Campaign to save Hobbit backed by Stephen Fry (From Daily Echo)
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Stephen Fry backs campaign to save The Hobbit pub in Southampton
8:15am Wednesday 14th March 2012 in Southampton
Campaign to save Hobbit backed by Stephen Fry
Actor Stephen Fry has backed a Southampton pub's legal battle against a Hollywood film company.
Hands off our Bilbo
Editor Ian Murray says hands off our Precious!
Read his blog here.
The Hobbit pub in Southampton was ordered by to remove all references to the books by JRR Tolkien or it will be taken to court.
Thousands have joined the campaign against the action by US production company Saul Zaentz Company, which owns the rights to Lord of the Rings and the Hobbit.
MPs, councillors and regulars have all shown their support for the pub, in Beovis Valley Road, which has been themed around the Hobbit for more than 20 years.
And last night they were given celebrity backing by Stephen Fry, currently in New Zealand when he is filming the Hobbit, due to hit movie screens before the end of the year.
The writer, actor and comedian posted on his Twitter site: “Sometimes I'm ashamed of the business I'm in. What pointless, self-defeating bullying.”
Pub owners Punch Tavern has vowed to fight the threat of legal action against it.
Comments(25)
Gossie.
says...
9:53am Wed 14 Mar 12
The Salv
says...
9:59am Wed 14 Mar 12
Sotonians_lets_pull_together
says...
10:25am Wed 14 Mar 12
Its a good pub, but why should Punch Taverns be able to profit from wholesale use of someone else's copyright, where someone has paid a significant sum to for the rights. Of course the rights owner should be able to protect their investment.
Time to come up with a new name and theme for the pub. May as well use this publicity to rebrand the pub.
rudolph_hucker
says...
10:30am Wed 14 Mar 12
Sotonians_lets_pull_Maybe it could be renamed The "Pompous GuffBag" in honour of Steven Fry?
together wrote:
Nice for Fry to support the underdog I guess, but it seems a misguided cause to support.
Its a good pub, but why should Punch Taverns be able to profit from wholesale use of someone else's copyright, where someone has paid a significant sum to for the rights. Of course the rights owner should be able to protect their investment.
Time to come up with a new name and theme for the pub. May as well use this publicity to rebrand the pub.
fedupofspongers
says...
10:31am Wed 14 Mar 12
It's NOT their name, so why shold they steal Tolkiens idea and make money from it....
Typical spongers of today, always using others work to make money for themselves...
Fry, you should know better and somehow i think you do.
Shoong
says...
10:36am Wed 14 Mar 12
Sotonians_lets_pull_together
says...
10:38am Wed 14 Mar 12
http://www.telegraph
.co.uk/culture/film/
film-news/8053833/Th
e-Hobbit-could-be-mo
st-expensive-film-ev
er-made.html
Who is going to invest that sort of money if they cannot expect in law to be able to protect that investment?
Sotonians_lets_pull_together
says...
10:45am Wed 14 Mar 12
rudolph_hucker wrote:Good idea, maybe the pub should approach Stephen Fry to be allowed to call their pub after him, use his image, and any copyright work of his in their marketing without restriction.
Sotonians_lets_pull_Maybe it could be renamed The "Pompous GuffBag" in honour of Steven Fry?
together wrote:
Nice for Fry to support the underdog I guess, but it seems a misguided cause to support.
Its a good pub, but why should Punch Taverns be able to profit from wholesale use of someone else's copyright, where someone has paid a significant sum to for the rights. Of course the rights owner should be able to protect their investment.
Time to come up with a new name and theme for the pub. May as well use this publicity to rebrand the pub.
He surely could not now say no without looking hypocritical?
Huffter
says...
10:52am Wed 14 Mar 12
rudolph_hucker
says...
10:55am Wed 14 Mar 12
Sotonians_lets_pull_A Steven Fry theme pub? **shudder**
together wrote:
rudolph_hucker wrote:Good idea, maybe the pub should approach Stephen Fry to be allowed to call their pub after him, use his image, and any copyright work of his in their marketing without restriction.
Sotonians_lets_pull_Maybe it could be renamed The "Pompous GuffBag" in honour of Steven Fry?
together wrote:
Nice for Fry to support the underdog I guess, but it seems a misguided cause to support.
Its a good pub, but why should Punch Taverns be able to profit from wholesale use of someone else's copyright, where someone has paid a significant sum to for the rights. Of course the rights owner should be able to protect their investment.
Time to come up with a new name and theme for the pub. May as well use this publicity to rebrand the pub.
He surely could not now say no without looking hypocritical?
PrincessPea
says...
10:55am Wed 14 Mar 12
likewatchingbrazil
says...
11:21am Wed 14 Mar 12
AndyVD
says...
11:25am Wed 14 Mar 12
https://twitter.com/
#!/YourAnonNews/stat
us/17968841508271718
4
https://twitter.com/
#!/AnonyOps/status/1
79691566577881090
St Retford
says...
11:29am Wed 14 Mar 12
pushamara
says...
11:36am Wed 14 Mar 12
Sotonians_lets_pull_together
says...
11:46am Wed 14 Mar 12
See this quote:
http://www.tolkien-o
nline.com/tolkien-an
d-mythology.html
Tolkien had great interest, as he once wrote to a reader, “in mythological invention, and the mystery of literary creation”. As a scholar of mythology, Tolkien was also quite aware, as he went on to write in the same letter, that “ had no stories of its own, not of the quality that I sought, and found in legends of other lands”.
Many understood this comment to mean that Tolkien had undertaken the writing of The Lord of the Rings and the rest of his Middle-earth mythology on the basis of creating a “mythology for England”.
Perhaps they could argue that the original creation of the word hobbit was not that of Tolkien... that there was prior art evidenced by Tolkien himself...
"Hobbits are perhaps JRR Tolkien’s most popular and original creation. As the legend goes, one day in 1928, while grading papers, Tolkien found a student
“had mercifully left one of the pages with no writing on it…and I wrote on it: ‘In a hole in the ground there lived a hobbit.’ Names always generate a story in my mind…I thought I’d better find out what hobbits were like” (Letters of JRR Tolkien pg. 215)"
http://www.tolkien-o
nline.com/hobbits.ht
ml
ssnaked23
says...
11:59am Wed 14 Mar 12
Would like to see them keep the name because that isnt an issue but the selling of mechandise they definately are on a "sticky wicket"
Gossie.
says...
12:25pm Wed 14 Mar 12
jondave
says...
1:25pm Wed 14 Mar 12
Sotonians_lets_pull_together
says...
3:05pm Wed 14 Mar 12
The text contains a long list of sprites and bogies, based on an older list, the Discovery of Witchcraft, dated 1584, with many additions and a few repetitions. The term hobbit is listed in the context of
boggleboes, bogies, redmen, portunes, grants, hobbits, hobgoblins, brown-men, cowies, dunnies
In the December 2003 Oxford English Dictionary newsletter, in the "Words of Choice" section, the following appears:
4. hobbit — J. R. R. Tolkien modestly claimed not to have coined this word, although the Supplement to the OED credited him with the invention of it in the absence of further evidence. It seems, however, that Tolkien was right to be cautious. It has since turned up in one of those 19th-century folklore journals, in a list of long-forgotten words for fairy-folk or little people. It seems likely that Tolkien, with his interest in folklore, read this and subconsciously registered the name, reviving it many years later in his most famous character.
http://en.wikipedia.
org/wiki/Hobbit_%28w
ord%29
Huffter
says...
3:12pm Wed 14 Mar 12
Gossie. wrote:Whether it's to do with Hollywood is not relevant - copyright in this country holds the same position - ie you may not copyright anything registered or protected without permission. All the management of the Hobbit has to prove is that it has permission.
My last word on the subject, the pub has been called the Hobbit for over 20 years, Hollywood has had the rights for a short time. Can understand if the pub was just being renamed the Hobbit now, but it isn't, and as such should be left alone.
Sotonians_lets_pull_together
says...
3:30pm Wed 14 Mar 12
however, the character names which existed prior to Tolkien using them could probably still be used? eg Hobbit, Gandalf, Durin, Bifur, Bofur, Bombur, Dvalin, Nar and Nain, Dain, Thrain, Thorin, Thror, Fili, Kili, Fundin, Frar, Gloin, Dori, Ori
http://www.sacred-te
xts.com/neu/poe/poe0
3.htm
and
http://en.wikipedia.
org/wiki/Dwarves_%28
Middle-earth%29
Gimli is heaven in norse mythology so should be OK
Tom Bombadil, Legolas, Aragorn, Frodo, Gollum, Smeagol, Deagol, Nazgul etc can probably not be used
Bilbo may be OK as it is a type of sword.
Obviously using imagery from the films alongside the names would undermine the right to use them.
Huffter
says...
4:45pm Wed 14 Mar 12
ramptonfromsouthampton
says...
12:45pm Thu 15 Mar 12
l-together's name. The Hobbit pub has been trading under that name for over 20 years and I didn't see any of the idiots posting here now against them raising any complaints about copyright infringement during this period. Honestly, some people should really take a good look at themselves. It really does beggar belief.
lowe esteem says...
9:48am Wed 14 Mar 12