Copyright of

Choreographic Works

by Julie Van Camp


1994-95 Entertainment, Publishing and the Arts Handbook

edited by Stephen F. Breimer, Robert Thorne, and John David Viera

New York: Clark, Boardman, and Callaghan, 1994 (pp. 59-92)

Copyright Julie C. Van Camp 1994

This article may be printed or downloaded for personal, scholarly, or educational use, but only if the full citation, copyright notice, and this permission notice are included in full. It may not be sold or otherwise used for commercial purposes. For permission for commercial reproduction, please contact the author.

Page numbers from the original publication are indicated in the text as follows: /p. x

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REFERENCES

/p. 88

Arcomano, Nicholas, "Choreography and Copyright, Part One," Dance Magazine (April 1980), 58-59; "Choreography and Copyright, Part Two, Dance Magazine (May 1980), 70, 119.

Armelagos, Adina, and Mary Sirridge, "The Identity Crisis in Dance," Journal of Aesthetics and Art Criticism 37, 2 (Winter 1978): 129-139.

Aronson v. Baker, 43 N.J.Eq. 365, 12 A. 177 (Ch. 1888) (originality in arrangement or construction, never challenged by critics or competitors, sufficient for copyright protection of operetta)

"Balanchine Estate Denied Copyright On Dance Photos," New York Law Journal 194 (November 25, 1985), 1, 3.

/p. 89

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Barnes v. Miner, 122 F. 480 (C.C.S.D.N.Y. 1903) (copyright protection denied to stage spectacle with no dramatic content as it was immoral)

Brady v. Daly, 83 F. 1007 (2d Cir. 1892), aff'd, 175 U.S. 148 (1899) (pantomimed scene protected in copyrighted dramatic work)

Chaplin v. Amador, 93 Cal. App. 358, 269 P. 544 (Cal. Dist. Ct. App. 1928) (Charlie Chaplin's unique dress, costumes, mannerisms protected under unfair competition law)

Chappell & Co., Ltd. v. Fields, 210 F. 864 (2d Cir. 1914) (copyright protection denied to motions and postures of actors and mere stage business as no literary quality)

Chujoy, Anatole, "It Can't Happen Now!" Dance [Periodical, East Stroudsburg, PA] (January 1937), 7, 31.

Chujoy, Anatole, "New Try Made To Copyright Choreography," Dance News 12 (February 1953), 4, 6.

Committee on the Judiciary, House of Representatives, Copyright Law Revision. H.R. REP. NO. 1476, 94th Cong., 2d Sess. (1976).

Committee on the Judiciary, Senate, Studies on Copyright Law Revision (Comm. Print 1961), 86th Cong., 2d Sess.

Committee on the Judiciary, Senate, Report, S. REP. NO. 473, 94th Cong., 1st Sess. (1975).

Cook, Melanie, "Moving to a New Beat: Copyright Protection for Choreographic Works," UCLA Law Review 24 (1977), 1287-1312.

"Copyright by Hanya Holm," Dance Magazine (July 1965), 44.

Copyright Law of 1976, Pub.L. 94-553 (Oct. 19, 1976), 90 Stat. 2541, 17 U.S.C. '101 et seq.

Daly v. Palmer, 6 F. Cas. 1132 (C.C.S.D.N.Y. 1868) (No. 3,552) (pantomime protected by copyright of literary work)

Daly v. Webster, 56 F. 483 (2d Cir. 1892) (pantomime protected by copyright of literary work)

Dane v. M. &. H. Company, 136 U.S.P.Q. 426 (Copyright Decisions, 1963-1964) (N.Y. Sup. Ct. 1963) (common law copyright protection of choreography of Gypsy denied)

Doughty, Heather, "The Choreographer in the Courtroom: Loie Fuller and Leonide Massine," Proceedings, Fifth Annual Conference, Dance History Scholars (February 1982), 35-39.

/p. 90

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Ferris v. Frohman, 223 U.S. 424 (1912) (public performance does not constitute publication)

Fisher, Kathleen. "The Copyright in Choreographic Works: A Technical Analysis of the Copyright Act of 1976," Copyright Law Symposium31 (1984), 1450-1490.

Flatow, Sheryl, "The Balanchine Trust: Guardian of the Legacy," Dance Magazine (December 1990), 58-61.

Freedman, Robert, "Is Choreography Copyrightable?: A Study of the American and English Legal Interpretations of 'Drama,'" Duquesne University Law Review 2 (1963): 77-95.

Fuller v. Bemis, 50 F. 926 (C.C.S.D.N.Y. 1892) (stage dance by Loie Fuller denied copyright protection as no dramatic content)

Gallini v. Laborie, 5 T.R. 242, 101 Eng. Rep. 136 (K.B. 1793) (ballet classified with plays, even though ballets cannot be reduced to words)

Gennerich, Patricia Solan. "One Moment in Time: The Second Circuit Ponders Choreographic Photography as a Copyright Infringement." Brooklyn Law Review 53 (1987): 379-407.

Ginsberg, Paul D. "Choreographic Infringement of Copyright By Still Photographs," New York Law Journal 196 (August 26, 1986), 1-2.

Harold Lloyd Corp. v. Witwer, 65 F.2d 1 (9th Cir. 1933) (voice, motions, postures of actors not protected in copyright of dramatic work)

Horgan v. MacMillan, 621 F. Supp. 1169 (S.D.N.Y. 1985) (still photographs cannot infringe choreographic work)

Horgan v. MacMillan, 789 F.2d 157 (2d Cir. 1986) (photographs can infringe copyright of choreographic work)

Karno v. Pathe Freres, 99 L.T.R. 114 (K.B. 1908) (pantomime without a plot not protected by copyright)

Kibbee, Barbara, "Copyright Protection for Choreography," Art & the Law 2, 2 (January 1976): 1, 4-5.

Koegler, Horst. The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Ballet. (London: Oxford University Press, 1977).

Lee v. Simpson, 3 C.B. 871, 136 Eng. Rep. 349 (1847) (pantomime can be copyrighted)

Margolis, Joseph, "The Autographic Nature of the Dance," Journal of Aesthetics and Art Criticism 39, 4 (Summer 1981): 419-427.

Martin, John. Introduction to the Dance. (New York: W.W. Norton & Company, Inc., 1939).

/p. 91

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McMahon, Colleen, "Choreography and Copyright," Art & the Law 3, 8 (January 1978): 1-2.

Martinetti v. Maguire, 16 F.Cas. 920 (C.C.Cal. 1867) (No. 9,173) (copyright protection denied to Black Crook as immoral)

Massine v. de Basil, Copyright Cases 1936-45 (MacGillivray) (1938) (ballet can be copyrighted in Britain if it includes music, story, choreography)

Meyer, Barbara L., "The Copyright Question: Some Words to the Wise," Dance Magazine (April 1961), 44-45, 60-61.

Mirell, Leon I., "Legal Protection for Choreography," New York University Law Review 27 (1952): 792-815.

Nimmer, Melville B., and David Nimmer. Nimmer on Copyright, Vol. I. (Matthew Bender, 1992).

Ordway, Gary D., "Choreography and Copyright," Bulletin of the Copyright Society 15 (1967): 172-189.

Overton, Thomas, "Unraveling the Choreographer's Copyright Dilemma," Tennessee Law Review 49 (1982): 594-621.

Palmer v. DeWitt, 47 N.Y. 532 (1872) (play protected by common law only if reduced to tangible form, but not published)

Roth, Jeffrey I., "Common Law Protection of Choreographic Works," Performing Arts Review 5, 1-2 (1974): 75-89.

Russell v. Smith, 12 Q.B. 217, 116 Eng. Rep. 849 (1848) (changes of scenes, dress, stage do not diminish infringement of dramatic song)

Saddler, Donald, "The Black Crook," Dance [Periodical, East Stroudsburg, PA] (October 1941), 17, 23-24.

Savage v. Hoffman, 159 F. 584 (C.C.S.D.N.Y. 1908) (manner of dance or posture not eligible for copyright protection)

Seltzer v. Sunbrock, 22 F. Supp. 621 (S.D.Ca. 1938) (pantomime cannot be copyrighted without a story)

Singer, Barbara A., "In Search of Adequate Protection for Choreographic Works: Legislative and Judicial Alternatives vs. The Custom of the Dance Community," University of Miami Law Review 38 (1984): 287-319.

Sklenar, Debra S., "How Copyright Protects Your Choreography," Dance Teacher Now 15, 8 (October 1993): 37-38, 40.

Sparshott, Francis. Off the Ground: First Steps to a Philosophical Consideration of the Dance. (Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1988).

Tate v. Fullbrook, 1 K.B. 821 (C.A. 1908) (comparisons should include all dramatic surroundings, even though only words of dramatic piece are protected)

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Taubman, Joseph, "Choreography under Copyright Revision: The Square Peg in the Round Hole Unpegged," Performing Arts Review 10, 3 (1980): 219-256.

Traylor, Martha M., "Choreography, Pantomime and the Copyright Revision Act of 1976," New England Law Review 16, 2 (1981): 227-255.

Varmer, Borge, "Copyright in Choreographic Works," Study No. 28, Studies Prepared for the Subcommittee on Patents, Trademarks, and Copyrights of the Committee on the Judiciary, United State Senate, 86th Cong., 2d Sess. (1961), 93-115.

Wallis, Leslie Erin, "The Different Art: Choreography and Copyright," UCLA Law Review 33, 5 (1986): 1442-1471.

Wilder, Lucy, "U.S. Government Grants First Dance Copyright," Dance Observer (May, 1952), 69.

Woods, Robert W., "Copyright and Contracts: Counseling the Choreographer," Oklahoma Law Review 31 (1978): 969-978.

Wood, Sean, "Two Left Feet: Government's Tango with Copyright and Choreography," Intellectual Property Journal 6, 3 (September 1991): 291-312.

August 1993

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