The database for almost all films that were derived from stage musicals list the original songwriters in the crew credits.  This is clearly a violation of the Contribution Rules, which state that songwriters may be included only if the songs in question are "Original Songs, written specifically for the film," which most clearly are not.  This would affect most of the Rodgers & Hammerstein and Lerner & Loewe scores, among others.  Why are exceptions being made for these films?

But it's against the rules.  Why bother with the rules if they're ignored?

Quoting scooterberwyn:

Quote:
The database for almost all films that were derived from stage musicals list the original songwriters in the crew credits.  This is clearly a violation of the Contribution Rules, which state that songwriters may be included only if the songs in question are "Original Songs, written specifically for the film," which most clearly are not.  This would affect most of the Rodgers & Hammerstein and Lerner & Loewe scores, among others.  Why are exceptions being made for these films?

I don't know that exceptions are being made...I would have to read the contribution notes before I could say one way or the other.  What is probably happening is that the contributors are stating that the crew is per the credits and the screeners don't know any better.

Contributing is 100% based on trust.  The screeners trust that the contributor is telling the truth in their notes and, if they are not, they trust that the voters will let them know.  Unfortunately, there are a lot of people that rubber stamp contributions or just don't care and the 'yes' votes tend to drown out the minority of 'no' votes.

Quoting scooterberwyn:

Quote:
But it's against the rules.  Why bother with the rules if they're ignored?

The most frustrating part is when you point out a rules violation in your voting notes and Invelos approves a contribution anyway because it's the popular thing to do.  That sort of thing is what led me to stop making contributions.

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Hello all, To continue the Songwriters discussion.....

From another discussion regarding Common Naming for songwriter James Van Heusen / Jimmy Van Heusen ...

T!M brought up a good point about how should the "Theme By" credit be applied?

Quoting T!M:

Quote:
You're quick to dismiss eight seasons of 'Married With Children' with this, but it's not that simple. Many will argue that this isn't a "song writer" credit, but a "theme by" credit. We are talking about the show's theme, after all. And no, it wasn't written specifically for 'Married With Children', but while the contribution rules demands songs to be original, there's no such demand for themes... Worse: the rules don't give *ANY* guidance on how to apply the "Theme By" credit - as so often, it's all up for grabs...! 

As T!M points out, the Rules stated for "Song Writer" are specfic:

Music  >  Song Writer  >  Original Songs, written specifically for the film

...but for "Theme By", there is no additional definition in the Notes:

Music  >  Theme By  >  (blank)


The television show "Married with Children" used the song "Love and Marriage" written in 1955 by James Van Heusen [credited as Jimmy Van Heusen] for every episode for eight seasons as its Theme, but it was not written specifically for this show.

The question for the DVDP membership to discuss here is...  Since this is a "Theme By" credit, should this credit be allowed in the database because there is no specific guidance on how to apply, or should not be allowed because it was not written specifically for this show??

(Thanks to ScooterBerwyn for starting this discussion, and to T!M for bringing up this valid point). 

There is no Theme By credit in "Married with Children" episode credits. If there is no credit for Theme, then it is just a song writing credit for a song that is not an original song.

Quoting ateo357:

Quote:
There is no Theme By credit in "Married with Children" episode credits. If there is not credit for Theme, then it is just a song writing credit for a song that is not an original song.

Playing the devil's advocate: the rules don't say that. The rules don't require a literal "Theme By" credit to be used - note that the "credited as" column for "Theme By" is empty. While certainly not "original", 'Love and Marriage' is the show's theme, and the people who wrote it are credited for it. The rules certainly don't forbid entering it as such. I can see where you're coming from, really I do, but the fact of the matter is that the rules don't actually require an actual "Theme By" credit. As I pointed out earlier: there are actually *NO* limitations and *NO* guidance on how to use the "Theme By" credit at all.

Quoting T!M:

Quote:
I can see where you're coming from, really I do, but the fact of the matter is that the rules don't actually require an actual "Theme By" credit. As I pointed out earlier: there are actually *NO* limitations and *NO* guidance on how to use the "Theme By" credit at all.

Actually, the rules do require an actual "Theme By" credit.  From the rules:

"The table below gives each of the crew roles available within DVD Profiler. For each category, include only those people credited with the roles listed in the "Role" and "Credited As" columns. If someone is not credited with one of these roles (or direct translations of these roles), do not include them in the Crew section."

Per that rule, only an actual credit of "Theme By" can be entered.