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In the months before his death from cancer in 1991, Beaumont, Texas, lawyer Rex Conrad Woodard helped Thomas Gaetano DeVito, an original member of the pop group the Four Seasons, write an autobiographical book, Woodard’s widow alleges. Woodard died before the book could be published. Now, with the work allegedly partly the basis for the hit Broadway musical “Jersey Boys,” Woodard’s widow has sued DeVito for a share of income stemming from the work. On Dec. 28, 2007, Donna Corbello filed a complaint in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas seeking a declaratory judgment to enforce a contract between DeVito, who lives in Las Vegas, and her late husband. Corbello, now living near Georgetown, Texas, also seeks an equitable accounting of any profits derived from or obtained through DeVito’s “exploitation” of the work. Corbello seeks a declaratory judgment that the work is a joint work under 17 U.S.C. §101; that she is joint owner of it under 17 U.S.C. §201(d) and may exploit the work independently of DeVito; that Woodard was a co-author of the work and a co-claimant to copyrights under 17 U.S.C. §201(a); that his contribution and ownership must be recognized by the U.S. Copyright Office; and that DeVito must account for all profits arising directly or indirectly from the work. She seeks a minimum of $5 million in actual damages. “The parties had a contract, but there is [also] copyright law,” says Corbello’s attorney, Gregory H. Guillot, a Dallas solo practitioner. Jay Julien, an entertainment attorney in New York City who represents DeVito, declines comment, saying he has not seen a copy of the complaint in Donna Corbello v. Thomas Gaetano DeVito. “Jersey Boys,” which is about the Four Seasons, opened on Broadway in 2006. A touring production will open in Houston in January and in Dallas in August. Corbello alleges the following in her complaint: Woodard, a civil litigation solo in Beaumont at the time of his death, was keenly interested in rock ‘n’ roll music and began writing for Goldmine Magazine in the late 1970s. In 1981, Goldmine published an article he wrote about the Four Seasons and published a follow-up article in 1982. In 1981, as part of his research into the second magazine article, Woodard interviewed DeVito. DeVito signed a letter agreement in 1988 calling for Woodard to write his authorized biography, based on a series of interviews with DeVito and other information. The agreement stipulated that Woodard would do all the writing; DeVito would have control over the final text; and Woodard and DeVito would be listed as co-authors of the book with DeVito to receive top billing. Corbello also alleges the agreement called for her late husband and DeVito to share equally in profits arising from the book, whether in the form of “royalties, advances, adaptations fees or whatever.” “In sum, the parties intended that the Work be treated as a ‘joint work,’ ” Corbello alleges. Woodard worked on the book for two years and remained in “close contact” with DeVito during the writing process. Woodard started contacting publishers in late 1990 as he was wrapping up the book, and Woodard and DeVito also jointly provided a copy of an outline of the work to actor Joe Pesci for the purpose of adapting it into a screenplay, Corbello alleges. “At all times during these efforts, it was understood and agreed that, whatever use might be made of the Work, both Mr. Woodard and Defendant would share equally in the resulting profits,” she writes. DYING WISHWoodard failed, before his death in May 1991, to secure a publishing contract, and Corbello alleges that his “dying wish” was that she and his sister, Cindy Woodard Ceen, try to get the book published after his death, partly to help support his family, Corbello alleges in the complaint. Guillot says Corbello, who now goes by her maiden name, has one child with Woodard and two children from a previous marriage. Corbello alleges that over the years she and Ceen tried to secure a publishing contract for the book but were unsuccessful. In 2005, as alleged in the complaint, Ceen contacted DeVito, seeking his “collaborative assistance” in getting the book published. Corbello alleges that DeVito and Ceen had a friendly conversation, but shortly afterward, Julien contacted Ceen and informed her that he is DeVito’s attorney and they did not consider the book saleable. However, Corbello alleges, she believed that the “optimal time for publication had arrived.” In 2006, after “Jersey Boys” became a hit on Broadway and received four Tony Awards, Corbello wanted to try again to find a publisher for the book. In a copyright search, she alleges, she discovered that DeVito had filed an application for copyright registration in 1991 and received it for a literary work titled “Tommy DeVito-Then and Now.” She alleges that work is identical to the book written by her husband, except the title page lists only DeVito as an author and excludes her husband’s name. Except for the title page, the work is a photocopy of the manuscript typed by Woodard’s secretary, Corbello alleges. Corbello alleges she was “shocked” to learn the defendant had registered the work in his own name without telling Woodard, who was still alive in January 1991 when DeVito filed the copyright application, and he had done so in violation of the letter agreement. “Unfortunately, this revelation was coupled with near-contemporaneous discoveries that the writers of Jersey Boys had obtained access to the Work; that the Work had inspired the form, structure, and content of the musical; that the perspective of the Tommy DeVito character therein was derived largely from the Work; that several scenes in Jersey Boys were adapted from the Work; that actors portraying Defendant in the production were provided with copies of the Work; and, that Defendant was financially connected to the musical, and had received royalties and/or profits,” Corbello alleges. In June 2007, Corbello alleges, she contacted Julien, demanding that DeVito add Woodard as a co-author on the copyright registration for the work. However, she alleges, DeVito has not done so, and Julien maintains Woodard was only DeVito’s “scribe” and DeVito authored the work. Corbello alleges that because “Jersey Boys” is so successful on Broadway and in touring companies, DeVito’s profits from the musical have moved into the seven-figure range, and the present value of his long-term income stream from “Jersey Boys” likely exceeds $10 million. Trackbacks (0)
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