Table of Contents

List of Illustrations Acknowledgments Introduction: The Theater of Copyright 1. Piracy and the Birth of Film 2. Hollywood's Golden Age of Plagiarism 3. Auteurism on Trial: Moral Rights and Films on Television 4. Hollywood's Guerrilla War: Fair Use and Home Video 5. Digital Hollywood: Too Much Control and Too Much Freedom Conclusion: The Copyright Reform Movement Notes Index

Promotional Information

Beginning with Thomas Edison's aggressive copyright disputes and concluding with recent lawsuits against YouTube, Hollywood's Copyright Wars follows the struggle of the film, television, and digital media industries to influence and adapt to copyright law. Though much of Hollywood's engagement with the law occurs offstage, in the larger theater of copyright, many of Hollywood's most valued treasures, from Modern Times (1936) to Star Wars (1977), cannot be fully understood without appreciating their legal controversies. Peter Decherney shows that the history of intellectual property in Hollywood has not always mirrored the evolution of the law and recounts these extralegal solutions and their impact on American media and culture.

About the Author

Peter Decherney is professor of cinema studies and English at the University of Pennsylvania and author of Hollywood and the Culture Elite: How the Movies Became American.

Reviews

Both scholarly and readable, this will be of interest to movie history buffs and those who deal with copyright issues. Library Journal A splendid new study of the legal, technological, and aesthetic wrangling over motion picture copyright wrongs and rights, particularly timely. -- Thomas Doherty Moving Image Source Decherney's readable book provides a century of evidence about the complicated relationship between film, law, and power. -- Rebecca Tushnet Jotwell: Cyberlaw A groundbreaking study on what has been an understudied aspect of American film history. -- Jan-Christopher Horak Archival Spaces: Memory, Images, History Have you ever wondered if a book about copyright law could be as compelling as the Fifty Shades trilogy, but without BDSM scenes? Well, wonder no further. The answer, after reading Hollywood's Copyright Wars by Peter Decherney, is definitely yes. -- Eleonora Rosati Journal of Intellectual Property Law & Practice ...an informative, well-written history of developments that have profoundly shaped American culture from Edison to YouTube. Highly recommended. Choice Enjoyable and engrossing... insightful... Recommended for academic lawlibraries, undergraduate libraries, and public libraries. -- Jacquelyn McCloud Law Library Journal Any collection strong in Hollywood media issues needs this fine survey, which goes beyond the scenes to probe the decisions and actions that often take place outside the actual courtroom. The Midwest Book Review A richly detailed and compelling account that is a much-needed addition to the cultural and political history of copyright law. It is essential reading for media and communications scholars and students, but also highly recommended to anyone interested in copyright law. -- Burcu Baykurt Media Culture and Society Superb. Film & History An exemplary work. -- Brian Real Film Quarterly