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TV Producer Sues Professor
PISTOL CREEK JUNCTION -- As if Pistol Creek University Physics Professor Fermi Groves didn't have enough trouble having been sentenced recently to life in prison for the murder of his ex-wife, he is now being sued by
Law and Order
producer
Dick Wolf, NBC and Universal Studios for copyright infringement.
The celebrated television series, which often promotes its shows as being "ripped from the headlines" evidently found reality had come a little too close for comfort to the 1994 episode entitled "Big Bang" in which a nuclear physicist's estranged wife is blown to smithereens with a letter bomb.
"We have to take the appropriate steps to protect the value of the Law and Order franchise," said Peyton Weezyll, Corporate Consul for Universal Studios. "It's one thing for us to fictionalize real life, but we simply cannot have regular people infringing on our intellectual property rights."
Law & Order
, created and executive produced by Dick Wolf, has been renewed through 2005, which would make it the longest-running police series and second
longest running drama series in the history of television. It has also turned into one of entertainment's preeminent brands, with its successful spin-offs
Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, Law & Order: Criminal Intent, Crime & Punishment
and ancillary media platforms including DVDs, interactive games and hardcover books
"First of all -- irregardless of what the jury found and unlike the plot of the TV show -- my client is innocent, despite his signature, fingerprints and DNA on the
original FedEx airbill," declared Groves' defense attorney Steven Dallas. "Second, the details of this case are so vastly different from the original script that we believe it warrants consideration as a story for the 2005 season. I'm not afraid to take on Jack McCoy and I'll give odds I can win this case the second time around."
Angie Harmon did not appear in the episode in question.
©
2004
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