A fan movement for a B5 Art Book

[Delenn_of_Mir]

This was JMS' response to my similar question.

http://jmsnews.com/msg.aspx?id=1-16663

Thanks for the JMS reply.

And editing my rant cause it was inchoherent.

[KoshN]

WB Sucks!!!!!!! If they're not going to do anything with B5 then they should just sell all the rights to somebody else and at least make a little bit of profit from it. But really there are probably tons of way that they could make money with no work on their parts, but they're still too stupid to allow it.

Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr rrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr


That's all

This was JMS' response to my similar question.

http://jmsnews.com/msg.aspx?id=1-16663

[Joe Nazzaro]

Gross points = dollars. Net points = zero.

[Jan]

You know, there's really no reason to get upset with WB right now. It seems that Triple-F was just asking the question to see what interest there was. If the reaction had met some level of success, then he would have reported it back to some of the artists. What, if anything, might have happened then is completely unknown. They might or might not have gotten together to approach WB.

But Warner's hasn't done anything wrong, especially now. They may not be treating B5 the way we'd like, but it's not from any malice. Worst they can be accused of is neglect.

As for the bit that every season the show had to break even...yes and no. The show had to make back the costs to make the episodes by way of station subscriptions. That much is true. And it did. That's hardly all the costs involved in making putting a show on the air, though. That's what's so 'fondly' referred to as Hollywood accounting but those costs are completely real and valid. That's why being offered net points is simply a matter of rising status in the business. Nobody who knows accounting ever actually thinks they'll get a check for anything but the most humongous blockbuster. Cause it costs a bundle to operate a studio and those costs are spread out among the properties.

Jan

[OmahaStar]

Why? It's pure profit for them. Just to get each season renewed, the show had to break even. We've known this for a long time. That means all those VHS tapes and DVDs have been pure profit for Warner. It was several years ago JMS had confirmed that the five season box sets had already sold more than half a billion dollars at that point. Who knows how much it's made since then?

There were the toys, the cds, etc., and it was all pure profit. Yet somehow, according to Warner, it's still in the red ... that's why the actors and producers who were supposed to get a share of the profits haven't made anything. Hollywood accounting.

Shortly after Rittenhouse put out their one trading card set, I asked Steve when we'd get a second series. He said it was unlikely to happen, because Warner wanted so much money. They finally realized how much money could be had, and when Rittenhouse went back to negotiate for the rights to additional releases, Warner wanted more than a hundred thousand dollars.

That's before they pay the actors to sign cards, pay for costumes that would be turned into cards, etc.

It just wasn't worth it for them in the end. I suspect that's why we don't have more novels, or other merchandise, out there.

[Delenn_of_Mir]

WB Sucks!!!!!!! If they're not going to do anything with B5 then they should just sell all the rights to somebody else and at least make a little bit of profit from it. But really there are probably tons of way that they could make money with no work on their parts, but they're still too stupid to allow it.

Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr rrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr


That's all

[Joe Nazzaro]

The so-called 'fair use' of things like artwork can be a bit slippery. Some studios will turn a blind eye from time to time if they don't think their copyright is being abused or somebody is making a lot of money, while others will send a cease and desist letter at the first sign of copyrigth or trademark infringement. In the case of Babylon 5, I think Warners has settled into the former camp, where the fans keeping their favorite show alive, but if somebody was going to try and put together an entire 'art of' book, they would probably come down on them like a ton of bricks. That's my guess anyway. Incidentally, I've probably mentioned this in the past, but my wife and I had tried to collaborate with B5 producer John Copeland on a licensed Art of B5 coffee table book some years back, but we hadn't counted on the sheer level of aggravation and frustration involved in trying to get Warners to do anything, so eventually we just had to give up. If anybody ever tried to take on that challenge again, I wish them luck. They're going to need it.

[Jan]

The clause that allows JMS to retain control of printing his scripts is a specific clause in the WGA contract.

I've bought enough art from the artists to know that many have the original art and they obviously have the right to sell that. They probably have the right to do a certain amount of reproducing but when it gets to the point of doing a whole publication with widespread reproduction of many images, WB might well need to grant permission since they own the show outright.

But that's really just speculation. From what Triple-F has posted before, it doesn't seem as though the artists themselves are clear.

Jan

[glindros]

I love the idea of an art book, but do artists retain license to their finished works the way writers do?

I doubt WB would ever give clearance to such a project.

[Jan]

I don't know that this can go anywhere because a company like WB isn't going to notice it. But if some company were to be interested in doing a B5 Art Book, it might not hurt to be able to point to a page where fans have shown interest. So if you're on Facebook and you think this is a good idea, it can't hurt to 'Like' this idea:

https://www.facebook.com/#!/photo.php?fbid=341274842627582&set=a.283248628430204.70587.178490865572648&type=1&theater

Jan