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  1. Adam Bolander

    Adam Bolander Senior Member

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    Copying Names?

    Discussion in 'Character Development' started by Adam Bolander, Mar 31, 2020.

    I know that it's not possible to copyright a specific name, but is the same thing true for superhero names? Obviously I'm not going to have characters named Batman or Superman, but I do have one who's called Hellhound, which I just realized is the name of a DC Comics villain. He's a pretty obscure character, though, and nobody but the most hardcore fans will probably know about him. Still, would I be at risk of being sued if I wrote my own superhero named Hellhound?
     
  2. Homer Potvin

    Homer Potvin A tombstone hand and a graveyard mind Staff Supporter Contributor

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    How many entertainment lawyers do you think DC Comics have on retainer?
     
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  3. Adam Bolander

    Adam Bolander Senior Member

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    I don't doubt that they have dozens, if not hundreds. What I'm wondering is if a superhero's name falls under the same copyright laws as other names. If I wanted to, I could write a book about Harry Potter, Frodo Baggins, and Bruce Wayne, and their lawyers wouldn't be able to do anything because (again) names are noncopyright-able.

    Batman, Superman, Spider-Man, and the like might be different, though, because they're the names of entire franchises. If I wanted to start my own animation company, I wouldn't be able to call it Disney because that's the name of an entire company that already exists. I couldn't call my hypothetical comic company Marvel for the same reason.

    But even if they can copyright the names of popular franchises, Hellhound isn't a franchise. He's just one character in a larger universe. A character who 99% of the people on earth have never heard of. That might give me a little leeway in this.
     
  4. Iain Aschendale

    Iain Aschendale Lying, dog-faced pony Marine Supporter Contributor

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    Best make sure that the name is the only similarity though.
     
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  5. Homer Potvin

    Homer Potvin A tombstone hand and a graveyard mind Staff Supporter Contributor

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    Exactly. You can have a character named Frodo Baggins that is a 50 year old plumber living in his mother's basement in New Jersey. He just can't be a hobbit living in Middle Earth.

    I believe the whole copyright thing hinges on whether the character/story can be reasonably mistaken for the original. Who's our resident lawyer? It's @Steerpike, right?

    ETA: and as always, if you ever write anything that raises eyebrows at DC Comics, you have likely have a good problem on your hands.
     
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  6. Adam Bolander

    Adam Bolander Senior Member

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    It is. DC's Hellhound is just a martial artist who likes dressing up as dogs. My Hellhound, first of all, is a woman. Secondly, she has the power to turn into a giant anthropomorphic wolf with superstrength, heightened senses and reflexes, and a howl that's so loud it can physically hurt whoever hears it.
     
  7. Iain Aschendale

    Iain Aschendale Lying, dog-faced pony Marine Supporter Contributor

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    Think I may have dated her in the mid-90s.
     
  8. Thorn Cylenchar

    Thorn Cylenchar Senior Member

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    A hellhound is a creature from folklore. Naming a character after a creature from mythology is not a copyright issue. The folklore is what came first, not the comic book character. If you copied the comic book characters powers, costume, characteristics, ect that would be an issue.
     
    Last edited: Mar 31, 2020
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