Entry tags:

books/authors, lawyerism, person: anne rice

A vintage Anne Rice wank I've wanted to share for years
But I had lost the information.

15 years ago I worked as a proofreader for a legal publisher. During that time, I came across a 1994 appellate case involving Anne Rice. I printed it out and saved it for years, because I was and am a fan of her novels, but I thought that it had gotten thrown away during one of my moves. Which was a shame, because I wished I could share it on f_w.

Yesterday I was going through a box of old stuff and found out I still had the opening page. I put the info into Google and found the case!

KONIGSBERG INTL. INC.; the Sanitsky Company, Plaintiffs-Appellants,

Anne RICE, Defendant-Appellee (Two Cases).

That might well have been the end of the story, but for the fact that Rice thereafter tried to vindicate her position by writing a somewhat indignant letter to K & S's lawyer.... Not only did this letter fail to shame K & S into contrition, it gave them what they thought was the missing link to their argument--a writing signed by the author. Armed with this new evidence, K & S brought a Rule 60(b) motion and a request for leave to amend their complaint, claiming that they now had a writing sufficient to satisfy section 204 of the Copyright Act."

That is, her long-standing habit of writing angry letters to people gave them an excuse to drag her back into court.

There's a tiny bit more info about it here. Also, it seems that in '97, James Cameron was trying to make a movie of The Mummy.

And that is all I could find about this case. I hope no one minds my sharing a wank this outdated; I thought those who follow Anne Rice wanks would be interested, and so far as I can tell this has only ever been reported in lawyer publications.

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quantumreality
2011-06-05 11:08 pm UTC (link)

What impresses me is that the judgement is written in language that (a) makes apt use of analogies, and (b) tries not to be so dull as to be unreadable.

That said it looks like K&S lost twice; the fact that Anne Rice could have exposed herself to court costs and a reversal of judgement doesn't seem to have entered her mind. She seems to have wanted to write a finger-waggy letter just to be snotty about the original verdict.

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blue_penguin
2011-06-06 03:01 am UTC (link)
... this judge is the best judge.
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scifantasy
2011-06-06 02:49 am UTC (link)
"KOZINSKI, Circuit Judge." That explains it.

That judge also once wrote in the "Barbie Girl" case (Mattel suing the record label), "If this were a sci-fi melodrama, it would be Speech-Zilla meets Trademark Kong," and concluded with "The parties are advised to chill."
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seca
2011-06-06 03:34 am UTC (link)
This judge sounds like the most awesome judge ever.
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scifantasy
2011-06-06 03:37 am UTC (link)
Oh, he's a character. And, by some reports, kind of a dick. But that's only appropriate.
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perletwo
2011-06-06 04:44 am UTC (link)
....aaaaaand now I want FOX to make a show about him. And have Hugh Laurie star in it. :D
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scifantasy
2011-06-06 04:54 am UTC (link)
I'd pay money to see the porn stash (link is SFW, it's an LA Times story) episode.

You couldn't invent a character like Kozinski.
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perletwo
2011-06-06 04:59 am UTC (link)
"Ain't nothin' here. Y'all best be movin' on, compadre."

Beautiful. Just freakin' beautiful.

It'd be a heckuva lot better than that thing on last season where Jimmy Smits tried to be a wacky judge/lawyer type.
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octavia
2011-06-06 11:23 am UTC (link)
In sum, Konigsberg, Sanitsky and Rice did lunch, not contracts.

Quote-worthiest judge ever.
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theelusiven
2011-06-06 09:49 pm UTC (link)
He's also a prolific reviewer on IMDb.
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octavia
2011-06-07 01:25 pm UTC (link)
And an Ayn Rand fan, apparently, considering his love for the movie that by all accounts sucked.

Bit less awesome, but you can't win 'em all.
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pepperjackcandy
2011-06-08 12:54 am UTC (link)
The Randroidiness is kind of offputting, but a lot of the other things in those reviews resonated with me, particularly his attitudes toward "Signs" and Jack Nicholson.
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the_mouse
2011-06-08 09:32 pm UTC (link)
Sadly, it seems that he disliked Serenity.
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rikiki
2011-06-07 04:17 am UTC (link)
It would have to have a Rule 34 joke.
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scifantasy
2011-06-07 04:19 am UTC (link)
...thank you for that webcomic. *grin*
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tehrin
2011-06-06 07:49 am UTC (link)
I thought exactly this. The Honorable Judge House, presiding.
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cmdr_zoom
2011-06-06 09:58 am UTC (link)
isn't that, like, every David E. Kelly show and/or judge?
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solle
2011-06-07 07:33 am UTC (link)
Forget FOX. I want him on VH1!
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catmoran
2011-06-06 04:44 am UTC (link)
I have the feeling that his TV hero is Judge Harry Stone.
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lilychan
2011-06-06 09:30 am UTC (link)
That judge is something all right. ♥
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lostsailors
2011-06-06 01:07 pm UTC (link)
El oh el, that is amazing!
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countess_baltar
2011-06-08 07:24 am UTC (link)
I need this judge.

He would have a field day with the incredible stupidity of my former employer.
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