aaron c beals

apparently, the authors of “When You Wish Upon A Star” are just now filing a lawsuit against Family Guy (20th Century Fox, etc — not Peter Griffin) for their satirical version of the song. according to the article, the plaintiffs are claiming copyright infringement, which I’m not sure is correct given that parodies and satires are widely protected from copyright infringement charges. they also seem to be heated about the impact on the inherent value of the original song, claiming that the song is somehow worth less due to the Family Guy parody. perhaps this latter issue is what the song authors are raising in the lawsuit.

my rebuttal is simple:
1) lighten up. Family Guy is an equal opportunity offender. no one is safe from mockery.
2) you’re at least 4 years late. the original on-air broadcast was 2003, and the episode had actually been discussed since the episode was created in 2000.
3) are you really still collecting royalties on a song written 67 years ago for Pinocchio? and if so, are people buying Pinocchio DVDs going to stop buying them because of the Family Guy episode?

ahh… people are so easily fired up.