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By Todd Richmond, Associated Press Writer


Madison, Wis. (AP) - Bam! Zap! Whammo! It's a battle royale
between two of the toughest heavyweights in the superhero business.
The fate of the world doesn't hang in the balance, but a lot of
money probably does.


      Science fiction writer Neil Gaiman and former Spider-Man artist Todd
McFarlane's attorneys have been sparring for years over Gaiman's
claims to a handful of characters created for McFarlane's classic
Spawn series, which features a murdered CIA agent who becomes a
demon.


      Now Gaiman insists McFarlane owes him for three more characters
- a demon named Dark Ages Spawn and two avenging angels in thong
bikinis. A federal judge in Madison, Wis., has scheduled a Monday hearing
to listen to both sides' arguments.


      The long-running case underscores the tension among comic
artists as they vie for rights to even minor characters in an
industry that has grown more lucrative over the past 20 years
through movies, graphic novels and international distribution.


      Comic book sales totaled about $429 million last year, up from
$360 million to $400 million in 1996, according to estimates by The
Comics Chronicles, which compiles comic sales data. The Batman
movie sequel "The Dark Knight" has grossed over $1 billion
worldwide since it was released in 2008, according to Box Office
Mojo.


      Spawn isn't nearly as popular as Batman or Spider-Man, but the
series has been fairly successful with action figures, an
Emmy-winning HBO series and a 1997 movie that grossed $87 million
worldwide. A sequel is in development, according to Image Comics'
website.


      Gaiman's attorneys said Gaiman plans to donate any money that
comes out of the case to charity. The lawsuit for him is more about
establishing clear guidelines for other comic book creators about
their rights to characters, they said.


      "Our view is McFarlane just took some of the characters Neil
was a co-creator of and just gave them different names," said
Gaiman's attorney, Allen Arntsen. "It's a matter of principle."


      McFarlane's lead attorney, James Alex Grimsley, didn't return
several messages seeking comment. In court filings, though,
McFarlane's legal team denied Gaiman has any right to the three
additional characters, arguing they're based on ideas from the
Spawn universe, not other characters.


      McFarlane created Spawn in 1992 for a startup comic book
company, Image Comics. Gaiman and McFarlane collaborated on early
Spawn stories. 


In 2002, Gaiman sued McFarlane in federal court,
arguing he was a co-copyright owner of supporting characters
Medieval Spawn, a demon similar to Spawn; Angela, a red-haired
angel; and Cogliostro, a one-time Spawn ally.
      

A jury found in Gaiman's favor later that year. He and McFarlane
have spent the past eight years figuring out how much money the
three characters have generated and how much Gaiman deserves. A
number has yet to emerge.


      Gaiman filed a motion in March claiming the demon Dark Ages
Spawn and two more angels, Tiffany and Domina, were derived from
Medieval Spawn and Angela. They should be figured into the
accounting, too, he argued.

      Gaiman contends Medieval Spawn and Dark Ages Spawn both wear
metal helmets, carry shields and help the defenseless. Tiffany,
Domina and Angela, meanwhile, all have long hair and wear armored
bras and thong bikinis.


      "There's certainly historical examples of minor characters
becoming major breadwinners," said Mark Zaid, founder and
marketing director of the Comic Book Collecting Association.
"Characters start off in a cameo and, to put a pun on it, spawn
into something bigger. ... When you succeed, you can hit the
lotto."


      McFarlane's attorneys counter that while Dark Ages Spawn,
Tiffany and Domina have "superficial qualities" similar to other
characters, but they have unique personalities and express broad
concepts in the Spawn story, including the ideas that demons walked
the earth throughout time and God created an angel army to battle
them.


      Gaiman, who lives in northwestern Wisconsin near the Twin
Cities, worked on the "Sandman" comic book series. His novels
include "American Gods," "Coraline" and "The Graveyard Book,"
which won the John Newberry Medal.


      McFarlane illustrated a number of big-time superheroes,
including Batman and Spider-Man, before co-founding Image Comics.
He also manufactures action figures and made headlines in 1999 when
he paid $3 million for the baseball Mark McGuire hit for his
then-record 70th home run in a season.


      McFarlane told The Associated Press in a phone interview he
thinks Gaiman is a "good man."


      "We just sort of hit a crossroads in the piece of the puzzle in
our relationship," he said, choosing his words carefully. "I
don't begrudge anybody from taking a strong position if they think
something isn't quite right. I try not to get overly worked up
about it. Somebody smarter than all of us will tell us where this
all will land."

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Science fiction writer Neil Gaiman and former Spider-Man artist Todd
McFarlane's attorneys have been sparring for years over Gaiman's
claims to a handful of characters created for McFarlane's classic
Spawn series, which features a murdered CIA agent who becomes a
demon.

Neil Gaiman spars with comic artist over Spawn copyrights

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