NBC Universal sues for Dean Martin Show DVD rights

UPDATE: Studio says producer sold rights it didn't own

By Ned Randolph -- Video Business, 9/10/2007

SEPT. 10 | NBC Universal has filed a lawsuit in U.S. District Court to reassert its legal claim to the bulk of episodes of The Dean Martin Show, a weekly variety program that aired on NBC for nine seasons from 1965 to 1975.

A complaint seeking damages for copyright infringement was filed in the California Central District on Aug. 3 against Guthy-Renker Corp., Greg Garrison Productions, Ronald L. Blanc, Black Horse Television Enterprises and Barrump-Bump Publishing Co.

First reported by the fan-based Web site www.thegolddiggers.wordpress.com, the news was confirmed this week by NBC Universal.

The Golddiggers Web site was formed by a group of fans who would like to see all the episodes of The Dean Martin Show re-released on DVD or rebroadcast on TV.

Excerpts of the show, packaged in a 29-volume Best of Dean Martin DVD and VHS, have been marketed and sold since 2002 by Guthy-Renker, which purchased the episodes from the estate of Greg Garrison Productions, the original producer of the show.

NBC's complaint alleges that many of the episode excerpts belong to the studio—and not Greg Garrison Productions. The studio says it owns the copyrights to 235 episodes. "Material portions of at least 86 episodes of The Dean Martin Show owned by NBCU have been copied and included on the best-of-shows DVDs," the complaint states.

NBC had apparently been considering packaging the Dean Martin properties when representatives learned of the Best of Dean Martin series. The complaint says NBC Universal believes Guthy-Renker has sold "many thousands of copies of the infringing DVDs and has grossed tens of millions of dollars in revenue from their infringements."

The show ended in 1976. Three years later, the producer on the show, Greg Garrison, proposed to NBC that Garrison purchase all 235 episodes but ultimately did not go through with the purchase. Garrison later purchased 26 episodes. In 2002, Garrison Products entered into an agreement with Guthy-Renker for the distribution of The Best of the Dean Martin Variety Show, which included "substantial portions of the NBCU copyrighted works."

The name of the Golddiggers fan Web site refers to the women who starred on the show alongside Martin, called Golddiggers and later Dingaling Sisters. The group of regular female singer-dancers would become established fixtures on the program and even branched out on their own, playing at dates around the country and traveling abroad with Bob Hope to entertain American troops on the comedian’s annual Christmas trips and TV specials.