I heard this song a couple of nights ago and I wondered what happened to the guy who sang it. Now I know.
Elmo Shropshire, who sang the 1979 Christmas classic "Grandma Got Run Over By A Reindeer," is being sued by The Fred Rappoport Company, who says that Shropshire is interfering in a deal the company has to make Christmas collectibles based on characters from a 2000 TV special based on the song.
Shropshire says that while the company owns the rights to the characters, he owns the song (which was written and released over 20 years before the animated special) and the company cannot use it. There are already deals with other companies that make products based on the song. He sent out cease and desist letters to companies that Rappaport had made deals with, which is why Rappaport is suing him for $2 million.
Here's the bizarre video for the song!
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
11-28-2007 @ 5:06PM
n2 said...
No brainer. The owner of the song controls how the song is merchandised.
The people that made a special based on the song, cannot use the song without the owner's permission.
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11-28-2007 @ 5:58PM
Oreo said...
The cartoon sucks, and the song is the best ever.
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11-28-2007 @ 6:01PM
Aberdeen said...
I'm no lawyer, but it sounds to me as if Fred Rappaport Co is about to get run over, too....
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12-11-2007 @ 8:47AM
Harvey said...
The Fred Rappaport Company is full of it. Their action is just another unfounded lawsuit doomed to failure.
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