Even at the tender age of 4, Ollie Jones was a big fan of the Marvel superhero, Spiderman. It was such that when Ollie passed away recently his father, Lloyd Jones knew getting his son a headstone with Spiderman on it would be something the little boy would love. He did just that and it was shortly after the temporary marker made out of plastic was placed the problem began. The Maidstone Borough city council ordered the family to take down the marker due to copyright infringement. Disney also contacted the family to demand the same thing. Coming on the heels of his loss, this issue proved to be so stressful for Mr. Jones he experienced severe chest pains and had to be hospitalized and was only able to tell the public his story once he was released. When the city council was contacted, a spokeswoman confirmed the decision citing the rule all headstones must adhere to the Copyright Law. She also stated the Bereavement Services for the borough was doing what they could to assist the family during this emotional time in their lives. To date, the council is standing by their decision.
The Jones family is struggling with this issue as they work to preserve Ollie’s memory. They don’t understand why they were told to remove the marker, ostensibly so Disney could “preserve the innocence” of the character. Last year another family had been given permission to have a grave marker with Iron Man on it, and this has confused the issue as they don’t understand what difference it makes which hero is on the marker. A U.S. Copyright lawyer with a great deal of experience not only taking on the media giant, Disney but also winning has since contacted the family with an offer of their services pro bono to correct this travesty. They have also received a great deal of support from people from around the world since their story was first told. The family is very grateful for this as they deal with the loss of Ollie and the fight to honor his memory in a way they believe Ollie would like.
Since all this began, the Media from around the world has become involved and are waiting to find out why Disney, and Marvel, have refused to allow the family to keep the marker. In addition, a petition asking for reconsideration of the decision has been circulated, and it has gathered over 140,00 signatures.
The Member of Parliament representing Faversham and Mid Kent where the Jones live, Helen Whately, has taken an active role in this issue on behalf of the family. Being a parent herself, Helen Whately can relate to the family’s sorrow over the loss of little Ollie as well as the pain this arbitrary decision is needlessly inflicting on them. As a result, she has personally reached out to the media group asking them to reconsider their decision to have the marker removed from Ollie’s grave. Disney has yet to issue either a response to the petition or an explanation for their decision.
