Blackbeard's Queen Anne's Revenge

Blackbeard Copyright Lawsuit Sails Forward in NC! North Carolina’s Department of Natural and Cultural Resources received a stern reminder that those who don’t remember history are doomed to repeat it. The lesson came on Friday, August 30, from Judge Terrence Boyle, in a lawsuit involving DNCR’s repeated piracy of documentary footage created by videographer Rick Allen:   unique underwater images of Blackbeard’s flagship, the Queen Anne’s Revenge. Judge Boyle’s ruling allows Allen to proceed with his claims against DNCR. “Allen has plausibly stated a claim that the DNCR infringed on his copyrights. It is undisputed that Allen holds valid copyrights in the materials he alleges th[at] DNCR infringed… Allen provides detailed accounts of his copyrights and the DNCR's alleged infringements of specific copyrights by copying, displaying, distributing, and performing his works without permission online and in a state museum.” This isn’t the first time DNCR has faced liability for pira...

Pirate Haven Destroyed! June 7, 1692 (11:43 am): Known as a pirate haven and as "one of the wickedest places on Earth," Port Royal was, at the time, the unofficial capital of Jamaica and one of the busiest and wealthiest ports in the Americas, as well as a common home port for many of the privateers and pirates operating on the Caribbean Sea. Two-thirds of the town, amounting to 33 acres, sank into the sea immediately after the main shock. According to Robert Renny in his An History of Jamaica (1807): "All the wharves sunk at once, and in the space of two minutes, nine-tenths of the city were covered with water, which was raised to such a height, that it entered the uppermost rooms of the few houses which were left standing. The tops of the highest houses were visible in the water and surrounded by the masts of vessels, which had been sunk along with them." Before the earthquake the town consisted of 6,500 inhabitants living in about 2,000 buildings, ma...

Nautilus Productions LLC Owner & licensor of Blackbeard's Queen Anne's Revenge Shipwreck Project footage. Our collection also features sharks shipwrecks, marine life and military video from around the world. Check out our updated Vimeo channel. https://vimeo.com/channels/nautilusvideo #artsandentertainment #piracy #NorthCarolina #photographer #shipwreck #shipwrecklaw #MaritimeHeritage #pirates #NautilusProductions #blackbeard #Documentary #stockfootage #archaeology #EdwardThache #copyright #QueenAnnesRevenge #McCrory #FriendsofQAR #NCDNCR #BlackbeardsLaw #NCFilm #Blackbeard300 #intellectualproperty #lawsuit #SovereignImmunity #SCOTUS #SupremeCourt #outerbanks

Piratical N.C. Copyright Law Deep-Sixed by Blackbeard Videographer ! In a story line the infamous pirate himself would love, North Carolina has repealed its own “ Blackbeard's Law .” The law, passed in 2015, had targeted famous underwater photographer Rick Allen and his footage of Blackbeard’s flagship, the Queen Anne’s Revenge by converting all photography and videos of shipwrecks that came into State hands into public records that the State could use without payment. The State apparently hopes this will end a lawsuit...but it won’t. The backstory is almost as old as the law. In 2013, North Carolina’s Department of Natural and Cultural Resources violated copyrights owned by Allen and his company, Nautilus Productions—and paid $15,000 to settle their copyright infringement claim. Desperate to keep using Allen’s unique footage but unwilling to pay, the State passed “Blackbeard’s Law” and the State resumed its buccaneering ways.   Nautilus and Allen answered with their own broadsi...

N.C. Faces New Federal Claims in Blackbeard Copyright Case! The infamous pirate Blackbeard was once the scourge of the Atlantic but over 300 years later a different kind of pirate sails North Carolina’s waters. And a case heard at the United States Supreme Court has returned to Raleigh. On February 8 th , 2023 filmmaker Frederick Allen of Nautilus Productions, filed an amended complaint in Allen v. Cooper against the state of North Carolina and the North Carolina Department of Natural and Cultural Resources (NCDNCR) over the misuse of Allen’s copyrighted footage of Blackbeard’s shipwreck, the Queen Anne’s Revenge . According to the complaint filed in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina, North Carolina pirated Allen’s footage of Blackbeard’s flagship, and then passed “ Blackbeard’s Law ” (N.C. §121-25(b)) in 2015 to justify that misuse. North Carolina has argued that Allen and other creators are barred from suing states and state enti...