FIRST OFF . . .
Who really wrote “Beverly Hills Cop II”? An inquiring Los Angeles Superior Court judge wants to know and issued a writ Friday requesting the Writers Guild of America either to assign full credit for the screenplay to writer Larry Ferguson or to hold a new arbitration hearing to determine who should get writing credits on the box office hit. An earlier WGA arbitration gave Ferguson a co-writing credit with Warren Skaaren, while story credit went to star Eddie Murphy and executive producer Robert Wachs. An attorney for Ferguson said the guild’s action could cost his client “a million or multimillions” of dollars if “Cop II” continues its pace at the box office. The Writers Guild can challenge the need for revised credits or a new arbitration at a July 28 hearing, according to the writ.
For the record:
12:00 a.m. June 11, 1987 FOR THE RECORD
Los Angeles Times Thursday June 11, 1987 Home Edition Calendar Part 6 Page 2 Column 3 Entertainment Desk 2 inches; 58 words Type of Material: Correction
The June 8 Morning Report incorrectly said that a Los Angeles judge had decided that the Writers Guild must either assign full credit for the screenplay of “Beverly Hills Cop II” to Larry Ferguson or hold a new arbitration to determine writing credit. In fact, the court has not determined the validity of Ferguson’s claim but did set a hearing for July 28 to determine if Ferguson may proceed in his suit against the guild.
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