EPCOT idea stolen?

[GoCamels]

From today's Norfolk,VA Virginian Pilot. They run periodically followup stories on certain news stories. This one intrigued me. The article is only available as an image...

http://epilot.hamptonroads.com/Repo...rginianPilot/2003/03/24&ID=Ar02000&ChunkNum=0

Any thoughts....

 

[Fido]

Unless they can find a smoking gun to prove that Disney stole this idea (as opposed to the world's fair concept), I say throw it out of court. The dude's dead. He can't play with the money anyway.

 

[Mission: SPACE]

Is it just me or does this sound like the same situation Disney faced not too long ago over Wide World of Sports??? Personally, I think their story is too sketchy, but you never know... the guys got $680 million over the WWoS junk...

 

[MouseMadness]

How is it these people with these stupid lawsuits are still getting attention? Her father may have had this idea, but if he didn't discuss it with Disney, so what? Disney built it first, it's too late now.

 

[EchoOfOphelia]

It sounds like this case is going to get thrown out. It seems like neither one of them has proof that the idea was presented to Disney prior to Epcot being built, so how can they prove it. Especially if Jaffrey's family isn't even pursuing the matter. Does anyone have the drawing that Waters supposedly did? I wish the article had more details, but thanks for posting it!
Everybody, let us know if you hear anything else.

 

[Chernabog]

A park, attraction, ride, day, whatever with all thw worlds contries is something that everyone and their mom has thought of at some point or another. Why not just say that Disney stole the idea from the world's fair, or that this aldies dad stole it from the world's fair and disney stole it from him? Hell, a dining hall on my college campus did a dining event with all these different conutries represented and people in the traditional dress. Where'd we steal it from? (actually lots of our ideas did come from world showcase after I mentioned the connection to a manger there).

 

[Shaman]

Originally posted by Chernabog
A park, attraction, ride, day, whatever with all thw worlds contries is something that everyone and their mom has thought of at some point or another.

That is very true, besides EPCOT is not only made up of World Showcase, so to say that the whole idea for a "theme park" centered around this guys idea is completely wrong. I wonder if that trademark name Global Village disney applied for, has something to do with this whole case, perhaps Disney will change the name of World Showcase.
In any case I think that Disney has better lawyers than any of these people do, so they don't stand a chance even if they are right (which they're not). And if you think about it why is it that these people are suing now, when the park has been opened for the longest. If however there is clear evidence provided that these people had the idea, then I think that Disney should give credit where it is due. Just my thoughts. :hammer:

 

[JeepGuy77]

well as one of my art professors said "Good artists borrow...great artists steal"

 

[bhg469]

re--diculous!! EPCOT is a callaboration of hundreds peoples ideas, especially walt. It is almost a completely different park since it was origionally opened and its constantly changing. this kinda stuff makes me sick. im gonna go tink of a ton of stuff and write it all down so when we have flying cars or something like that i can say i was responsible for that.

 

[mandib]

All I have to say is Gimme a Break! Don't people have other things to do then make up stories?

 

[SirNim]

I still think no.

No way Disney stole the idea.

Because EPCOT was originally planned to be, well, EPCOT.

and World Showcase was originally planned to be in two Innovention-style buildings near the Seven Seas Lagoon.

And Future World is nothing like "Miniature Worlds".

And why did these people wait until 2000 to file a freakin' lawsuit?! They knew about it in 1980!!:lol: :lol:

Ir's sickening.:hurl: :hurl:

Just plain Sickening. :hurl:

 

[skipperg]

I seem to remember a CM telling our group on the Hidden Treasures of Epcot Tour a few years back that the designers thought of making the World Showcase section into a huge Mall type complex. Just one of several ideas that were passed around during design.

 

[CAPTAIN HOOK]

Back in the late 60's I conceived the idea for a theme park in Florida; it was going to be a huge complex of hotels, water parks, shopping facilities and rides.
Is it too late for me to sue Disney coz Walt must have stolen my ideas :veryconfu

 

[wild01ride]

Yeah, after Cinderella came out, I thought that it would be a great idea to build a castle for her and have five themed lands surrounding it. I think I should file a lawsuit now (in 2003) since Disney stole my idea (and built my idea in 1971)! Never mind I was born in 1978- they still stole it.

Oh yeah, and my dead x-wife's brother in law's cousin's friend thought up the idea of having animals where people could see them so I ought to get 100 million dollars since Disney stole the idea and built Animal Kingdom!

 

[Hank Scorpio]

**NEWSFLASH!**

California local pet store owner, steve mohammed abdulla smith is suing Walt Disney for steeling his daughter's sisters cousins great grandfathers idea for a talking mouse. He claims that way back in 1928, his grandfather, a mr jonhson cleetus smith, used to invite children into his pet store and perform tricks with a mouse and make it seem as if the mouse was talking. It was all just a way of selling the mice to the children, but now steve abdullah wants a $1 billlion dollar settlement from the house of mouse as it is clear that he thought of the idea first.

Steve's attorney, a Mr O Samoa Bin Hiding, claimed that it was clear to him that the original idea of a talking mouse had been stolen from his client and used to profit from for decades. Steve's claim was rightfuly honest and it was only his duty to defend his client.

 

[RRM]

We call 'em kooks

I'm not surprised. I used to represent Luxor hotel in Las Vegas. We had one guy file about seventeen lawsuits over four years against the Luxor because he claimed he created the idea of a hotel in a pyramid.

As a lawyer, I can't see how this suit won't get thrown out. Copyrights protect expressions of ideas, not ideas themselves. Unless Disney took expressions of ideas (shapes of buildings, configuration and arrangement of countries) right out of the drawings, they didn't do anything wrong even if they used (worse case) or separately created (best case) the same idea.

 

[redschick17a]

yeah, alright, well that lady is really stupid. why would disney steal other people's ideas?? there was an episode on simpsons once about how disney stole the idea for itchy and scratchy or somthing. i just think this story is a little fishy thats all. i mean, why didn't her father say something earlier? like when epcot opened? yeah, i'm sorry, but there are lots of holes in this lady's story. was there any real evidence? any drawings? any documents? no, there wasn't. so as far as we know, this lady could be some loone who just wants to milk some money out of the disney company.
a little bit off subject here, but did anybody hear about the lady taht tried to sue disney world becuase she clamed a brick from the castle feel on her head?? yeah, well, the lady took the disney company to court, and it was there that she found out the tragic truth that the castle is made of fiberglass. i think this other lady that claims her father had the idea for epcot is just as crazy as the castle lady.

 

[Michael72688]

I dont know, its very interesting though, the pictures I saw looked very similar