Man Sues Claiming He Created ‘Lost’
The producer of The Man From U.N.C.L.E and The Last Ninja, Anthony Spinner, is claiming that he was paid $30,000 to write a TV pilot way back in 1977 and that his script became Lost.
79 year old Spinner, who was nominated for an Emmy for Baretta, is suing ABC and Touchstone Television for creating a replica of his idea without providing him the associated credit – and the associated money.
Spinner’s lawsuit contains a list of some 30 or so similarities between his story and Lost. Here’s a couple of examples:
- Airplane headed to Los Angeles crashes into a tropical, jungle-like environment
- Doctor is the voice for the survivors
- Trailblazer challenges the group to accept they are stuck on the island
- Stubborn reluctant semi-hero challenges the leadership of the real leader and has a dark father-son past
- Survivor suffers from a drug addiction
- Lone survivor of a scientific expedition is found with gunpowder, secure shelter, and a relationship with others who were on the island before them
- Cold weather animals in warm tropical jungle
- Female lead with criminal past
- Cave dwellings with signs of riches, civilization, and written warnings
- Use of flashbacks to the regular life of each character
If true it is difficult to believe that with all those similarities (and there are more) that there isn’t a basis to his claim, although it should be pointed out that he attempted to sue a few years ago but his case was dismissed, apparently for procedural reasons.
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July 15th, 2009 at 12:15 am
If he was paid $30,000 to write the pilot does the script not belong to the one who paid for it?
July 15th, 2009 at 4:44 am
On face value you’d think so however such contracts, depending on the contract itself, usually include additional royalties. It’s a little too easy to get out of paying the extra payments owed to writers by taking their ideas and working them into something else years after you claim their script is of no value. I’m not suggesting that’s what has happened, but he certainly is. If his original contract includes royalties and he was told his script wouldn’t be made, and then suddenly a popular show/movie is made from its ideas, its only fair he gets the originally agreed royalties. Otherwise it would be all too easy to shaft writers left right and center.
July 15th, 2009 at 8:08 am
It was all done before anyway. Does anyone remember “The New People”?
July 15th, 2009 at 8:37 am
Anthony Spinner must be a member of the Writers Guild. In the industry, especially in Hollywood, it’s rare that a non-guild writer be contracted as a script writer. The Guild agreement with the studio or network entitles the writer to the royalties and credit for creating or writing the story. In the case of Spinner, the similarities in the Lost script to his script are to close.
July 16th, 2009 at 4:07 am
It’s difficult for a writer to get a jury trial. I’ve been waiting for over seven months for a decision from the judge as to whether or not my constitutional right to a jury trial will be granted.
I find Spinner’s case especially interesting because it’s been claimed that the same two executives who purchased “Lost” also purchased “Desperate Housewives” before they left ABC abruptly. According to statements made by Susan Lynne, she and Lloyd Braun changed their focus at ABC from blocking programs to searching for hit shows. Apparently, as soon as they found two hits they left.
I’ve been informed that it’s unique that plagiarists are able to win easily because cases of plagiarism can be thrown out of the court system at a specific step in the legal process. Writers are commonly uniquely denied the their constitutional right to a jury trial. There are probably some powerful Hollywood forces that have created that situation. It will take a special court battle of its own to change this unjust condition.
July 30th, 2009 at 10:11 am
This is absurd. LOST is so much more involved than just crashing on a tropical island, and if that’s the point of his case, he has no chance of winning. The idea of people crashing on an island who have different lifestyles and pasts is such a bland and simple idea. Gilligan’s Island, for example. Rich guys, poor guys, movie stars, etc. The fact that this guy is saying “well, I had a doctor, drug addict, convict, and minority means they stole my idea” is absurd. A lot of these “similarities” are over-exaggerated from what he was originally saying about it just to get more public support because, let’s be honest, you;re suing claiming you wrote a show as brilliant as LOST then you are going to be very easily mocked and hated…