Paramount

Name:	Paramount Pictures Corporation Paramount Pictures or simply Paramount
Date(s):	1912 – present
Profit/Nonprofit:	Profit
Country based in:	United States
Focus:	media and entertainment
External Links:	Wikipedia Article Official Site
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Paramount is a film studio, television production company and motion picture distributor, and one of the oldest surviving studios. It briefly owned DreamWorks from 2005-2008. Paramount started television channel UPN in 1995, which lasted eleven years before being merged with The WB network to become The CW in 2006. On January 17, 2006; Paramount Television merged with CBS Productions, which became known as CBS Television Studios.

Fans, Fanac, Paramount, and Profit

Also see Star Trek, Fandom and Profit and Fandom and Profit.

From Paramount, part of a 1989 "Paramount Video Distributor Promotional Kit."

From Paramount, part of a 1989 "Paramount Video Distributor Promotional Kit." The letter is addressed to video store owners to join in the promotion of the fifth Star Trek: TOS film: "An exciting opportunity for your retail customers to cash in on great merchandise tie-ins for STAR TREK V - THE FINAL FRONTIER." and "Live long and profit!," the latter a bastardization of Live Long and Prosper

from The Temple of Trek Revival Hymnal #2 (1986): "HE'S GOT THE WHOLE OF STAR TREK IN HIS HEAD" (filk to the tune of "He's Got the Whole World in his Hands" --"Paramount takes Star Trek to the Bank. Paramount takes Star Trek to the Bank. Paramount takes Star Trek to the Bank. Because they own what's in Gene's head."

Lincoln Enterprises (originally known as "Star Trek Enterprises") was a mail-order catalog company started by Bjo Trimble and her husband John Trimble in 1967, as a subsidiary of the Norway Corporation. It was shortly taken over and promoted by Majel Barrett as Lincoln Enterprises, specializing in memorabilia pertaining to Star Trek and other productions associated with Gene Roddenberry. This transaction caused estrangement between the Roddenberrys and the Trimbles.

An early example of fannish engagement, fanac, and legalities was the statement printed in May 1968 in Leonard Nimoy Association of Fans Bulletin, a newsletter supported and read by TPTB and Leonard Nimoy, warned fans of violations and fanac:

Quoted below is a letter I received from a member of the Legal Dept, of Paramount Pictures Corporation, the organization which films STAR TREK, in reply to my inquiry as to the possibility of our infringing on the copyright laws by taping the shows, taking pictures off the TV screen, etc,:

"As you can appreciate, STAR TREK is an exceedingly valuable property and one in which we and NBC have invested a great deal of time, money and effort. Therefore, we must be constantly on guard to protect this important investment.

As you surmised, reproduction and sale of STAR TREK pictures, tapes or scripts, would be an infringement of our valuable copyright and/or merchandising rights in STAR TREK, as would any other commercialization of the characters, material or any other elements of this series. It is for this reason we must respectfully request that such reproduction or sale or any other commercialization be discontinued.

In addition, we cannot authorize any taping of programs for home use, since the right to reproduce such episodes of the STAR TREK series for home use is one which is restricted under the provisions of our NBC STAR TREK contract.

We do, however, greatly appreciate the interest that you and the members of the Leonard Nimoy National Association of Fans have shown in STAR TREK and we hope to be able to keep this outstanding series on the air for many years. Very truly yours, (Signed) Howard Barton, Assistant West Coast Counsel - Television"

The LNNAF can, therefore, no longer accept ads for the sale of tapes, scripts, pictures, STAR TREK fiction, or any other items which bear any connection with or reference to STAR TREK, its crew members or starship, and, in our case, most particularly Mr. Spock. On the other hand, such items as "Leonard Nimoy bookmarks", or pencils stamped "I am a Leonard Nimoy fan", or any such other similar items you might wish to offer thru the membership in order to raise money for UNICEF would, I am confident, be acceptable.

From a 1973 letter by D.C. Fontana (printed in Romulan Wine #4 and The Nimoyan #4:

Despite what anyone has said, no one has ever objected to the sale of film clips for charitable causes, as swaps, or even reproduced as photos or slides for sale at conventions. There is NO great profit in it for anyone, least of all Paramount, who could not care less about someone's couple of bucks extra selling clips.

What is unethical, illegal, and in violation of Paramount's right to license and merchandise is a situation where someone has reproduced scripts and is selling them, or the situation which arose wherein items were bought from STAR TREK ENTERPRISES (the only licensed Star Trek souvenir dealer) and then resold to fans at some 25 % more. And if I were a new fan who had been taken in such a deal, I'd be as mad as Paramount and Star Trek Enterprises were! Also illegal and unethical are the mass producing of phasers, communicators, tricorders, etc. which are all copyright by Paramount. One such item made for display, entry in an art show, as a costume prop, or for one's own enjoyment is obviously not a violation. Making a number of them and turning it into a business IS a violation. Another violation is the selling "bootleg" blooper films. The film is the property of Gene Roddenberry, allowed him by Paramount. I don't think I have to lay out the impropriety if the selling such films. I might stress that Star Trek episodes legally obtained from outlet houses are ALL RIGHT. It is fhe bootleg prints that are a violation. (Usually they have been stolen to begin with.) Any tapes made on a home television recorder and sold are also on very shaky legal ground — the same goes for sound tapes which might be sold.

REPEAT: Any item you obtain for your own pleasure or perhaps as a swap is fine. But turning it into a business and profiting from other people's work without a license or permission from Paramount is at the very least unethical, if not illegal.

A fan in the late 1990s wrote:

"The Lords' Disclaimer"

Our Paramount/Viacom, who art in Hollywood,

Copywrited be thy name.

Thy profits come,

Thy royalties be honored,

In Asia as they are in the "Free World".

Give us this week our piece of canon,

And forgive us our fanfics,

As we forgive the real clunkers you occasionally produce.

And lead us not into litigation,

But deliver us from cancellations.

For thine is the franchise, and the trademarks, and the merchandising,

For ever and ever,

Amen.

A fan in 1998 commented: "Just remember: Paraborg may hold the copyright but we still own our imaginations!"

Paramount Films

Below is an incomplete list of Paramount films with fannish activity. (See List of Paramount Pictures films for a complete list)

• Friday the 13th (1980-2009)
• Indiana Jones (1981–2008)
• Lara Croft: Tomb Raider (2001–2003)
• Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters (2013)
• Marvel Cinematic Universe series (2008–2011), co-production with Marvel Studios
• Mission: Impossible (1996–2024)
• Sleepy Hollow (1999)
• Star Trek (1979–present)
• Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (1990–1993; 2014–2016)
• Titanic (1995)
• Transformers (2007–present)
• War of the Worlds (2005)

Paramount Television Shows

Below is an incomplete list of Paramount television series with fannish activity. (See List of television series produced by Paramount Television for a complete list)

• 7th Heaven (The WB/The CW, 1996-2007)
• The Brady Bunch (ABC, 1969-1974)
• Criminal Minds (CBS, 2005-present)
• Friday the 13th: The Series (Syndication, 1987-1990)
• JAG (NBC/CBS, 1995-2005)
• MacGyver (ABC, 1985-1992)
• Mork & Mindy (ABC, 1978-1982)
• NCIS (CBS, 2003-present)
• The Sentinel (UPN, 1996-1999)
• Star Trek (NBC/Syndication/UPN 1966-2005); (CBS All Access 2018-present)