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I love these great Hollywood lawsuits that are all about “hey, you know this monster big hit of yours - well I’m the man and actually came up with it first, so gimme some money!” The latest such lawsuit pits one Anthony Spinner against ABC and Touchstone Television Productions over some little show called “Lost.” Now, to be fair, Spinner has some legitimate writing and production credits to his name, including “Baretta” and “Mod Squad,” so he’s not the total quack that some of these folks who file such lawsuits are.
Nevertheless, his claims still rely upon a submission from 30 years ago! For you see, back in 1976, Spinner claims that he entered into a contract with ABC and a production company to write and produce a pilot. Spinner’s complaint alleges that the script got tossed onto the backburner, but that there was an agreement that he’d get some money if any of his ideas were used down the road. So knock, knock - here’s Mr. Spinner looking for his payout. Overall, Spinner alleges some 20 similarities between his original script, and ABC’s smash hit. For example, the focus of his pilot was on a group of folks who get stranded on an island when their LA-destined plane crashes, and the major characters included a doctor, a military man, and females with criminal pasts.
While ABC and Touchstone won’t comment, there is a 2005 letter from ABC to Spinner’s attorneys which is included in Spinner’s complaint. In this letter, it says that “ABC searched its archives and found no evidence of either the contract alleged in your [prior] complaint (or any similar contract) or any written ‘Lost’ script from your client.” Spinner claims that they do still have the script, and that it was given to J.J. Abrams and used to develop “Lost.” Part of Spinner’s circumstantial evidence to prove this point includes statements by the show’s producers that they were able to develop the show’s outline in just five days.
What’s interesting about this story to me is that the original production company Spinner allegedly contracted with, along with ABC, was Sid and Marty Krofft Productions. For many folks, Krofft is probably best known for “H.R. Pufnstuf,” which was about a kid who found a magical island. They also did the 90’s version of “Land of the Lost,” about a family who gets trapped in this parallel universe with exotic critters and dinosaurs in a jungle (and it’s even got “Lost” right there in the title). All of which is to say, I kinda’ wish that this story were true and that Krofft had made “Lost.” Can you imagine what it would’ve been like when Locke climbed down the hatch, only to find one of those creepy puppet guys waiting for him. Would’ve been much better than Desmond, I can tell you that much.
