This section of the forum is for discussing the business and finance issues of the t-shirt industry. Which business structure to use (sole proprietor, LLC, S Corp, etc), how to handle billing, where to register your business and get the proper licensing, etc.
I was looking at the Johnny Cupcakes shirt that's a parody of E.T., only it's cupcakes flying over the moon instead of the bike...or something like that. I had a similar idea (not with E.T. or cupcakes) and was wondering about the legalities of that. As long as it's a blatant parody and no actual copying of the original image is used, all is ok?
I did a quick search of the threads, basically saying talk to an attorney. On the list...
Like Will said, even if something is really a parody and not a copy, it doesn't stop them from taking you to court, because these issues are not black and white. If you want to do parody, you simply either have to get permission or just be ready and willing to go to court to defend yourself.
My attorney pretty much said if the judge laughs you win, if not you lose. We also wanted to make parodies of army movie posters, and that is how she replied. So as stated above it is a risk, and the outcome may depend on whether the judge had a good day or not. However you may want to check with an attorney to confirm this. As they say "If 2 people say the same thing it must be half true"
My attorney pretty much said if the judge laughs you win, if not you lose. [...] the outcome may depend on whether the judge had a good day or not.
Not exactly a golden rule you can make a comfortable decision from, but there's probably truth to this.
Parody cases have gone both ways. Personally I think the trend will be more and more against fair use and exceptions in future (not a legal opinion, but it seems to be the way copyright law has progressed throughout the 20th and 21st centuries, thus far).
Spoof & Parody Shirts Question... 
