The Brain that Wouldn't Die Fiasco

 * UPDATE - Since the time of this posting SHOUT! Factory has reviewed and released their claim. See the full update here.


I've been posting episodes of my CREATURE FEATURE TV series on YouTube lately, and last week decided to post the THE BRAIN THAT WOULDN'T DIE episode. That one originally aired April 8, 2006 on Nashville's CW58 - almost 10 years ago to the day I type this. It was one we spent a little more time on than usual with set design, lighting, and skits. It turned out really well, and I looked forward to sharing it.

However, within fifteen minutes of posting this video on YouTube I received eight copyright claims against it. This will sound familiar to anyone who has dealt with YouTube lately. It is common practice for people to try and claim copyright on well-known public domain films such as THE BRAIN THAT WOULDN'T DIE. They are bogus claims and are usually dropped once a dispute is placed. That wasn't the case this time, however.


For those not familiar with the process, the way it works is you post a video and if there are copyright claims against the video you receive email notification from YouTube informing you who is making the claim and against what element of your video (video, music, etc). From that point on the claimant is granted immediate rights to your video, meaning they can monetize it and make money off your video, block it in certain parts of the world, or even force it down immediately and give you a copyright strike.


Your only option at that point, if you feel the claim is unjustified, is to file a dispute. I did this, as seven of the claims were against music and clearly bogus claims from non-existent companies. One of the claims, however, was for the video itself, and came from SHOUT! FACTORY.

Now Shout! Factory is a well known video distribution company. They make great products, and I love their work. Their claim to own THE BRAIN THAT WOULDN'T DIE, however, is complete and utter horseshit.


______________________________________________________________________________


THE BRAIN THAT WOULDN'T DIE is a 1962 b-horror film directed by Joseph Green, written and produced by Rex Carlton. it's a wonderfully trashy mad-science flick about a doctor who keeps his wife's severed head alive in a tray while searching for a replacement body in the local strip clubs.


It is also clearly in the public domain.



On September 29th, 1988 Rex Carlton Productions filed for copyright renewal of this film - the case # is PA#399511. They cited 1959 as the year of production and October 31, 1962 as date of publication.  Their copyright was NOT renewed, meaning the film was now in the public domain.


Skip forward to August 26th, 1993. A company named BEST BRAINS INC. filed for copyright of this film, case # PA668-012. it was for Mystery Science Theater 3000 #513, THE BRAIN THAT WOULDN'T DIE. Copyright was granted, but it extended ONLY TO NEW MATERIAL - i.e. host bits of MST and their running commentary.

This is important to remember because MST is now distributed by, you guessed it, SHOUT! FACTORY, the company that is claiming on YouTube to own the entire film THE BRAIN THAT WOULDN'T DIE. They do not. I disputed this and within 24 hours was told that Shout! Factory reviewed my claim and decided they still own it. End of story.

Now my only recourse at this point is to file a formal appeal, but, here's the thing. It goes straight back to the claimant - Shout! Factory in this case - who simply says yes or no to owning it once again. There is no review process by YouTube, the claimant does not have to show proof of ownership, nothing. YouTube simply takes them on their word and upholds their case. I would at this point receive a copyright strike against my channel, meaning I lose rights to monetize any of the videos on my channel for 6 months. Any channel that receives three strikes is permanently removed!


So at this point there is nothing to do. I could just leave the video up and let Shout! Factory make money off my video, but it is the principal of the matter. they don't own this film. IT IS IN THE PUBLIC DOMAIN. They know fully well they don't own it. I did not use any elements from the Mystery Science Theater version of this film. I've never even seen the MST episode. Anyone who knows me knows I'm not a fan of their show, never have been. I respect what they've accomplished, but I'm not a fan. My material is 100% my own. The movie footage I used was from a copyright free copy of the movie.

ALPHA VIDEO version

of The Brain that Wouldn't Die

SO, SHOUT! FACTORY, if you see this post, please respond. You can reach me through email drgangrene at hotmail.com. If you really think you own this film, then I would love to know on what basis...


You distributed the impressive 2015 blu-ray edition of the film, and certainly own that cleaned-up edition - and you distribute the 1993 MST version, and clearly own that as well. But neither of those make you copyright owner of this movie. It is 100% in the public domain. The Rex Carlton Production company - who shot the film - couldn't renew copyright on it, and neither can you.




I am going to find another place to post this entire episode for folks to enjoy. In the meantime, I'll post just my host bits on YouTube, unless Shout! Factory decides to block that too.


Here is a link to the film on archive.org for those wishing to see the movie in its entirety:
https://archive.org/details/TheBrainThatWouldntDie_300


Note it's filed under PUBLIC DOMAIN.

My 1000th post - Reflecting back over the past 15 years

Today is a bit of a milestone as this post is the 1000th of this blog. I started this blog October 26th, 2006. At that time I was actually restarting it, as I'd started a blog earlier that year and grown disenchanted with it and cancelled it. This was the second go-around, and this time it stuck.

Today is also an anniversary for me, as the premiere of my very first show, CHILLER CINEMA, made its debut on July 1, 1999! With that in mind, I'm feeling a bit nostalgic, so let's look back a bit at the past 15 years, shall we?

Many late night shoots followed that first fateful shoot. The first episode aired on Hendersonville, TN cable Access Channel 3, and then later on Nashville Access CH19.

From there it was a snowball effect - other access stations began reaching out to us, asking for content, and we eventually moved the show onto our local UPN station and then switched again to the WB, where we enjoyed a long run.

I was always amazed at the success of the show - not that I didn't work hard. In fact, I worked my butt off, spending thousands of hours writing, shooting, and editing the show. But it always made me chuckle a bit that this little show filmed in a shed behind my house was garnering such heaps of praise.




And it did - we went on to appear in USA Today, on Spike TV, to be named of the 20 Best Cable Access shows in the country by GEAR Magazine, to win 2 Rondo Awards, to be interviewed multiple times in the Tennessean Newspaper, to appear in Scary Monsters, Rue Morgue, Mondo Cult, Outre, and Horror Hound Magazines - to win a Best of Nashville Award from The Nashville Scene Magazine and appear on the cover years later.



We even were given a special award from the Governor of Tennessee, an official proclamation recognizing Dr. Gangrene and company for years of hard work...




Just last year I was approached by a group of super talented folks who made a Dr. Gangrene comic book. I was honored to be asked to be the host of that book, it turned out amazing!

I've had fans make action figures and Mego figures of Dr. Gangrene...





and even made an appearance in the official Dick Tracy comic strip!




It's been an amazing run, and I've had the privilege of working with some talented folks over the years, especially Chuck Angell and Cameron McCasland, without whom the show wouldn't have been possible, and Jeano Roid who provided me with a welcome boost in a time of need, and became a great friend and frequent collaborator/partner on the Horror Hootenanny shows.

I also have to thank Mike Hook, Program Director at WNAB for the opportunity to host movies on the WB - Ken Beck from the Tennessean for all the great coverage over the years - Jim Ridley at the Nashville Scene - Dan Johnson for all the writing talent - Brian Hickman for technical assistance, camera work, and musical genius - Keith Smith for the editing expertise - Steve Kaplan at Alpha Video - Dave Conover and the folks at Wonderfest - Ron Adams and the folks at Monster Bash - Dennis Druktennis at Scary Monsters Magazine - Scott Essman at Universal - Mike Curtis for the opportunity to appear in Dic Tracy, an amazing event I never could have forseen - Sam Thompson for the encouragement and technical assistance starting out - Trish Crist and the Nashville Cable Access Station - J. Sorrels, my drive-in partner in crime, for all the help on the live shows and being such a great friend - Derek Koch, who has been a true friend in times of need - Robert Taylor and Sara Waugh, my fellow Vincent Price fanatics - my horror host brothers in arms - all the many talented musicians who donated music and videos for the shows, especially The Creeping Cruds, The Exotic Ones, The Reverbians, Impaler, Ben Kaboom, Ghoultown, The 3D Invisibles - Jason and Stephanie Carmen - Mark Greenbaum for the help on the show and with Spookhand - Joe Badon for putting together the Dr. Gangrene Comic Book! - Bob Horne, for crafting the awesome Mego figures - all the talented artists and animators who donated work - the many cast and crew members who helped over the years, you all have contributed to the success of the show and I thank you all, Brandon Lunday, Linda Wylie, Ethen Black, and Paul Browning especially, as you all put in many late hours.

To all the interviewees and guests, and indy filmmakers we've featured, my thanks! You guys were all amazing, and it's been a treat to host this show the past 15 years. Over that time I've had my ups and downs, personally, and the show has reflected that. But through it all my friends supported me, and the show continues.

I know I am leaving off many deserving folks, as there are too many to thank, it's impossible to name them all. If I didn't mention you, just know I appreciate your support.

Thank you all - Here's to the future, whatever it may hold.
Stay Mad - Dr. Gangrene

Alpha Madness!!

Thought I'd post this cover from an upcoming DVD from the fine folks at Alpha Video. One thing you can always count on with Alpha - they always have terrific covers! Don't know much about THE MENACE WITH 5 ARMS or its companion movie, CURSE OF THE INSECT WOMAN, but they look like great schlocky b-movie fun! Available soon from Alpha Video!!

 

Would make a great companion piece to this other Alpha DVD -

ATTACK OF THE OCTOPUS PEOPLE!!

 

 

 

 

AND while we're on the subject - don't forget to pick up a copy of another great Alpha product with a terrific cover - THE DREADFULL HALLOWGREEN SPECIAL - starring everyone's favorite Mad scientist, yours ghouly, teaming up with the one and only Penny Dreadful to save Halloween!

 

 Get your own copy - Available here: http://drgangrene.bigcartel.com/

 

 

 

Rondo Awards - Best DVD Company - Alpha Video

The 7th annual Rondo Awards are just around the corner, so I thought I'd spend the next few days going over some of my personal endorsements for this year's awards. First up I'll take a look at Best DVD Company.

In the DVD Company of the Year category, my personal selection is, and has been for several years now, ALPHA VIDEO. Alpha Video is best known for low priced public domain movies. They typically have no (or very few) extras on the discs. Why, you might ask, would I vote for a DVD company like Alpha for best video company when they don't even have extras on their discs? Well, let me tell you...

Alpha Video has done more to keep classic horror alive than most video companies out there. People who are willing purchase expensive films from companies such as Criterion, for instance, are genre fans – they would buy these movies regardless of the price. It’s the non-genre fans who are paid the biggest service from Alpha Video, and that is exactly the way in which Alpha is helping keep classic horror alive.

Now don’t get me wrong – I LOVE many of the films that companies like Criterion put out. They have a really terrific selection of DVDs. I just am not going to spend 30-40 dollars on movies like THE BLOB, or FIEND WITHOUT A FACE, as fond as I am of those movies (and believe me, I really, really like both of them). As much as I might like to buy these, I am a father of three boys, and my discretionary income for DVD purchases is severely limited. I won’t buy a $40 DVD, but I might just pick up a 5 or 6 dollar print of something like NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD, THE HOUSE ON HAUNTED HILL, SHOCK with Vincent Price, REEFER MADNESS, or any of a number of the fun films from their catalog. And I know there are many people out there just like me, folks who might otherwise not even think about buying an old horror movie, but for five bucks, why not?

Alpha has a terrific selection of movies in a variety of categories: Horror, Sci-fi, Exploitation, Serials, Silent Movies, old Television series, and more. Plus they’ve started distributing some newer material such as Mark Redfield’s terrific DR.JEKYLL & MR. HYDE, (which I highly recommend). Their covers are really top notch, and really make these DVDs stand out on the shelves.

So for these reasons I’m voting for Alpha Video for DVD Company of the Year in the Rondo Awards again this year. Good luck Alpha, and I hope all of you out there vote in the Rondo Awards this year.

Rondo Awards - BEST DVD COMPANY

With the Rondos just around the corner I thought it a good time to discuss them.

In the DVD Company of the Year category, my personal selection is, and has been for several years now, ALPHA VIDEO. Alpha Video is best known for low priced public domain movies. They typically have no (or very few) extras on the discs. Why, you might ask, would I vote for a DVD company like Alpha for best video company when they don't even have extras on their discs? Well, let me tell you...

Alpha Video has done more to keep classic horror alive than most video companies out there. People who are willing purchase expensive films from companies such as Criterion, for instance, are genre fans – they would buy these movies regardless of the price. It’s the non-genre fans who are paid the biggest service from Alpha Video, and that is exactly the way in which Alpha is helping keep classic horror alive.

Now don’t get me wrong – I LOVE many of the films that Criterion puts out. They have a really terrific selection of DVDs. I just am not going to spend 30-40 dollars on movies like THE BLOB, or FIEND WITHOUT A FACE, as fond as I am of those movies (and believe me, I really, really like both of them). As much as I might like to buy these, I am a father of three boys, and my discretionary income for DVD purchases is severely limited. I won’t buy a $40 DVD, but I might just pick up a 5 or 6 dollar print of something like NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD, THE HOUSE ON HAUNTED HILL, SHOCK with Vincent Price, REEFER MADNESS, or any of a number of the fun films from their catalog. And I know there are many people out there just like me, folks who might otherwise not even think about buying an old horror movie, but for five bucks, why not?

Alpha has a terrific selection of movies in a variety of categories: Horror, Sci-fi, Exploitation, Serials, Silent Movies, old Television series, and more. Plus they’ve started distributing some newer material such as Mark Redfield’s terrific DR.JEKYLL & MR. HYDE, (which I highly recommend). Their covers are really top notch, and really make these DVDs stand out on the shelves.

So for these reasons I’m voting for Alpha Video for DVD Company of the Year in the Rondo Awards again this year. Good luck Alpha, and I hope all of you out there vote in the Rondo Awards this year.

And by the way, if anyone wants to get me THE BLOB or FIEND WITHOUT A FACE for Christmas, feel free!!