'Three's' a Winner

Play Reimagining ‘Three’s Company’ Wins Case 

Great news for fans of parody -- and common sense:

A federal judge in New York ruled on Tuesday that the Off Broadway play “3C,” a darkly comic reimagining of the TV hit “Three’s Company,” did not infringe the copyright of that decades-old sitcom. In the ruling, 

Judge Loretta A. Preska of the United States District Court wrote that the play represented a “drastic departure” from the TV show, which ran from 1977 to 1984 and remains in syndication. 

“3C,” written by David Adjmi, had a two-month run at Rattlestick Playwrights Theater in 2012, when it opened to mixed reviews. Mr. Adjmi said that on opening night he received a cease-and-desist letter from DLT Entertainment, the copyright holder of “Three’s Company.” While the Rattlestick run continued, the play was held in a kind of purgatory: 

Mr. Adjmi said he couldn’t license it for other productions or publish the script in a collection of his works because of the threat of litigation. After negotiations failed, Mr. Adjmi chose to take DLT to court, with pro bono representation, last year.

Read on HERE.