This is an unacceptable attack.

[George Kaplan]

Can a publisher just arbitrarily just remove some of the content of someone else's copyrighted work?

No, but if it's in the public domain it's not really copyrighted. I don't know the technicalities of this poem, but its authorship was uncertain to begin with.

 

[George Kaplan]

Perhaps Ms. McColl was merely trying to portray a more historically accurate Saint Nicholas. After all, tobacco was not known to fourth-century Europe. In the new version of the poem, is he also dressed in black robes and speaking liturgical Greek?
Interesting side note: Nicholas is also the patron saint of sailors, archers, and thieves.

 

[Doc Manhattan]

Can a publisher just arbitrarily just remove some of the content of someone else's copyrighted work?

No, but if it's in the public domain it's not really copyrighted. I don't know the technicalities of this poem, but its authorship was uncertain to begin with.

This. Moore died in 1863, so without a special estate arrangement his heirs lost copyright protection some time ago. If they did retain any rights, any changes went through his estate.

This happens all the time in for-profit publishing. Writers are the artists; editors and publishers are the curators. The publisher's job is to offer something that will sell. The business has never needed state interference to do this. People like money.

Editing out Santa's pipe is a risk that they believe will increase sales. If they're right, they'll make money; if they're wrong then they'll take a loss. The market dictates demand based on the merits of the product. That's capitalism: try to recognize a market and sell them what they want.

The reasons that there's a market for a nonsmoking Santa are socially engineered, and damned silly, but that describes the market for most things.

I'm personally rooting for the Santa-poem market to give this edition a big thumbs-down, of course. Sometimes the audience can surprise you with its wisdom... sometimes. :santa:

 

[Anonymous]

Prohibition = Fail
Book burning = Fail
Rewriting History = Fail
Newspeak = Fail

Tobacco is part of history. Deal with it.

That's all I have to say about that.

 

[christeaux]

After all, tobacco was not known to fourth-century Europe. In the new version of the poem, is he also dressed in black robes and speaking liturgical Greek?
Interesting side note: Nicholas is also the patron saint of sailors, archers, and thieves.

Of course St. Nicholas did not originally smoke tobacco. But who do you think is going to get better gifts, someone who leaves out stale cookies and sour milk, or tobacco? The father of whichever family left me the former would get a swift kick in the :affraid: , because he obviously should not be allowed to procreate.

 

[Blue Max]

Can a publisher just arbitrarily just remove some of the content of someone else's copyrighted work? The artwork I can see, but altering the words??? I'd love to see her get sued over this. :twisted:

She is publishing a new book under her name with the change. I don't know what else she is changing.

 

[sand18f]

Spoiler: Spoiler

My Dad smoked a pipe once a year and it was on Christmas morning early before us kids got up, he wanted us to know that Santa had been there and we could smell the lingering pipe smoke. Of course I really thought it had been Santa, because I knew my parents didn't smoke. I still wonder what tobacco Dad smoked in that pipe, because it smelled wonderful! Dad was a cool guy!

This post might self destruct in a couple of weeks... don't want some tyke searching "Santa" & "pipe" in Google and stumbling across this post thereby ruining Christmas for them.

Simple Man, that was awesome.

Bill

 

[sand18f]

I just had to change my avatar, after this.

Bill

 

[Simple Man]

Spoiler: Spoiler

My Dad smoked a pipe once a year and it was on Christmas morning early before us kids got up, he wanted us to know that Santa had been there and we could smell the lingering pipe smoke. Of course I really thought it had been Santa, because I knew my parents didn't smoke. I still wonder what tobacco Dad smoked in that pipe, because it smelled wonderful! Dad was a cool guy!

This post might self destruct in a couple of weeks... don't want some tyke searching "Santa" & "pipe" in Google and stumbling across this post thereby ruining Christmas for them.

Simple Man, that was awesome.

Bill

I just had to change my avatar, after this.

Bill

Very cool!