Crime Writers Steal?

     Yes, this is a slight exaggeration but it struck me the other day as I was watching an episode of Columbo. The episode was titled "Any Old Port in a Storm" (S 3 E 2). The plot seemed familiar and I knew why by halfway into the story. My wife and I had just solved almost the exact same crime in "Underwood Cellars", a murder mystery party game by University Games. The game company had made enough changes to create entirely different clues, but the underlying premise was the same. Brothers own separate portions of a winery. One is found dead in a wine cellar accessible from the office of the other. The dead man's car is found in mysterious circumstances. If you have watched any Columbo stories you know that the murderer is apparent from the beginning. Not so in the Underwood Cellars game - you will have to work out a solution. There are many facts to sort through and not all are clues. Watching "Any Old Port..." Won't help you much. The solution requires work but is straightforward and the game setup is fair. The Columbo episode is fun in its own right, especially when the detective suddenly becomes a wine expert.

     Is this the only example of "stealing" or borrowing a plot idea? Not in the least. The Rockford Files S3 E 2 The Italian Bird Fiasco is a retelling of Arthur Conan Doyle's The Adventure of the Six Napoleons. If you know your Sherlock Holmes stories you will catch on long before Rockford did. Unlike Columbo, Rockford and his audience never seem to have any idea what is happening through most of the case. 

     There is a bit more nefarious case, as well. One of the most popular true crime podcasts was started by a host who simply read the work of others from books or articles word for word. She was apparently unaware that this was a crime. Or maybe she was okay with it. I am waiting for someone to start a podcast by just opening the book she wrote and reading it out word-for-word. Happy ending: she learned from the pushback she got and the growing podcast is very instrumental in facilitating investigations. 

     There is a line between borrowing or reworking a premise and co-opting the intellectual property of others. As long as writers don't cross that line I enjoy the adaptations and variations as if I were entering alternate realities.

Dean Paczewitz