Dave Barry, Peter Pan and the Copyright Conundrum

Posted on July 20, 2006

Dave Barry and Ridley Pearson are headed out on tour to promote their new book, a Peter Pan prequel called Peter and The Shadow Thieves (Disney).

So how, you might ask, are Barry and Ridley able to write about Peter Pan without getting permission from the copyright holder, The Great Ormond Street Hospital For Sick Children, or paying the copyright holder some royalties? Well, it's unclear, actually. Disney asserts it has the right to do what it wishes because Peter Pan is now in the public domain. But The Great Ormond Street Hospital For Sick Children ("GOSH") in London claims that it owns the rights through 2007, and also (because of a special law passed by the U.K.) owns the rights to royalties (a perpetual income stream) until 2023. GOSH is the largest center for research into childhood illness outside the United States. Author J.M. Barrie left the rights to Peter Pan to GOSH to help support the research and care of ill children.

After battling with Disney in the past, the Hospital doesn't appear to have challenged Disney on the Barry books, although news articles notes that the hospital was going to sue in 2004. The Great Ormond Street Hospital has licensed an official sequel to Peter Pan, which will be released in October. One of GOSH's biggest supporters was Princess Diana.

It's all a bit confusing, from a legal standpoint. But in any event, GOSH isn't getting a dime from the books because apparently they can't afford to litigate with a giant like Disney. And that's a shame, because there are a lot of sick children that rely on the money raised from the sale of official Peter Pan books and merchandise. And, frankly, we're a little surprised that Dave Barry and Ridley Pearson signed on for the project without requiring Disney to make some royalty provision for the hospital.