The GOP fight with Disney has just become stupider somehow.

by Therese Odell, posted in Uncategorized

They’re called badgers for a reason.

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Josh Hawley, this guy, he just introduced a bill to abolish Disney’s — and only Disney’s — copyright protections, in an attempt to one-up future political rival Ron DeSantis in his dumb fight with the corporation. Hawley’s bill would only apply to “any company with a market capitalization of $150 billion or more (Disney’s is $190 billion) that is also classified as operating in the Motion Picture and Video Industries or in Arts, Entertainment and Recreation.” There is a possibility the law, if it was passed — which it will not be — could also impact Comcast, pushing Woody Woodpecker; Psycho; Leave It to Beaver; and Bonanza into the public domain immediately. But the target is definitely Disney, its classic films, and iconic characters.

So, I worked at Bantam Books back in the mid-to-late nineties, and one of my responsibilities was to run Bantam’s Classics collection — you know, those cheap paperbacks of the classics that you’d buy for like $5 or so for your high school English classes? The way it worked is each year, we would look to see which novels and books were going to be entering the public domain, and make plans to publish the most important, most relevant titles. The copyright law when I began the job gave the author copyright for their life, plus 50 years, and 75 years for a work of corporate authorship, and so we were pretty excited about some important 20th-century titles becoming available in the then near future.

But then! In 1998, The Sonny Bono Copyright Term Extension Act, also known as the Micky Mouse Protection Act, was passed, extending copyright protections to life of the author plus 70 years, and 95 years for corporate authorship. It was drafted specifically because without extending these copyright protections, Mickey Mouse himself would be entering public domain in 2003. As of now, thanks to the extension, he’s protected until 2024. There’s been a lot of speculation that Disney would lobby to extend the protections yet again, but in the current environment, such a move is not so certain.

Now, I am not a fan of corporations receiving special treatment from the government and I firmly believe the 50/75 year copyright rule was fair. That said, I am REALLY not in favor of the government using its power to punish anyone — individuals or corporations — for disagreeing with them. This is obviously unconstitutional and is meant to do nothing but boost Hawley as a Republican candidate for President.

Because some bullshit never changes, there was a racist backlash to the casting of Leah Jeffries as Annabeth Chase in the upcoming Disney+ series Percy Jackson and the Olympians. The Percy Jackson author Rick Riordan defended Jeffries and the casting in a blog post, calling the backlash racist.

You are judging her appropriateness for this role solely and exclusively on how she looks. She is a Black girl playing someone who was described in the books as white.

Friends, that is racism.

…

The core message of Percy Jackson has always been that difference is strength. There is power in plurality. The things that distinguish us from one another are often our marks of individual greatness. You should never judge someone by how well they fit your preconceived notions. That neurodivergent kid who has failed out of six schools, for instance, may well be the son of Poseidon. Anyone can be a hero.

If you don’t get that, if you’re still upset about the casting of this marvelous trio, then it doesn’t matter how many times you have read the books. You didn’t learn anything from them.

And actress Alexandra Daddario, who played Chase in two Percy Jackson films, had Jeffries’ back on Twitter:

Mandy Moore has issued a dire warning about next week’s This Is Us. Take heed.

No one is watching The Pentaverate on Netflix. Maybe Netflix could learn a thing or two from this?

Oh look, here’s OAN admitting on-air that there was no voter fraud in Georgia in the 2020 election after two poll workers sued them for defamation:

The 2022 MTV Movie and TV Awards have announced their nominees and … Inventing Anna? Really? Are you sure?

Please stop asking Alfonso Ribeiro to do the Carlton.

Going Viral

Last Week:

New York Times

This Week:

New York Times

I mean, these numbers speak for themselves. Get your boosters: the summer and fall are going to be messy. And let’s hope that Congress gets its shit together and passes more funding for COVID so that we aren’t left without tests, vaccines, and treatments when the inevitable next variant shows up.

The Late Show had to go back on hiatus when Stephen Colbert started showing symptoms of a recurrence of COVID. His bandleader, Jon Baptiste also tested positive last week. He had to cancel a Carnegie Hall performance:

Kelly Ripa has tested positive and has had to miss taping Live! with Kelly and Ryan this week.

Savannah Guthrie also tested positive, for a second time this year.

Amy Schumer has tested positive.

Two American Idol contestants had to quarantine this week after testing positive. One used a rehearsal performance and the other performed via Zoom.

CBS CEO George Cheeks tested positive after the White House Correspondents’ Dinner.

Secretary of State Antony Blinken has tested positive.

New York Governor Kathy Hochul has tested positive.

Howie Pyro, a musician who played with Blessed, D Generation, Freaks, Genesis P. Orridge, Danzig, and others, passed from COVID.

When Jimmy Kimmel returned to Jimmy Kimmel Live! on Monday, he claimed that Stephen Colbert sent him soup while he was sick, but that he didn’t hear a “peep” from Seth Meyers.

Film and TV crews no longer have to wear masks.

The fight over whether to go back to in-person work continues to be the frontline of the battle between Warner Bros. and Discovery in the wake of their merger. Sounds like everyone is thrilled, and the blending of two very distinctive corporate cultures is going smoothly!

Renewals

  • Surreal Estate — which had been canceled after one season — has been resurrected for a second season at Syfy. It’s not a great series, but it’s a fun one. Give it a shot.
  • Law & Order has been renewed for a twenty-second season on NBC.
  • Law & Order: Organized Crime has been renewed for a third season on NBC.
  • Upload has been renewed at Prime Video for a third season.
  • Chucky has been renewed for a second season on Syfy and USA.
  • Resident Alien has been renewed for a second season on Syfy.
  • Growing Up Chrisley has been renewed for a fourth season on E!
  • Chrisley Knows Best has been renewed for a tenth season on USA.
  • Lost Cities With Albert Lin has not quite been renewed for a second season, but it sounds like it’s close.

In Development

Casting News

Mark Your Calendars

  • Hustle will debut on Netflix on June 8.
  • The Janes will debut on HBO on June 8.
  • Physical returns on Apple TV+ on June 3.
  • Roswell, New Mexico will return on June 6.
  • Catfish: The TV Show will return on MTV on May 31.
  • Rise will premiere on Disney+ on June 24.
  • Two Shallow Graves will air on ID on May 22.
  • Sins of the Amish debuts on Peacock on May 24.
  • Dangerous Liaisons will premiere on Netflix on July 8.
  • Lovely Little Farm will premiere on Apple TV+ on June 10.
  • The Boys returns on Prime Video on June 3.

  • Legacies‘ season finale has been pushed back to June 16.

R.I.P.

Phillip M. Goldfarb, Emmy-award winning producer of L.A. Law, Monk, The Librarians, and Knot’s Landing, along with many films, including Taxi Driver

James Olson, Actor with a long list of credits, including Hawaii Five-O (the original) Gunsmoke; Bonanza; Route 66; Columbo; Kung Fu; Wonder Woman; The Bionic Woman; Lou Grant; Maude; Battlestar Galactica; Little House on the Prairie; and Murder, She Wrote, among others

Shireen Abu Akleh, Al Jazeera journalist

Ray Scott, Creator of Bassmaster and “Father of Modern Bass Fishing” 

Bob Lanier, NBA All-star and global basketball ambassador

WATCH THIS

The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills: And here we go with season twelve: Erika vs. everyone. Season premiere. 7 p.m., Bravo

Our Father: This documentary film explores the crimes of Dr. Donald Cline, an infertility specialist who inseminated dozens of his patients with his own semen without their knowledge. Premiere. Netflix

The Quest: Eight teenagers are tasked with saving a kingdom in this hybrid fantasy/reality competition. Series premiere. Disney+

Domino Masters: Season one finale. 8 p.m., Fox

Late Night:

  • Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon: Florence Welch, Jimmy Buffett, Florence and the Machine
  • Late Night with Seth Meyers: Ken Jeong, Paula Pell, PUP, Derrick Wright
  • The Late Show with Stephen Colbert: Jean Smart, Hugh Dancy
  • The Late Late Show with James Corden: Jessica Biel, David Spade, Bastille
  • Jimmy Kimmel Live: Dana Carvey, “Science Bob” Pflugfelder
  • The Daily Show: TBA
  • Watch What Happens Live: Kyle Richards, Dorit Kemsley

WEDS. 7:00 7:30 8:00 8:30 9:00 9:30
ABC The Goldbergs
(new)		 The Wonder Years
(new)		 The Conners
(new)		 Home Economics
(new)		 A Million Little Things
(new)
CBS Survivor
(new)		 Beyond the Edge
(new)		 FBI
(new)
CW The Flash
(new)		 Kung Fu
(new)		 Local
FOX The Masked Singer
(new)		 Domino Masters
(new)		 News/Local
NBC Chicago Med
(new)		 Chicago Fire
(new)		 Chicago P.D.
(new)

2 thoughts on “The GOP fight with Disney has just become stupider somehow.”

  1. About OAN: AT&T (at least their U-verse offering, don’t know about the rest) declined to renew their contract. OAN has been off the cable feed for about 2 months now. I wish other cable providers would take note.

    Reply
  2. Pingback: Texas blog roundup for the week of May 16 – Off the Kuff

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