Marvel settles with four artists in superhero copyright fight; Reuters, June 9, 2023

 Blake Brittain, Reuters; Marvel settles with four artists in superhero copyright fight

"The filings said Marvel would drop its lawsuits against Larry Lieber and the estates of Don Heck, Gene Colan and Don Rico with prejudice, which means they cannot be refiled. A Disney spokesperson and an attorney for the artists said they had reached an "amicable resolution."

Marvel did not appear to have settled with the estate of comic book artist Steve Ditko, which is seeking to reclaim his share of copyrights in Spider-Man and Doctor Strange. Both sides asked a Manhattan federal court for pretrial wins in that case last month.

Under the Copyright Act, a creator can terminate a copyright assignment after decades in certain circumstances. Marvel sued the artists, who wrote and illustrated Marvel comics in the 1950s, 60s and 70s, after they sought to terminate and reclaim copyrights related to several superheroes."

REVIEW: Image Comics' Public Domain #1; CBR, June 20, 2022

 SERGIO PEREIRA, CBR; REVIEW: Image Comics' Public Domain #1

"The prolific creator continues to blend humor and drama in Public Domain #1, the first installment of a new series from Image Comics, where he works to take on creators' rights.

The first issue introduces Syd Dallas, a comic book artist responsible for The Domain, the biggest superhero around. Sadly, no one knows that Syd created the character because Singular Comics owns the publishing rights. And his former collaborator, Jerry Jasper, is more than happy to take the credit for it. Syd's children, Miles and David, struggle to understand why their father hasn't fought harder to gain what is rightfully his. However, a chance encounter at the premiere of Eminent Domain, the latest film in the franchise, may change everything for Syd."

Marvel Comics' Stan Lee Passes Away at 95; November 12, 2018

Kip Currier; Marvel Comics' Stan Lee Dies at 95

Marvel Comics' legend Stan Lee passed away today at the age of 95 in Los Angeles. In the 1960's, Lee collaborated with the late iconic artist Jack Kirby (and later, others as well) in co-creating many of Marvel's most famous superhero characters--the Fantastic Four, the Hulk, the Avengers, the X-Men, the Black Panther, and many more. Lee and Kirby's creations now rank among the most lucrative Intellectual Property in the "616 universe".

It's interesting to note the headlines that have been appearing today--some citing Lee as "creator", while others use "co-creator":

Stan Lee, creator of legendary Marvel comic book superheroes, dies at 95; NBC News

Comic Book Genius Stan Lee, Spider-Man Creator, Dies at 95; NBC San Diego 7

Stan Lee: Spider-Man, X-Men and Avengers creator dies aged 9; The Guardian

Marvel Comics co-creator Stan Lee dead at 95; ABC 13

Stan Lee, Marvel Comics writer, co-creator of the Avengers, X-Men and Spider-Man, dies aged 95; ABC (Australian Broadcasting Corporation)

Marvel Comics Co-Creator Stan Lee Dead at 95; TMZ

Marvel Comics co-creator Stan Lee dead at 95; WGN 9

Kitty Pryde Owns the Trademark on the X-Men; Bleeding Cool, July 4, 2018

Rich Johnston, Bleeding Cool; Kitty Pryde Owns the Trademark on the X-Men

"The X-Men own their own trademark, at least as far as it goes to creating superhero teams known as the X-Men. Which does suggest they could have sued the likes of X-Force, X-Factor, or other knock-off teams if they had wanted. Also…

…it looks like the trademark was registered by Charles Xavier and passed to Kitty when he died. Now that he is back as X — will he want the trademark back too? Registration Wars coming to a summer event near you soon…"

Worlds collide in ‘Avengers vs. Justice League’ fan trailer; ComicBookResources.com, 4/1/16

Kevin Melrose, ComicBookResources.com; Worlds collide in ‘Avengers vs. Justice League’ fan trailer:

"Using dialogue from X-Men: Age of Apocalypse and The Flash, and footage from a variety of sources, including Avengers: Age of Ultron and Batman v Superman, Shawn Nider lays out an apocalyptic vision for a showdown between heroes of both companies that plenty of destruction in its wake."

Batman v Superman: the latest exercise in corporate fan fiction; Guardian, 12/9/15

Noah Berlatsky, Guardian; Batman v Superman: the latest exercise in corporate fan fiction:

"Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster ended their creative input in the 1940s; for decades the duo’s main involvement with Superman was lawsuits over rights. Batman’s main creator, Bill Finger, was denied credit from the beginning by artist Bob Kane, and he died in poverty. Not much of a dawn of justice there.

At this point, there is no right or wrong version of Superman, or Batman, or Lex Luthor. Batman v Superman is just the latest exercise in corporate fan fiction, remixing bits and pieces of fan fiction based on fan fiction past. The result may be good, or bad, or mediocre, and you can love or hate Jesse Eisenberg’s performance for any number of reasons. But to say he’s not true to Luthor is to pretend that there’s some “true” version of Luthor to begin with – and to create a platonic, real Luthor who exists separately from, and overshadows, the original folks who, intentionally or by accident, came up with the character. Better to just take the upcoming film on its own merits, or lack thereof – and maybe give a nod to Leo Nowak, and his own stumbling lack of fidelity to Lex Luthor past."