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| Marvel, Jack Kirby’s heirs ‘amicably’ settle legal battle over superhero-character rights | Marvel, Jack Kirby’s heirs ‘amicably’ settle legal battle over superhero-character rights |
| (about 5 hours later) | |
| IN 2012, amid the bountiful box office of “The Avengers,” Comic Riffs proposed that the Disney/Marvel mega-force — that Galactus of Hollywood box office — offer a million-dollar thank-you to the man who co-created so many of those characters: Jack Kirby. | IN 2012, amid the bountiful box office of “The Avengers,” Comic Riffs proposed that the Disney/Marvel mega-force — that Galactus of Hollywood box office — offer a million-dollar thank-you to the man who co-created so many of those characters: Jack Kirby. |
| That shoot-for-the-moon “Immodest Proposal” was met with skepticism — Marvel, came many a reader reply, would never budge in sharing the wealth. | That shoot-for-the-moon “Immodest Proposal” was met with skepticism — Marvel, came many a reader reply, would never budge in sharing the wealth. |
| Today, such a gesture seems not quite as preposterous. | Today, such a gesture seems not quite as preposterous. |
| That’s because Marvel and the heirs of Mr. Kirby have just reached a legal resolution, averting a potential Supreme Court showdown. | That’s because Marvel and the heirs of Mr. Kirby have just reached a legal resolution, averting a potential Supreme Court showdown. |
| Both sides say in a joint statement released today: | Both sides say in a joint statement released today: |
| “Marvel and the family of Jack Kirby have amicably resolved their legal disputes, and are looking forward to advancing their shared goal of honoring Mr. Kirby’s significant role in Marvel’s history.” | |
| The resolution settles a long-running battle over the copyrights to characters from suchMarvel titles as X-Men and the Fantastic Four — a fight that has sometimes pitted interpretations of the 1976 Copyright Act against the definition of “work for hire.” | |
| Marvel had won most lower-court rulings, but Kirby’s family members, represented by attorney Marc Toberoff, had made a concerted push this year to have the Supreme Court hear their appeal. | Marvel had won most lower-court rulings, but Kirby’s family members, represented by attorney Marc Toberoff, had made a concerted push this year to have the Supreme Court hear their appeal. |
| The eminently influential Kirby, considered one of the cornerstone creators in the history of comics, died in 1994, at age 76. | The eminently influential Kirby, considered one of the cornerstone creators in the history of comics, died in 1994, at age 76. |
| Seven films featuring Marvel characters have each grossed more than a half-billion dollars worldwide. | Seven films featuring Marvel characters have each grossed more than a half-billion dollars worldwide. |
| In 2012, when acclaimed cartoonist Roger Langridge (“Thor: the Mighty Avenger”) quit Marvel over its treatment of creators like Kirby, he told Comic Riffs: “There is an enormous amount of affection for those companies’ characters out there. It would take very little to get people to believe that they’re trying to do the right thing.” |