Editor and Publisherreports that the copyright infringement dispute over the cover art for New York Times columnist Thomas Friedman's book, The World is Flat still isn't resolved, even though the publisher pulled the cover.
Late Monday, a copyright-infringement lawsuit was filed in United States District Court in New York City, according to Manhattan-based attorney Howard Gotbetter. He told E&P that the plaintiff is artist Ed Miracle, whose painting was on the original cover of "The World is Flat," and that defendants include Friedman; the book's publisher, Farrar, Straus and Giroux (FSG); and others.
The original cover of Friedman's book featured Miracle's 1976 painting of two old-fashioned ships about to sail off the edge of a flat earth.
"I was walking down the street in Washington, D.C., eight or nine years ago and saw the poster in a map store," said Friedman, when reached by E&P. "It came with a caption: 'I told you so.' It made me laugh. I bought it and framed it on my office wall."
When it came time to choose a cover for "The World is Flat," The New York Times columnist suggested Miracle's painting to FSG. The publishing company tracked down the Paradise Cay firm selling the poster, and got permission to use it for a reported $750.
But Miracle's agent, Rose von Perbandt, told E&P that Paradise Cay did not have the right to grant that permission. "The only person that had authorization to sell 'I told you so' posters during the 1990s was Dan Machut. It expired in 1996. Miracle has never had a relationship with Paradise Cay and all of their activities occurred without his knowledge or consent."
Although the publisher tried to cut a deal with the artist after he complained, he isn't budging so far. So, the first copy has become a collectible, and the attorneys have been handed a lovely holiday gift.
