George Lucas’ Lawyers Threatened to Sue Mad Magazine
In the digital age, attorneys from all over the world have emerged from hiding to annihilate any and all suspected offenders of copyright. However, things were a bit different before the internet. To begin with, it became more difficult to even break a copyright. You were going to create your own Star Wars spoof, weren't you? Yes, if you were employed by Mad Magazine in 1980.
Lawyers representing George Lucas got in touch with Mad, Mort Drucker, and Dick DeBartolo regarding their The Empire Strikes Out parody of The Empire Strikes Back. They demanded the magazine recall all of the released issues in a cease-and-desist letter they submitted. Even then, if not for another letter that DeBartolo had received earlier, such a letter would have been at least a little alarming. Today, with the weight of Disney behind it, such a letter could be terrifying.
The previous letter was written by George Lucas himself after he read the parody in the magazine and was so impressed that he wanted to thank the team and ask for some of the original artwork. They replied to his attorneys in writing, indicating that their employer thoroughly enjoyed it and enclosing a copy of Lucas' letter. Naturally, no additional legal action was taken.
