‘Kane’ ownership disputed

Orson Welles’ daughter filed a federal lawsuit in San Francisco on Friday seeking ownership rights to the movie classic “Citizen Kane.” Ownership of “The Magnificent Ambersons” is also in dispute in the suit that names Turner Entertainment Co. and RKO Pictures Inc. as defendants.

“When Orson Welles left RKO [about 1944], he signed an exit deal terminating his contracts,” said Steven Ames Brown, attorney for the Welles estate and Beatrice Welles. Brown said the lawsuit was sparked by the discovery of termination agreements, at an unknown time, by an archivist in one of the dozen Orson Welles archives around the world.

“The contracts could not be clearer that Mr. Welles had a continuing interest in ‘Citizen Kane’ after he left the studio,” Brown said. “The question is, what was the legal effect on the ownership of the movie?”

Royalties are also an issue, Brown said. “Welles had a 20% profit participation agreement with the company. Either he owns the movie, or they owe us 20% of the profits,” he said.

A spokesperson for Turner said the movie is now owned by Warner Bros., whose representatives were not available to comment. Thom Mount, a senior executive with RKO, said, “We can’t comment on a legal action we haven’t seen.”