Early in Free Culture (2004), Lawrence Lessig discusses the Mickey Mouse cartoon, Steamboat Willie as something of a remix of an earlier Buster Keaton movie, Steamboat Bill, Jr . Lessig's use of Disney here is interesting, because Disney as a company has a pattern of litigiousness toward anyone who remixes Disney properties into their own art. When it does happens--and it does--it can result in artists taking their creations "underground," as Lessig has noted. Take, for example, Robert Armstrong's Mickey Rat, created in the early 1970's as a parody of Mickey Mouse. Fig 1: Mickey Rat Mickey Rat started on t-shirts, which sold well enough that Armstrong branched out into underground comics (or "comix," as they're often known), where the "sleazy" character proved himself willing to do any kind of "foul deed" ( Toonopedia ). Interestingly, Disney didn't sue Armstrong for the character. Perhaps it was too clearly a p...
Comments
Post a Comment