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Bob Banner Associates has filed suit in Los Angeles Superior Court against Carol Burnett and her Whacko Inc. seeking an accounting of revenues from The Carol Burnett Show, spinoff show Mama’s Family (suit refers to it as Mama’s House) and reunion specials. BBA’s suit (Banner himself died in 2011) says the company and Burnett and her Whacko are co-owners of the copyrights to the first five seasons of the show. According to the suit (read it here) Banner and Burnett entered an agreement in 1967 which continued until 1972. During that time, according to BBA, closing credits identified BBA as co-owner of the copyright with Burnett. “Sometime in 1969″, the suit says, Burnett’s company Burngood Inc filed its first copyright registration solely in Burnett’s Burngood company name (later absorbed by Whacko) with no mention of BBA. The series continued until 1979. The series subsequently was edited into half-hour episodes entitled Carol Burnett And Friends. The show and reunion episodes have been distributed in syndication and via home-video licenses to Columbia House, Guthy-Renker and Time Life. The spinoff Mama’s Family also continues in syndication and home video distribution.
BBA says it has received no accounting or compensation for exploitation of the episodes in question. Additionally, according to the suit, Burnett has never clearly repudiated BBA’s co-ownership. BBA charges Burnett/Whacko with breach of fiduciary duty, unfair business practice and seeks a full accounting of revenue and profits plus damages, interest and court costs.
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Um…. Wasn’t that 40 years ago? Did they just realize something? I smell a cash grab!
I agree I think someone smell’s money. I have always been a Carol Burnett fan & will continue to be until I die. She& her crew have put a smile on my face & in my heart from her first tv show airing until know.When she introduced Vicki Lawence as momma on the show I thought I would never stop laughing.& I think one of funniest skits on the show was when Carol & Harvey were doing a spin off from Gone With the Wind I thought I thought I would never stop laughing.When Carol came down the stairs & Harvey commented how he liked her dress& she replied back, Oh it was something I saw in the window & had to have it.As she so proudly strutted down the stairs with drapes on with the curtin rod still in the curtin. Stand strong Carol u still have fans who care.
The ‘dead guy’ – Bob Banner was my father in law for 30 years. He was a Television Pioneer who produced many variety shows including Candid Camera, Gary Moore Show, Liberace, Star Search, Solid Gold, Perry Como and many more. He literally helped to make Carol Burnett famous. After seeing her perform in ‘Once Upon a Mattress’ he asked her to join his team and star in her own show ‘The Carol Burnett Show.’ Bob & his wife (my mother in law), Alice, considered Carol a dear friend and our family hopes that she didn’t know about illegal usage of any shows that Bob co-owned. Information is still being gathered. What is known is that a lot of money has been and is being made from the DVD sales. This show is part of Bob’s legacy too. He was a good and honest man who worked hard and who had a stellar reputation in the entertainment world. He brought years of wonderful entertainment to millions of families throughout America. Bob loved Television and producing and in his later years, he taught Television courses at SMU.
Please don’t disrespect him with any more uniformed comments. We miss him very much and are sad about this issue but find it suspicious that the timing of the release of these shows came ‘after’ his death when he’s unable to defend himself.
If Carol & her company are illegally using shows that BBA has legal right to, then those profits should be shared according to the ownership of the shows. It’s that simple.
With everyone involved virtually on the edge of death, isn’t this a little late in coming? I guess we need to leave something behind for the grandchildren, but geez, 67-72!
I agree with you about it is the money and most of the people involved in the lawsuit is dead and buried. I can’t wait to see how the lawsuit will come up with all the evidence that Carol Burnett and company did anything wrong. It wasn’t several years ago that the DVD sales make Carol Burnett old show to be a winner. Good luck with the lawsuit. I don’t see anyone become a big winner.
Not sure how BBA is going to get around the relevant statutes of limitations . . . .
67 isn’t exactly “verge of death” — these days that person could easily live another 20 years or more.
James, see the article. The “67″ reference isn’t to an age, but to the year 1967. Burnett turns 80 next spring and I’m sure some of the other parties are that old or older…..
James, they were saying the show was originally from 1967-1972 while owned by both company’s. Carol Burnett is 79 going on 80.
Every time I come to this site, it seems someone is suing someone else. Carol Burnett? Really? Leave that woman alone, damn it. She’s one of the very few celebrities who has never been in any scandals or drug/alcohol-related incidents. She’s a legend and one of the sweetest people around.
drug/alcohol-related incidents.
Apparently you’ve never heard of Google?
This isn’t about hurting Carol. If you read the lawsuit you will see that Carol Burnett co-owns her show with the producer who created the show, (Bob Banner) who also did The Dinah Shore Show, The Garry Moore Show (where Carol got her start,) the Jimmy Dean Show, Solid Gold, Star Search, its Showtime At The Apollo. Not to mention all of the Perry Como and Peggy Flemming Specials. Banner was known for producing what he was passionate about. He wasn’t always just about the money. He was old school…a guy who cared about the product. Most of his stuff was musical Variety which is very expensive to syndicate due to all the music licensing. So Bob Spent his career always moving on to the next show. I heard that Bob Banner died in a nursing home on a fixed income while Carol has made millions and millions from her show in Syndication and through multiple home video deals. According to the lawsuit, Bob Banner hasn’t been paid one red cent. I also heard that Mrs. Banner (Alice), is still alive and also living very modestly in some kind of an entertainment industry retirement home in the Valley! Why wouldn’t Banner’s widow who is still alive and her family deserve their fair share of all the millions that have been made on this show over the years? Carol was once considered America’s Sweetheart, and is now a comic icon…let’s not forget who helped make that happen. What if Jerry Seinfeld stiffed Larry David for all the money he has made in syndication? Would people just say…”Leave Jerry Alone?” Hell no they wouldn’t! Bob Banner created The Carol Burnett Show. He’s the guy who told her to go out and talk to the audience before the show (which became her trademark). Without Banner, there would be no Carol Burnett! Just like, without Larry David the Seinfeld sitcom would have never been born. My vote…BBA Wins! And Shame on Carol for stiffing the man who gave her a career.
Thank you for defending Bob, Chad.
I’ve told the family about your comments and we all extend our appreciation for your knowledge of this unfortunate situation.
Did you know my father in law, Bob?
Everyone in the industry knows that Bob Banner created the Carol Burnett show. Mr. Banner is arguably one of the most respected producers in television history. It was Bob who told Carol to go out and talk to the audience before her show. She met her late ex husband while working for Bon prior to the Carol Burnett show. banner gave him his first job in television also. (joe Hamilton) and rumor has it that Joe was a horrible drunk… And he conspired to take the show away from Bannet after the 5th season out of greed. Banner, also a respected teacher who created a big part of the TV PROGRAM AT SMU Would never discuss his exit from the show, but one could only imagine, it hurt. However, he held on to his library and earlier this year, BBA finally signed a distribution deal to release all of the Banner library for new tv license and home video. I’m sure they were surprised to see that his legacy had earned millions over the years that has gone unreported. I hear that Carol has great admiration and respect for Mr. Banner and his family. I hope she does the right thing here. Just as Carol is a national treasure, Bob Banner is a national treasure to aspiring producers everywhere. His family deserves their fair share of the millions Carol has made over the years. She never would have had her show without Banner. Plain and simple.
Wow! The legendary comedy talent Carol Burnett would NEVER have her own show without Banner? That is an incredible and idiotic claim. You sound like a lawyer who is talking out of some other part of his anatomy.
Did you not see the part where he wrote “The Carol Burnett show was created by Bob Banner?”
…moron….
-RnsW
Wow! I’m NOT even in the industry and I know it takes all kinds/people/artists, actors, producers, writers to make a successful show.
You are the idiot. You obviously know NOTHING about TV history. If you did, you wouldnt be talking out of your ass right now. Look up Banner on IMDB. In fact, there’s a trivia question on IMDB about Banner that you might find interesting. As far as me sounding like a lawyer….not hardly. But I am a producer and a bit of a TV historian. A little history lesson for ya…BBA is the oldest independent production company in the television business. Banner was once offered a piece of CBS to join the network in the early days and he declined. A bad financial decision perhaps…but Banner was a man who believed the creative control should remain in the hands of the producer. He was never greedy, and never sought after the limelight. And because of that, greedy Hollywood assholes and uneducated people like yourself took advantage of him. Read the lawsuit before you make your next comment.
This world would be a lot better off without lawyers….
I don’t know if it’s the company that’s licensed them, or Burnett’s company, but very few classic shows have been as badly mismanaged and mishandled as this one, and it’s a damn shame.
Why these all haven’t been put on a high quality DVD is a mystery. What *is* out there is inconsistent, and the as-seen-on-TV element has totally cheapened the brand.
The 67-72 refers to the year the Burnett shows in question originally aired, not the ages of the parties!
As far as I know, the first 5 seasons of The Carol Burnett Show are not on DVD and were never part of Carol Burnett and Friends. I believe The Family sketches started in season 6, but I could be wrong.
Richard you are right. Nothing from the first 5 seasons have ever been made available to the public.
Thats incorrect. The Columbia House release had episodes from the first 5 seasons. Plus, you can see all of the first 5 seasons on Youtube which tells me they were posted by people who either own the DVD’s or VHS tapes of the show or else taped the show off television and loaded it on Youtube.
Just go on youtube and search for seasons 1-5 of The Carol Burnett Show and you’ll see a ton of stuff. Considering Banner left the show after season 5 in 1972 or 73, that means those episodes would have had to of been taped in order to find their way on to YouTube. Plus, I own the Columbia house DVD set and it has episodes from all 11 seasons.
Which makes this suit all the more pointless — even if they did open up the books for BBA, the books would say, “Sorry, but we don’t owe you a dime.”
They must be trying to get a piece of the new DVD releases — it’s the only thing I can think of that might contain some earlier material.
If Carol owes the man’s family, then just pay them. Lord knows she’s rich beyond rich. It would seem to me that she’s so legimate
if it’s true she should work out some agreement with the mans family. I loved her show, beyond love, there has never, ever been a show like it nor will there ever will be. However the T.V.episodes that are available on DVD are way over priced I mean Way, way over priced. I would love to own some of them but there a limit I will pay for a DVD and they have crossed the line.
Just one more comment about T.V. comedy, Lucille Ball always comes up as the queen of comedy… Puleese just give me a break,
she couldnt hold a candle to Carol Burnett. Carol and her ensemble
Vicki, Harvey & Tim. When I think of Eunice and Mama and Bubba I still smile. Her impersonation of famous people was always spot on and never failed to cause you to laugh yourself silly.
Oh Carol you were a JOY
I will absolutely say that this lawsuit will get dismissed. First off is the misnaming of Mama’s Family. No one who truly knows the history of The Carol Burnett Show could ever make such a giant mistake.
And the fact is that the comment in thread that says Banner created the series is wrong. The Carol Burnett Show comes from a clause in her contract for The Garry Moore Show.
It’s sad that someone is using the name of someone who has died and is attacking a true comedic legend without having first hand knowledge of any of the actual history they are claiming to be true.
I don’t know what clause you are talking about, but I know that Banner put Carol on the Garry Moore Show, then produced a bunch of primetime network specials with her. These specials included Julie and Carol at Carnegie Hall. What a great show that was! Banner also produced THE CAROLD BURNETT SHOW as a touring stage show before it became a TV show. And then he sold the show to CBS and Executive Produced it for the first 5 seasons. No body knows what happened after that. I agree that Carol is a comic genius and that she would have found fame with or without Banner. But…thats being speculative at best. An earlier poster wrote something like, “would there be a Sienfeld Sitcom without Larry David?” I don’t see what is different here. Bob Banner created the show. Everyone in the industry knows it. At least everyone who is as old as I am!
As soon as they mentioned “Mama’s Family” (or “House” LOL) I knew this case wouldn’t stand. Bob Banner Associates has NOTHING to do with the Burnett Show after its 1971-1972 season. The first “Family” sketch aired in 1974 (and that’s a fact) so how BBA could claim copyright to that and the related “Mama’s Family” spin-off is waaay beyond my comprehension.
BBA co-owns the 1967-1972 episodes of the Burnett Show but he certainly did not create the show – the show was developed out of a clause in Burnett’s CBS contract which was written around 1962.
Time-Life has released about six full, unedited sketches from between 1967-1972 in the big Burnett Show box-set they put together a couple of months ago, so I assumed BBA was OK with it? The classic Dentist sketch is one of those 67-72 skits.
And I doubt Carol herself would have a really detailed understanding of all the production company arrangements and contracts and whatever to present to BBA. Her then-husband Joe Hamilton who was the exec producer of the Burnett Show was the one who took care of all that.
The Chad fellows comments are fairly right-on. Seems sad all this. Bob was a very kind, smart, talented and elegant producer. I worked with him on both Solid Gold & Star Search. He always spoke kindly of both Carol and Joe. I assume the legal voices above are correct about the time that has gone by. It is not a surprise to me that Bob, (who passed last year) never went after Carol….Not 20, 10 or even 5 years ago. It wasn’t his style. He would have just called and tried to work it out….Hell, perhaps he did. Joe is dead. If Carol has anything to say of it, (maybe she does, maybe she doesn’t?) I am pretty certain she would do the right thing. If she legally owes him nothing and this a hideous heir grab, that would be crappy but falls to the norm today. Whatever the case, karma can be a bitch! Carol and Bob, and yes even Joe all had a strong hand in creating something wonderful and historic. Thankfully, no lawyer or court nor heir can fuc with that!
Really, they waited 40-years to bring this up? Smells like someone wants a free payday off someone else’s work.
If there is money owed to Bob Banner Productions, I’m sure the courts will decide correctly, and I would hope that Carol Burnett would do what is honest and just.
Carol Burnett is legendary and respected for being a lovely and conscientious women. If this suit shows that the Banner family have rights to these shows, Carol will work with them.
Without Intellectual Property Rights this nation will be bankrupted by piracy. I fully understand idiots who do not understand this are shopping at Walmart, buying some cheap China knock off products oblivious to the fact they are putting their children or grandchildren into poverty.
Based on the article in this instant case, BBA seems to have a very legitimate case and right to the money it seeks. I would
think some out of court settlement could possibly be reached.
I have no animosity toward Carol Burnett; it seems to be a case about business practices rather than any particular criminal intent. I do not miss the Carol Burnett show; I liked its early years when it was more of a variety show ie. I loved the old shows that featured Mamma Cass Elliot and other great talents…but by the time the show turned into Mamma’s Family and became a kind of constant G-rated cornball humor, it lost me. The show became overexposed, too G-rated and repiticious. Also, the humor seemd
a little too disrespectful and bullying ie. too many jokes about stereotypical stupid secritaries, and too many silly jokes about feeble old people who can;t hear… The early shows were great. The later shows were silly AND TOO G-rated.
I absolutely loved the Carol Burnett Show! I was a farm kid that only had about two t.v stations to watch. Carol Burnett made my childhood. When I was sad she cheered me up, when I was lonely there she was. I wish I could afford the DVDs they are a little pricey, but who knows maybe for Christmas????
Well said. I agree. The nerve of some people. I love Carol Burnett but he did co-create the program and his estate deserves its fair share.
Legal and justified? Or not… couldn’t Banner’s family have handled this more appropriately? Instead of making a publicity stunt out of it, filing legal charges, etc., why didn’t the family handle this privately, out of the public eye? Out of court? Would’ve seemed more respectful and in keeping with Banner’s supposed personality. By approaching this the way they have, it seems fishy.
“The Carol Burnett Show” was a success because of. . . Carol Burnett! Only 6 people have ever heard of Mr. Banner and they are all over the age of 90 at this point.
The Show was on from 1967-78, not 1979. As far as I know, the 1967-72 seasons have been frozen out of syndication since their original air dates; there are only a handful of them out for public view in media museums.
If Mr. Banner/his estate feels that they are entitled to cash/credit, why wait until 2012? Is it timed to the Time Life release of eps of the show which by the way do not come from the infamous 1967=72 seasons?
Ms. Burnett is known in and out of the industry as a kind, generous, and classy lady. She is also 79 years old and could kick today, tomorrow, 10 years from now. I doubt very much she is sitting in her home cackling over the money she has supposedly made from the show that is denied Mr. Banner. If the Banner estate has class, they would approach Ms. Burnett and her reps PRIVATELY without this fanfare.
I dont know who is right or wrong just wish they would put it back on television,my mom an dad are in there late 70′s an miss watching it,they were wondering about it.