As reported in late January (see “Original Ruby Slippers from The Wizard of Oz on The Oprah Winfrey Show“, “Original Ruby Slippers from The Wizard of Oz on The Oprah Winfrey Show – The Video“), the 1/23/08 episode of The Oprah Winfrey Show focused on “Classic Americana”. Part of the episode featured Dr. Brent Glass, Director of The Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of American History in Washington, D.C. The ruby slippers from The Wizard of Oz were sent to the show from Washington, D.C., under the supervision of two armed guards and via first class air travel in a disguised box. There was some controversy across the Internet as a result of Oprah’s handling of the artifacts.
I posted a video clip from this segment on YouTube, and noticed that the clip has since been removed, with the following explanation:
This video is no longer available due to a copyright claim by The EIP Group
Interestingly, performing a search of “oprah” on YouTube results in over 17,000 video clips, many of which are excerpts of the program, The Oprah Winfrey Show, the same as the clip that was removed “due to a copyright claim by the EIP Group”.
Who is the EIP Group? Per the webpage, www.eipgrouplaw.com:
EIP Group is a premiere law firm that specializes in entertainment and intellectual property law. EIP Group handles matters involving television, motion pictures, music, theatre, the internet, sports, advertising, marketing, promotion, sponsorships, publishing, information technology, new media, and privacy.
Our clients include Paramount Pictures, Telepictures (a division of Warner Bros.), E! Entertainment Television, The Tennis Channel, WTTW (Chicago’s public television stations), Harpo Productions, and Hello Entertainment (a producer of musical stage plays).
We are a small dedicated team of professionals that focuses on our core areas of practice, which allows us to handle projects, both big and small, in an informed, efficient, and cost effective manner.
Founded in 1994, EIP Group’s attorneys have a great deal of experience working in the entertainment industry, including serving as in-house and outside counsel for television networks, motion picture studios, and advertising agencies.
Jason De Bord