There may still be life in This Charming Charlie yet. In a post on fan site True To You, Morrissey says he’s a fan of the Peanuts/Smiths mashup site, and that he “hopes the strips remain.” Morrissey also notes that, while This Charming Charlie said that Universal Music Group was sending it takedown notices, he’s represented by Warner-Chappell Publishing, meaning there would be no real reason for UMG to even care what TCC was doing. Meanwhile, the L.A. Times reports that UMG “is no longer pursuing the matter” after the blog’s founder, Lauren LoPrete, and her attorney, Dan Booth, challenged that the site’s use of Smiths lyrics fell under the definition of fair use, as LoPrete isn't making any money off the site—not to mention bringing new attention to old songs.
Join the discussion...