Today I am starting on a painting of Veronica Lake. She was that movie star who wore her blond hair hanging over one eye. I found a great picture of her on the net. When I get it done, I will change my Icon to that picture.

I decided my next female star will be Audry Hepburn. I'm going with the classic one of her posing with a cigarette on a long holder.

I remember Veronica Lake. Beautiful woman!

I have tried to change my icon picture and the edit picture thing is not working. I can't delete any pictures either.

Anyone else have a problem?

Someone removed my painting of Bogart, probably because copyright violations I guess.

Why should their be copyright issues if you painted it?

Is a painting of a copyrighted poster illegal I wonder?

Copyright laws can be a real pain sometimes. I know that if you're at a sports game and you take photos of famous players you're not allowed to sell them. You can take them for you own use but that's about it.

You're probably not allowed to paint a portrait from them either. That's weird.

I wouldn't think that painting old movie stars would be copyrighted.

Couldn't you just use pictures of their faces to pain from and make up your own scenes? Then they'd be brand new scenes. Surely the faces aren't copyrighted?

I have no clue how that stuff works.

When I write songs I'm always afraid my tunes might sound like someone else's tune. At least I know my lyrics are original. It's pretty hard to come up with a melody that hasn't been done before in some form.

Im uncertain on how copyright laws work in that respect. If you are painting an image that someone else owns like that Bogart than perhaps its a problem? I realize you are painting it but someone else already drew that image originally so now you are copying it in that sense. I dont know?

Maybe its only a problem if you now attempt to sell it as being your "original design"?

You might need to find out if that is in direct violation to a copyright infringement law.

Im guessing because when a photographer takes an image, he retains the rights to that image, regardless of who is depicted.

Otherwise I would buy that Bogart. Thats the shi- but I cant afford art like that.

It was a copy of a famous Bogart photo. The corporation I believe claims copyright to all images of Bogart. Yes, you can claim copyright to your famous face.

Not all movie stars have that kind of control or enforce it. Bogart is one that does I think. Yes I violated copyright by even painting his face. But it will be displayed in a restaurant and seen by very few people. Its not like I am going to make prints and get rich selling them.

I'm a rebel at heart. he hee he he he

I think a caricature artist can get past copyright on a face because it is classified as humor or satire.

Barack Obama's face is now a big money maker, and I don't think he has initiated any copyright control on that. He could though. Maybe he is.

People are making a fortune selling his image on coffee cups and T-shirts. If he wanted to, he could demand a piece of the action.

But that might be bad press for him. He likes the fame and free advertising I guess.

I think it would be pretty tough for a public servant to copyright his face.

I think with Regan, who was both a movie star and a president, it got weird. If you depicted him as a movie star (or a character he had played) you could be in copyright violation, but if you depict him as a president or public servent then it's cool.

Crazy stuff!!!

In your case, with the resturant job, you could have created your own scenes, and just did images that look like Bogart, and whomever without detailing the faces.

That way it would give the nostalga look, and everyone would know what it was supposed to be, but it wouldn't be in copyright violation.

I have no clue. I'm not a lawyer. But I would steer clear of anything questionable and then I don't need to worry about it.

I think it would be a gross injustice if you were to be sued for copyright violation because like you say, you aren't mass producing the stuff or making a killing on it.

But still. The law isn't aways just.

Unfortunately.

Better to just steer clear of it altogether and be safer.

The resturant owner would have probably been just as happy with anything that created that atmosphere.

The difference is that a President is not in the "image" business (supposedly) and a politician qualifies as "news."

But for an actor, their image is their business. They would have to prove monetary damages and would issue a cease and desist order. But like I said, I am not making prints and selling them or damaging their business. It is just one painting. It is doubtful they would even care, so I am going to display it proudly.

Like I said, I'm a rebel.

I still don't know why I can't change my icon picture or delete any of my pictures in my profile. Is anyone having the same problem?

Legally I believe you are correct.

Business law is supposed to be 'fair'. That's the purpose of it. Copyright laws weren't created to be used to screw people over unjustly.

The way the copyright law is supposed to work is that it is supposed to recover monetary damages only.

By the strictest sense of the law, the most they could sue you for would be the price you charged the resturant owner for the one copy. And by law you should even be entitled to some of that profit since it was indeed a hand painting on your part and not just a photocopy.

Unfortunately though, sometimes the law isn't used the way it was intended to be used.

The Draconians are posing as judges and prosecuters. They convince the jury that they have the right to send you to life imprisonment without paroll.

They make sure that all the people on the jury are Christians so they are easy to dupe.

They, when they get you sentenced to solatary confinement for life with no paroll they secretly take you to their Soylent Green factory instead.

I changed my pic with no problem.

The Draconians are on to you!

They have frozen your account via a cyberspace tractor beam!

No problem changing my pics, they must hate you

Maybe Bogart is the king of the Draconians.

I wouldn't doubt it.

I am small potatoes to them. It would not be cost effective to come after me. They have bigger fish to fry.

I stay out of the radar.

I may have to delete my account and reopen it if it does not get fixed.

You used to be small fish to them, but they see you are starting to have a growing number of followers. Well, okay.......one follower. but, the threat has to start somewhere.

Have you tried shutting down the computer and rebooting.

I once had a problem like you describe and I just shut down and rebooted and it was fine.

Sometimes the browser get's confused.

It might even work to just close all brower windows and then relaunch the brower from scratch.

But if that doesn't work try shutting down completely and restarting.

Okay I will do that. I need to do some computer cleaning up anyway.

Yeh I have one follower. Its that puppy dog we got for Mom and Dad, it follows me around everywhere.