License issue stops ‘Clerks’ in tracks
By DANIELLE C. BELTON, Californian entertainment writer
The Man has apparently shut down The Empty Space’s exercise in vulgarity that was the Kevin Smith classic “Clerks.”
Licensing woes have temporarily closed what was a wonderfully disgusting play based on Smith’s first film, “Clerks.” The black-and-white movie told the story of convenience store lackey, Dante Hicks, and one tumultuous day in his life, marked with angry girlfriends and moronic customers.
Roger Mathey who adapted and directed the show thought he followed the right legal protocol to get Jay and Silent Bob to wax profane live in Bakersfield, but it seems that while he got permission from Miramax to use the script, he still needed an OK from Smith himself to play his doppelganger.
“It’s unfortunate,” said Jeff Lepine, The Empty Space’s executive director. “In the future we hope to continue on doing it.”
Mathey called it a case of “Hollywood Law.” He said he was surprised to receive a letter from Kevin Smith’s lawyer asking him to stop performing “characters” that were the property of Smith. While Miramax seems to have rights to the script, Smith owns the character rights to Jay and Silent Bob and their likenesses, and as any Smith film lover knows there is no Kevin Smith film without Jay and Silent Bob.
Bob, played by Smith himself, and Jay, played by Jason Mewes, are two slacker drug dealers. Jay never shuts up and Bob is as his name says, silent.
Mathey said Smith’s attorney was concerned about people appropriating Smith’s characters, defaming them, or profiting from them without the permission of Smith himself.
Mathey said he understands Smith’s concerns, but said his production is in honor of the filmmaker and his tawdry characters. Mathey even bears an unnatural resemblance to Smith and plays Silent Bob in the Empty Space production.
“We’re not mocking (Jay and Bob),” Mathey said. “We’re a tribute to them.”
Mathey hopes to get this matter cleared up. He’s been in direct talks with Smith’s lawyer and might even get a meeting with the cult film director in order to reassure him that his production of “Clerks” is short on money-making, but big on love.
But despite losing their late-night production for the month of October, the good-natured po’ folks at The Space hold no ill will toward Smith’s attorneys who are just protecting the director from poachers wanting to make a quick buck off his hard work.
“Hopefully Roger Mathey will get a meeting with Kevin Smith,” Lepine said. “We understand where Kevin Smith is coming from.”