CHICAGO - WARREN BEATTY'S DICK TRACY LAWSUIT REVIVED

WARREN BEATTY'S DICK TRACY LAWSUIT REVIVED

A federal bankruptcy judge in Delaware has given Warren Beatty the go-ahead to proceed with his lawsuit against the Tribune Co. over rights to the Dick Tracy character. Beatty, who bought the Dick Tracy rights from Tribune in 1985 and produced, directed and starred in a movie about the character five years later, had filed suit against Tribune after the company claimed that rights to the Chester Gould comic character contractually lapsed if Beatty made "no productive use" of them after an undefined "certain period of time." But Tribune's bankruptcy put the action on hold as lawyers sought to determine the actual worth of the company's assets. Tribune claimed in its own action that the Dick Tracy character was indeed one of those assets and could be worth millions to its creditors. In his lawsuit Beatty claims that he is currently working on a documentary about the Tracy character, who first first appeared in the Chicago Tribune on October 4, 1931, but Tribune maintains that the announced documentary is merely a ploy by Beatty to prevent Tribune from regaining its rights.

11/11/2009