According to The Hollywood Reporter, a judge yesterday partially denied a summary judgment motion regarding a trial in which The Four Seasons members Frankie Valli and Bob Gaudio must defend themselves against allegations that the musical JERSEY BOYS is a copyright infringement.
The history of the trial began back in 1980 when journalist Rex Woodard befriended Four Seasons member Tommy DeVito while doing research for a story on the early days of the iconic band. During his conversations with DeVito, it was revealed that the wholesome foursome had actually been engaged in "criminal enterprises" and had "underworld contacts". The revelation compelled Woodard to offer to write an authorized biography with credit and an equal share of the profits. The scribe went on to use such resources as interviews, old news articles, Freedom of Information Act requests filed with law enforcement agencies and more to write a book told from DeVito's perspective. Woodward, who passed away in 1991 at the age of 41 following a battle with lung cancer, never published his work.
Fifteen years later, Valli and Gaudio developed a stage musical about the journey of The Four Seasons entitled JERSEY BOYS. The production went on to garner four Tony Awards, and was later developed into a film directed by Clint Eastwood. However, after checking copyright records, Woodard's widow, Donna Corbello, filed suit against the producers of the musical, along with Valli and Gaudio. According to
THR, it was revealed that the show's writers, along with several of its actors, had access to Woodard's original work and that DeVito had granted Valli and Gaudio, "a license to freely use and adapt certain 'materials,' including his 'biographies' for the making of the Broadway musical.
While initially a judge had ruled that the license didn't cover Woodard's work, on February 9th the Circuit Court of Appeals reversed this decision. Further complicating the manner, it was discovered that DeVito and Valli had a reversionary clause that went into effect upon not getting producers on board for JERSEY BOYS in a timely fashion. If such an event took place, Valli and Gaudio would lose rights to DeVito's materials. In effect, the trial will determine if the reversionary clause was in fact triggered.
Should Valli and Gaudio lose the rights to Woodard's book, it would have to be determined if JERSEY BOYS constitutes a copyright infringement of the work. The case is scheduled to go to trial in May 2016.
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About JERSEY BOYS: JERSEY BOYS opened on Broadway to critical acclaim on November 6, 2005 at the August WilsonTheatre. The show has been seen by over 20 million people worldwide (as of May 2014) and is currently playing in New York; Las Vegas; London; in cities across the U.S. on a National Tour and The Netherlands.
JERSEY BOYS is written by Marshall Brickman & Rick Elice, with music by Bob Gaudio, lyrics by Bob Crewe, and is directed by two-time Tony Award-winner Des McAnuff and choreographed by Sergio Trujillo. The original Broadway cast included John Lloyd Young, Christian Hoff, Daniel Reichard and J.Robert Spencer.
JERSEY BOYS is the story of Frankie Valli and The Four Seasons: Frankie Valli, Bob Gaudio, Tommy DeVito and Nick Massi, about a group of blue-collar boys from the wrong side of the tracks who became one of the biggest American pop music sensations of all time. They wrote their own songs, invented their own sounds and sold 175 million records worldwide - all before they were thirty. The show features all their hits including "Sherry," "Big Girls Don't Cry," "Oh What A Night," "Walk Like A Man," "Can't Take My Eyes Off You" and "Working My Way Back To You."
