Droit Moral and the Amoral Copyright: A Comparison of Artists' Rights in France and the United States
![handle is hein.journals/jocoso28 and id is 5 raw text is: DaSilva. Artists' Rights in France and the U.S.
PART I
ARTICLES
1. DROIT MORAL AND THE AMORAL COPYRIGHT: A Comparison
of Artists' Rights in France and the United States
By RuSSELLJ. DASILVA*
In the 1940's, Twentieth Century Fox released a film entitled The
Iron Curtain. The movie depicted Soviet espionage in Canada, and for
its background used selections from the uncopyrighted music of -Dmitri
Shostakovich and three other eminent Soviet composers. One might
suppose that The Iron Curtain was not a highly favorable documen-
tary of Soviet foreign policy, for in 1948, the four Russian composers
brought suit in New York State against Twentieth Century Fox, seeking
damages and a permanent injunction against the exhibition of the film.'
They contended, inter alia, that the use of their music in a film which
was so politically objectionable cast upon them a false imputation of
disloyalty to their country.'2 This, they claimed, constituted defamation,
and violated something called their moral right.
Moral right? The New York court paused to consider that issue, but
was at a loss to find anystandard by which to test such a claim.3 In the
end, the court dismissed the complaint, and as for moral right, stated:
In the present state of our law, the very existence of such a right is not
clear.4
The four composers also brought the suit in a French court-and
won.5
C 1980 by Russell J. DaSilva
*Mr. DaSilva is a 1979 graduate of Harvard University School of Law and is
associated with the law firm of Milbank, Tweed, Hadley & McCloy in New York
City.
Shostakovich v. Twentieth Century-Fox Film Corp., 196 Misc. 67, 80
N.Y.S.2d 575 (Sup. Ct. 1948), affd, 275 App. Div. 695, 87 N.Y.S.2d 430
(1st Dept. 1949).
2 196 Misc. at 70.
Is the standard tc be good taste, artistic worth, political beliefs, moral
concepts, or what is it to be? Id. at 71.
Id.
Soc. Le Chant de Monde v. Soc. Fox Europe et Soc. Fox Americaine Twen-
tieth Century, Judgment ofJan. 13, 1953 [1953] 1 Gaz. Pal. 191 [1954] D.A.
0010-8642/80/05/001-56 $2.00/0
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Droit Moral and the Amoral Copyright: A Comparison of Artists' Rights in France and the United States
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