The Ramones are locked in a lawsuit between the punk legends’ relatives. A long-simmering feud threatens to derail a Netflix movie scheduled to star Pete Davidson as the band’s iconic singer.
Linda Cummings-Ramone, widow of guitarist Johnny Ramone, sued singer Joey Ramone’s brother Mitchell Hyman and his manager David Frye in January for allegedly trying to exclude them from appearing in movies and the band’s merchandise deals. This caused the heated argument.
But Hyman, who filed a countersuit last month, told the Post that the film is not a biopic of the band.
“This is not a book about the Ramones,” Hyman told the Post about the 2009 memoir “I Sleep with Joey Ramone,” on which the film is based.
“This is not a Ramones story,” he said of the book, which outlines growing up with the Ramones, who battled debilitating OCD until his death in 2000. “This is a story of growing up with a man who overcame hardship and inspired millions of people. That’s what it is.”
Hyman and Cummings-Ramone have been embroiled in on-and-off legal battles over the years over the Ramones and their legacy, which began in Forest Hills, Queens in 1974.
At that time, singers Joey (real name Jeffrey Hyman) and Johnny (real name John Cummings) started a band with bassist Dee Dee (Douglas Colvin) and drummer Tommy (Thomas Erdely).
The band went on to become one of the most influential groups in rock history, but through various line-up changes only Joey and Johnny remained until the band’s final retirement in 1996. All four founders have passed away.
Despite their huge following and near-mythical status, the Ramones were never a commercial success.
It took 38 years for the band to debut in April 1976. Sell 500,000 copies and become gold —And in October 2022, Joey Ramone’s estate sold his stake in his music publishing rights for $10 million.
Currently, Hyman and Cummings-Ramone have split control over Ramones Productions, which handles the band’s work.
Hyman inherited 50% of her mother’s estate when she died in 2007, and Cummings-Ramone inherited half when Johnny died in 2004.
In a phone interview Sunday, Cummings-Ramone told the Post she was simply trying to protect the band’s legacy.
“This is a very unfortunate situation for Ramones fans and widows in rock and roll. This is what happens to widows when someone wants what they have. ,” she said.
“That’s what I’m trying to do: preserve the legacy of the Ramones,” she continued. “That’s it. And that was what Johnny Ramone left me on his deathbed, because legacy was the most important thing to him and it was the most important thing to me.”
But Hyman, herself a musician who goes by the stage name Mickey Lee, and Frey allege in their retaliation lawsuit that Cummings-Ramone is trying to take over RPI and “install her as Queen of the Ramones.”
“Indeed, Ms. Cummings-Ramones’ primary objective was to embarrass and harass Mr. Hyman, to destroy his integrity, to create an entirely false narrative about him, to rewrite her role in the history of the Ramones, and to increase his popularity.” “In her mind, she is carrying on the legacy of RPI and a band she was not a member of and had no creative connection with.” the lawsuit said.
“She is driven by other motives, such as her own fame and vanity, as well as a selfish desire to sabotage the project and control RPI for reasons inconsistent with her fiduciary duties. , she avoids even the slightest cooperation with him.”
And it seems that the Netflix movie announced in April 2021 is also caught in the crossfire.
Cummings-Ramone alleges in the January lawsuit that Hyman and Frey “did not disclose or seek approval from Ms. Ramone, an RPI shareholder and director, of lucrative film contracts entered into unilaterally by the defendants. It repeatedly failed to do so and instead used the substantial business opportunity to monopolize itself.” advantage.
Cummings-Ramones wrote in the newspaper, “Allowing the defendants to speak as the only authoritative authority on the history of the Ramones is an injustice to the band and its legacy.” “It will cause irreparable damage,” he added.
She also claimed that Hyman threatened to leak “compromising private footage” her brother had of her. Joey Ramone was said to have dated Cummings Ramone before marrying Johnny Ramone, which caused tension within the group in her later years.
Mr. Hyman and Mr. Frey denied both allegations.
“I was never threatened by anything like that,” Frey told the Post. “That’s an outright lie. And is there any compromise in the footage? That’s a matter of opinion.”
Hyman, on the other hand, took offense to the idea that they were making a movie behind Cummings-Ramon’s back.
“On what basis does she make that statement?” he asked. “What gives her the authority or the inclination to say something like that? I couldn’t say it because I don’t know.”
Frey agreed, saying that the book and the planned film are a family memoir, not a band expose.
“This has never been presented to anyone as a Ramones biopic,” Frey said, adding that Cummings-Ramone granted the rights to the film several years ago anyway.
“This is something she approved in 2006,” Frey said. “Whether she remembers signing it or not, or what the circumstances surrounding her signing were, she signed it. So she recognized all these rights. is.”
There are questions about whether the legal dogfight will shock Netflix and get away with it. But Hyman said he hasn’t heard anything definitive.
“It’s alarming and I think that’s a safe word for me,” he told the Post. “I can’t speak for Netflix. I feel like they’re not happy about it. But they don’t call and say, ‘We don’t like this, we’re done with it.’ did.”
A Netflix spokesperson declined to comment Sunday.
Pete Davidson’s agent — who He is also listed as a screenwriter and executive producer on this project. — did not respond to requests for comment.
The newspaper also contacted Cummings-Ramone’s attorney.
Despite years of infighting, Hyman said he doesn’t think it will tarnish the Ramones’ leather-clad heritage.
“The Beatles are not much less popular, given what we hear about them,” Hyman said. “People will continue to love this song. I don’t think anything like this will tarnish the legacy.
“But it depends on the person,” he continued.
“Some people don’t read this article, some people don’t care. And then there are gossip mongers who get excited about this topic.”
