Talk:A Shoggoth on the Roof

Note

I've left a few sections blank for now, however I do intend to fill them in soon, so please leave the headings as they are! This is my first Wikipedia page from scratch, so all comments and criticism will be gratefully accepted.

Also, I have the libretto and cast album for "Shoggoth", if anyone wants any references checked. --Sir Ophiuchus 20:20, 17 May 2006 (UTC)

Litigation?

There are many references to litigation (mostly threatened) preventing performances. Who is suing (or threatening to sue)? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 216.135.32.188 (talk) 17:06, 25 April 2008 (UTC)

The references are from the HLPHS website, http://www.cthulhulives.org/shoggoth/. Lest this be considered unreliable, they actually include links to scanned legal documents.

The website text is excerpted as follows:

"The Doom that Came to A Shoggoth on the Roof

There are some things that man was not meant to adapt to musical theatre, and A Shoggoth on the Roof has long been regarded as a musical that cannot and must not be produced. The original 1979 attempt to stage it ended in mysterious failure. A daring Chicago theatre company, Defiant Theatre, was prepared to take on the cursed show and stage the world premiere in Chicago this October. A theater space was rented and work had begun on the production. However, under threat of legal action by Jerry Bock and Sheldon Harnick, the composer and lyricist of the beloved classic Fiddler on the Roof, Defiant has regretfully decided it must cancel the production. Shoggoth is, once again, silenced."

The article contains the following link:

http://www.cthulhulives.org/shoggoth/shoggydoom.html - a letter from Sheldon Harnick threatening legal action.

Perhaps the other productions encountered the same problems, or were merely put off by the threat of litigation levelled at Defiant Theatre. I personally don't know, and the article doesn't specify in any case.

Does that suffice? Thanks so much for taking an interest in this article, by the way. Could you sign your posts so I can tlak with you more easily (two dashes, followed by four tildes)? Cheers. --Sir Ophiuchus (talk) 01:15, 28 April 2008 (UTC)

I am having difficulty understanding the grounds on which Bock and Harnick allegedly intended to sue. Parody is a legitimate use of copywritten material, and doesn't require the consent of the original artist(s). People like Bob Rivers and Weird Al Yankovic have made entire careers out of using pop tunes written by others verbatim, and refitting them with humorous lyrics. Weird Al has gone so far as to parody the music videos for many of these tunes. Bock and Harnick can try to sue, sure; but any honest judge would throw the suit out of court -- and might even fine the plaintiffs for contempt, for filing a frivilous lawsuit.

If there is any reason why the above wouldn't apply in this case, then the article needs to explain why, and provide references.

You're probably right that the suit would be thrown out if it went to court; however, to pay the lawyers enough to even get it that far is too expensive for some and many theater houses run on pretty tight budgets to being with. This tactic is used by many groups/companies/individuals with money: "We know that we can't win, but we'll spend more money until the other party stops whatever we don't what them to do." It's sadly common and effective. 71.223.131.94 (talk) 16:16, 23 May 2016 (UTC)

Album?

So... who made the album, eventually? I have the mp3s, and they're credited to "h.p. lovecraft historical society cast - 2002"... was this just a studio recording? DS (talk) 19:57, 26 January 2010 (UTC)

To the best of my knowledge, yes. The liner notes go into great detail about their legal travails in trying to get the thing actually produced commercially. Jclemens (talk) 19:59, 26 January 2010 (UTC)

External links modified (January 2018)

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Another source

MA thesis Jclemens (talk) 02:15, 29 August 2023 (UTC)