Hugo Cox of The 1709 Blog, “dedicated to all things copyright, warts and all“, published a substantive feature today entitled “Star Wars: the Hearing”. This article provides coverage of the three-day UK Supreme Court hearing that took place last week, with in person observations and legal insights, analysis, and observations on Lucasfilm vs. Ainsworth in the related copyright dispute over the Stormtrooper helmets as seen in Star Wars: A New Hope. [Read more…]
Archives for 2011
Premiere Props “Hollywood Auction Extravaganza” Catalog Online, Television & Movie Prop and Costume Sale Event April 2nd & 3rd
The catalog for the Premiere Props “Hollywood Auction Extravaganza”, to be held April 2nd and 3rd, is now available for immediate download from their official website. Their first event comprised of a significant percentage of consignment-based offerings, the sale includes 501 lots from a wide variety of film and television productions. [Read more…]
Holly Haber and Lennard Billin of Reel Clothes & Props Featured in UK’s Daily Mail Article
Owners Holly Haber and Lennard Billin and their business, Reel Clothes & Props, are featured in an extensive article published in print and online in today’s Daily Mail out of the UK. The publication, which has a fondness for celebrities, focuses on what kind of wardrobe material the retail outlet offers and goes into specifics of how it relates to various Hollywood actors and actresses, as well as providing a primer on the notion of values and investment. [Read more…]
Facebook Hosts Ongoing Public Debate Over Original Sculptor Credit for Star Wars Stormtrooper (Andrew Ainsworth or Liz Moore & Brian Muir)
Amid the topics of copyright ownership, enforcement of a U.S. judgment in the UK, determination of “works of art”, and other issues as featured in mainstream media reports about the ongoing legal battle between Lucasfilm LTD (LFL) and Andrew Ainsworth and his Shepperton Design Studios (SDS), what has not garnered as much focus is the debate over which artist originally sculpted the iconic stormtrooper helmet design that was adopted for use in Star Wars: A New Hope and the films that followed. [Read more…]
UK Mainstream Media Report on Lucasfilm vs. Ainsworth Star Wars Stormtrooper Helmet Copyright Lawsuit on Eve of Supreme Court Case
As reported two months ago (see “Lucasfilm vs. Ainsworth Legal Battle Continues in 2011; UK Supreme Court Case To Be Heard in March”), the dispute between Lucasfilm and the British prop maker who built the stormtrooper helmets used in Star Wars: A New Hope will be heard by the United Kingdom Supreme Court beginning tomorrow. [Read more…]
Original Television and Movie Prop, Costume, and Hollywood Entertainment Memorabilia Auction Events Calendar
Below is the latest updated list of upcoming original movie and television prop, wardrobe, and memorabilia auction events. Please contact me if you are aware of any coming events of interest to original prop collectors. [Read more…]
Padmé “Phantom Menace”/”French & Saunders” Costume Update (BBC, Angels Costumiers, Cameo Fine Art Auctioneers, Profiles in History, eBay)
Thanks to input from readers and friends of the OPB, I have more information to share regarding the article published last night about the “Padmé” costume that appears to have been made for and used in the BBC televsion series, French & Saunders, not the film at the source of their parody, Star Wars: The Phantom Menace. [Read more…]
Padmé Costume with BBC Wardrobe Tag – “Star Wars: The Phantom Menace” or “French & Saunders”? (Rebelscum Story/Discussion)
A few days ago, the popular Star Wars fan site Rebelscum published an “eBay Today Express” article about a costume attributed to use by Natalie Portman as Padmé in Star Wars: The Phantom Menace (1999), and subsequently posted a retraction based on further research. Per the article, it appeared to match a costume worn on the BBC series, French & Saunders in a parody Christmas 1999 episode titled “The Phantom Millennium”. [Read more…]