admirer in Nashville over the weekend
and told him of how a rich friend of mine here in Memphis bought an oil
painting from Sir Spencer Churchill, Winston's nephew. (I had taken an
instant dislike to Sir Spencer earlier in the evening.)
We were standing there in the University Club -- Sir Spencer, the new owner
and me -- when they unveiled the painting. My friend turned to me and said,
"What do you think?"
And I hummed and hawed, as if studying the painting in depth, and said,
"It's pretty good. You almost can't see the numbers!"
Later, at a private dinner, each of us was asked to offer a toast to Sir
Spencer. Mine was: "To Sir Spencer, a royal pain in the ass."
Many at the table laughed. Sir Spencer asked his aid, "What did he say?"
"He said, Sir Spencer, that you were a pain in the royal tootoo."
And the old geezer held his glass on high and said, "I'll drink to that."
(That kept me from being thrown out of the place.)
007
--
******************
Bill E. Burk
Publisher, Elvis World Magazine
[Remove "NOSP" from my e-mail address]
MARTY
"EP4Me2" <ep4...@yahoo.com> wrote in message
news:9f4e4164.04012...@posting.google.com...
> subsequently upheld by the same 6th Circuit court that ruled against the
> estate.
>
(snipped)
> "Upholding the statute Graceland had successfully lobbied for in the state
> Legislature effectively declared the rights of publicity defendable to
> heirs," Soden says. "That gave it teeth on a national level.
>
> "Elvis worked his ass off; this has never been just about greed and money.
> It's about protecting his hard work and the legacy he created for
himself."
Yeah sure and Sophia Loren is really a man!
What a crock of shit!
Marty
Devildog
>From: "Bill Burk"
>Unrelated, I met a Winston Churchilll admirer in Nashville over the weekend
>and told him of how a rich friend of mine here in Memphis bought an oil
>painting from Sir Spencer Churchill, Winston's nephew. (I had taken an
>instant dislike to Sir Spencer earlier in the evening.)
>We were standing there in the University Club -- Sir Spencer, the new owner
>and me -- when they unveiled the painting. My friend turned to me and said,
>"What do you think?"
>And I hummed and hawed, as if studying the painting in depth, and said,
>"It's pretty good. You almost can't see the numbers!"
>
>Later, at a private dinner, each of us was asked to offer a toast to Sir
>Spencer. Mine was: "To Sir Spencer, a royal pain in the ass."
>
>Many at the table laughed. Sir Spencer asked his aid, "What did he say?"
>
>"He said, Sir Spencer, that you were a pain in the royal tootoo."
>
>And the old geezer held his glass on high and said, "I'll drink to that."
>
>(That kept me from being thrown out of the place.)
>
Sounds like his Famous Uncle's parrot and he have a lot in common.
At 104, Churchill's Bird Still Cursing Hitler
Foul-Mouthed Parrot Lived With Former British Leader
LONDON (Jan. 20) - British war leader Winston Churchill's foul-mouthed 104-year
old parrot refused to surrender to newshounds Monday after a British newspaper
tracked the bird down and discovered it was still alive.
"They've been trying to get him to talk all day, but he's not saying much,"
said Sylvia Martin, who manages Heathfield Nurseries where parrot Charlie has
lived for the last 12 years.
Charlie, who kept Churchill company during World War II, was famous for
occasionally squawking four-letter obscenities about Hitler. But Martin told
Reuters the bird has mellowed.
"He doesn't say very much anymore -- usually just hello and goodbye. But he
does get so excited about music and dances to it. He's very fit."
Charlie -- invariably referred to as "he" despite being female -- is now owned
by Peter Oram, the garden center's owner, Martin said. Oram's father-in-law
sold Churchill the bird and was asked to take it back after the prime minister
died in 1965.
Steve Nichols, founder of Britain's National Parrot Sanctuary, said that
although parrots did not often live longer than 40 in the wild, some had lived
to up to 110.
"It's obviously had the best life possible," he said.
ALADDIN137
>Date: 1/20/2004 9:40 AM Pacific Standard Time
>Message-id: <RJdPb.74481$6y6.1...@bgtnsc05-news.ops.worldnet.att.net>
>
>DD: >> I just never thought it really looked like him, just some artist's
>vision. Am I the only one that feels this way? >>
>I was there when the statue was unveiled, photographing it from every
>conceivable angle.
>The sculptor, Eric Parks, knowing I was the "Elvis writer" for the paper,
>asked what I thought of it.
>
>Very candidly, I told Parks: "It's
>pretty good. WHO is it ? !!"
>Ouch !!
LOL!!
If I continue reading these great posts I will keep on laughing and stop
grumbling over nothing.... I have seen so many things done, that just barely
even look like Elvis.
Never understood how they sell.
~Aladdin
Sudy
> > >
> >
>
> Sounds like his Famous Uncle's parrot and he have a lot in common.
>
>
> At 104, Churchill's Bird Still Cursing Hitler
> Foul-Mouthed Parrot Lived With Former British Leader
>
> LONDON (Jan. 20) - British war leader Winston Churchill's foul-mouthed 104-year
> old parrot refused to surrender to newshounds Monday after a British newspaper
> tracked the bird down and discovered it was still alive.
>
> "They've been trying to get him to talk all day, but he's not saying much,"
> said Sylvia Martin, who manages Heathfield Nurseries where parrot Charlie has
> lived for the last 12 years.
>
> Charlie, who kept Churchill company during World War II, was famous for
> occasionally squawking four-letter obscenities about Hitler. But Martin told
> Reuters the bird has mellowed.
>
> "He doesn't say very much anymore -- usually just hello and goodbye. But he
> does get so excited about music and dances to it. He's very fit."
>
> Charlie -- invariably referred to as "he" despite being female -- is now owned
> by Peter Oram, the garden center's owner, Martin said. Oram's father-in-law
> sold Churchill the bird and was asked to take it back after the prime minister
> died in 1965.
>
> Steve Nichols, founder of Britain's National Parrot Sanctuary, said that
> although parrots did not often live longer than 40 in the wild, some had lived
> to up to 110.
>
> "It's obviously had the best life possible," he said.
No one should belive this story yet. The latest is that the Churchill
family said that the story about it being Churchill's parrot is not
true. Apparently some bloke in a shop made up the claim (or at least
got the facts mixed up).