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Danjaq

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Danjaq, LLC
Company typeHolding company
IndustryEntertainment
Film
Founded1962; 62 years ago (1962)
FounderAlbert R. Broccoli
Harry Saltzman
Headquarters
Santa Monica, California
,
United States
Key people
Michael G. Wilson
Barbara Broccoli
ProductsJames Bond films
OwnersMichael G. Wilson
Barbara Broccoli
Websitewww.eon.co.uk

Danjaq, LLC (formerly Danjaq S.A. and Danjaq, Inc.) is the holding company responsible for the copyright and trademarks to the characters, elements, and other material related to James Bond on screen. It is currently owned and managed by the family of Albert R. Broccoli, the co-initiator of the film franchise.

History

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Founding

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Danjaq S.A. was founded by Albert R. Broccoli and Harry Saltzman after the release of the first James Bond film Dr. No, in 1962, to ensure control of all future films in the series. The new company was named Danjaq from combining the names of Broccoli and Saltzman's respective wives' (Dana Broccoli and Jacqueline Saltzman).[1] The company was originally domiciled in the Canton of Vaud in Switzerland, hence the appearance of "S.A." letters in the first legal name of the company.[2] In 1962, Danjaq began its association with United Artists.[3]

Ownership

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Due to a series of failed business interests, Harry Saltzman's personal financial difficulties forced him to sell his 50% share of Danjaq to United Artists in 1975.[4]

In 1986, Albert and Dana Broccoli acquired United Artists' 50% stake in the company and so assumed complete control of Danjaq.[5] John Cork claims that in exchange for the sale, MGM/UA received an exclusive distribution deal with Danjaq that is far more lucrative than when the shares were originally owned by Broccoli and Saltzman.[6]

Danjaq's legal domicile was changed from Switzerland to Delaware in October 1992.[7] The Delaware company's legal name was Danjaq, Inc. The company was converted to a limited liability company in January 1997. In 1999, as part of a settlement of a lawsuit between MGM and Sony, Sony acquired MGM's interest in the Spider-Man film rights, while Danjaq bought out the rights to the novel Casino Royale.[8]

Following the death of Albert Broccoli in 1996 and Dana Broccoli in 2004, control of Danjaq was passed to Dana's son (and Albert's step-son), Michael G. Wilson.[9]

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Although the trademarks for material related to the Bond films are held by Danjaq, the copyrights to the first twenty film properties are co-owned by Danjaq LLC and Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios (the technical successor to subsidiary United Artists). The copyrights to Casino Royale, Quantum of Solace, Skyfall and Spectre, are shared between Danjaq LLC, MGM, and Columbia Pictures.

Films made outside the control of Danjaq

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Two Bond films have been made outside the control of Danjaq, the first was the 1967 film Casino Royale, with David Niven as Bond; the second was the 1983 film Never Say Never Again, a remake of Thunderball. Never Say Never Again was the result of a legal dispute involving Kevin McClory, one of the credited co-writers of the story used for the novel Thunderball, who was awarded the film rights to the novel in a 1963 settlement with Ian Fleming.

Litigation

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Danjaq LLC v. James Bond Ltd

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On 13 July 2009, Danjaq applied under s.69(1)(b) of the Companies Act 2006 for a change of name of James Bond Ltd, which had been registered since 12 June 2009. James Bond Ltd was ordered by the adjudicator at the Company Names Tribunal to change its name and to not register another company with an offending name. The respondent was also ordered to contribute toward Danjaq's costs.[10]

References

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  1. ^ "Interview with James Bond producers Barbara Broccoli & Hilary Saltzman". ComingSoon.net. Retrieved 4 January 2013.
  2. ^ "Zefix - Central Business Name Index - Search business name". Retrieved 24 February 2020.
  3. ^ Judge McKeown (27 August 2001). "Danjaq et al. v. Sony Corporation et al" (PDF). United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. p. 9. Archived from the original (PDF) on 4 October 2006. Retrieved 27 November 2006. in 1962... Danjaq teamed up with United Artists to produce Bond films.
  4. ^ Reuter (25 April 1978). "Movie Producer Loses Lawsuit". Ottawa Citizen. p. 66.
  5. ^ Danjaq, S.A. v. Pathe Communications Corporation, No. 91-55878. (Oct 6 1992) United States Court of Appeals, Ninth Circuit.
  6. ^ Cork, John (1996). "The Road to GoldenEye". Goldeneye. 4.
  7. ^ "Companies matching 'Danjaq' :: OpenCorporates". Retrieved 24 February 2020.
  8. ^ "Past 007 Attempts". MI6, Home of James Bond. September 14, 2004. Archived from the original on October 10, 2009. Retrieved November 7, 2007.
  9. ^ Danjaq LLC v. Sony Corp., 263 F.3d 942 (9th Cir. 2001)
  10. ^ Danjaq LLC v. James Bond Ltd Retrieved 23 September 2014
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