Art

Warhol Foundation Claims Fair Use of Photographs of Dead Pop Star Prince

Oh, how the chickens come home to roost. In Comedy III v. Saderup, Inc., the California Supreme Court distinguished Andy Warhol’s celebrity portraits from those of Gary Saderup’s realistic portraits of The Three Stooges.

Now this unconvincing and unpredictable...

The Book

THE RIGHT OF PUBLICITY: Privacy Reimagined for a Public World

This book from Harvard University Press by Professor Jennifer Rothman traces the history and development of the right of publicity and its current collision course with individual liberty, free speech and copyright law.

Now Available

Also available at Target and Walmart

The Book

THE RIGHT OF PUBLICITY: Privacy Reimagined for a Public World

Now Available

Also available at Target and Walmart

Latest News & Commentary

The Threat Posed to History & Storytellers

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In this final guest post, "Real People, Real History, Real Problems," on The Volokh Conspiracy about issues raised in my book, I consider the danger that the right of publicity will block or substantially limit depictions of real people. The...

The Topsy-Turvy Market in Dead People

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My post today on The Volokh Conspiracy considers "The Market in Dead People," and the "ghoulish futures market in aging celebrities." Read it in full here:
https://reason.com/volokh/2018/05/10/the-market-in-dead-people
This is the fourth of...

Reanimating Actors and the Dangers of a Transferable Right of Publicity

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In "Only Robin Wright Should Own Robin Wright," I consider the dangers of the digital reanimation of actors and the creation of a transferable right to one's own name, likeness, and voice. This is the third post on The Volokh...

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