I've been in the doll and figurine business for over 25 years, so I've naturally been intrigued by this story. A few items in particular stick in my mind:
1. The likeness of this purported "12-inch figurine" (it appears to be technically a doll, but they're marketing mostly to guys) to the real Steve Jobs is unreal. Bear in mind that the head shown in the photo would be about 2 inches in diameter at the maximum. Twenty years ago, this kind of verisimilitude would have been impossible to achieve for a $100 price-point. Today, even if you're using the latest 3D computer sculpting techniques, you still have to do old-fashioned stuff like casting, hand-painting, assembling and clothing each doll. (Given the price point, I'm assuming the heads are not done on a 3D printer.) The eyes look like they're glass or polymer, individually set into the head. The lips and beard allow little room for error by whomever is painting the heads. And the detail of the sculpt is so fine, that I would guess at least some hand-finishing and de-burring is required after you pull each piece out of its mold.
All of this leads me to wonder if anything close to the photograph could ever have been delivered to the customer, even if the producers had not been "under enormous pressure" to drop the whole thing. (If so, that's an amazing first product.) I'm going to be calling a colleague in the next few days just to say hi, and you can bet we'll be hashing over this case, and trying to guess who was involved on the production end. Collector dolls are a small world. If I learn anything, I'll post.
2. US law about reproduction of celebrity likenesses was not always clear-cut. It is now, thanks in no small part to John Wayne, who AFAIK sold the rights to market items bearing his name and likeness to his son Michael. The latter then blazed a legal trail that collectible companies have respected for decades. You wanna market a doll or figurine bearing a celebrity likeness, you gotta license it or expect to get sued. It's not always the celebrity her- or himself that owns the rights -- often you sign it away as part of your film contract -- and there MAY be certain exemptions, as in the case of The President of the United States. But to express surprise or shock at threatened legal action for doing this doll is naive at best. Either the guy is genuinely a babe in the woods or he thought he could get away with it by basing his outfit in China.
3. I am guessing that Apple got involved on behalf of the Jobs family just to shortcut the matter. I'm no lawyer, but based on precedent, I must assume the family could have taken the producer to court in California, gotten an injunction and eventually won. It would have been an exhausting and painful procedure, however. Apple, on the other hand, has an army of lawyers and a lot of connections in China. They probably made one phone call and spared the Jobs family months of heartache.
4. Personally, I hope someone does market an officially authorized Steve Jobs doll or sculpt -- if it's done respectfully, as I know it can be. (I already can picture one such treatment!) This would make it easier for the family to defend against unauthorized likenesses, and would bring happiness to a lot of people who admire what he accomplished. I would rate the chances of this happening slim to nonexistent. But never say never.
1. The likeness of this purported "12-inch figurine" (it appears to be technically a doll, but they're marketing mostly to guys) to the real Steve Jobs is unreal. Bear in mind that the head shown in the photo would be about 2 inches in diameter at the maximum. Twenty years ago, this kind of verisimilitude would have been impossible to achieve for a $100 price-point. Today, even if you're using the latest 3D computer sculpting techniques, you still have to do old-fashioned stuff like casting, hand-painting, assembling and clothing each doll. (Given the price point, I'm assuming the heads are not done on a 3D printer.) The eyes look like they're glass or polymer, individually set into the head. The lips and beard allow little room for error by whomever is painting the heads. And the detail of the sculpt is so fine, that I would guess at least some hand-finishing and de-burring is required after you pull each piece out of its mold.
All of this leads me to wonder if anything close to the photograph could ever have been delivered to the customer, even if the producers had not been "under enormous pressure" to drop the whole thing. (If so, that's an amazing first product.) I'm going to be calling a colleague in the next few days just to say hi, and you can bet we'll be hashing over this case, and trying to guess who was involved on the production end. Collector dolls are a small world. If I learn anything, I'll post.
2. US law about reproduction of celebrity likenesses was not always clear-cut. It is now, thanks in no small part to John Wayne, who AFAIK sold the rights to market items bearing his name and likeness to his son Michael. The latter then blazed a legal trail that collectible companies have respected for decades. You wanna market a doll or figurine bearing a celebrity likeness, you gotta license it or expect to get sued. It's not always the celebrity her- or himself that owns the rights -- often you sign it away as part of your film contract -- and there MAY be certain exemptions, as in the case of The President of the United States. But to express surprise or shock at threatened legal action for doing this doll is naive at best. Either the guy is genuinely a babe in the woods or he thought he could get away with it by basing his outfit in China.
3. I am guessing that Apple got involved on behalf of the Jobs family just to shortcut the matter. I'm no lawyer, but based on precedent, I must assume the family could have taken the producer to court in California, gotten an injunction and eventually won. It would have been an exhausting and painful procedure, however. Apple, on the other hand, has an army of lawyers and a lot of connections in China. They probably made one phone call and spared the Jobs family months of heartache.
4. Personally, I hope someone does market an officially authorized Steve Jobs doll or sculpt -- if it's done respectfully, as I know it can be. (I already can picture one such treatment!) This would make it easier for the family to defend against unauthorized likenesses, and would bring happiness to a lot of people who admire what he accomplished. I would rate the chances of this happening slim to nonexistent. But never say never.
