# Using real people in work of fiction? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [May 16, 2016, 4:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/using-real-people-in-work-of-fiction/754891 "2016-05-16T04:17:44Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![dilaudid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a88e4f/32.png) [@dilaudid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dilaudid)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2016, 4:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/using-real-people-in-work-of-fiction/754891/1 "2016-05-16T04:17:44Z")
So, I’m writing a book. It’s set in the early 2050’s, and it’s essentially ultra-hard science fiction (not too many innovations, with the exception of space travel, colonisation, self-driving cars, and some futuristic weapons). Since it’s realistic fiction, and very possible to happen, real names are needed for political leaders and suchlike. If for example, I include a passing reference to, say, “former Prime Minister Boris Johnson”—with no denigration of character, just extending his current life as a Conservative MP—is there a possibility of being sued? ---
**Author:** ![UDS](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/ecae2f/32.png) [@UDS](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UDS)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2016, 4:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/using-real-people-in-work-of-fiction/754891/2 "2016-05-16T04:20:26Z")
Sued for what? ---
**Author:** ![dilaudid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a88e4f/32.png) [@dilaudid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dilaudid)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2016, 4:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/using-real-people-in-work-of-fiction/754891/3 "2016-05-16T04:22:04Z")
> [@UDS](#): > > Sued for what? For not getting said person’s permission. ---
**Author:** ![Grumman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/43a26b/32.png) [@Grumman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grumman)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2016, 4:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/using-real-people-in-work-of-fiction/754891/4 "2016-05-16T04:26:28Z")
Manuel Noriega’s case was dismissed, which is good evidence that you’re in the clear. [Link.](http://edition.cnn.com/2014/10/28/tech/gaming-gadgets/manuel-noriega-call-of-duty-lawsuit/) ---
**Author:** ![UDS](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/ecae2f/32.png) [@UDS](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UDS)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2016, 4:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/using-real-people-in-work-of-fiction/754891/5 "2016-05-16T04:28:33Z")
> [@dilaudid](#): > > For not getting said person’s permission. I don’t know of any law that says you need somebody’s permission to mention them. If there is, haven’t you breached it in your OP? (Or did you clear your OP with Boris first?) ---
**Author:** ![Rick\_Kitchen](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rick_kitchen/32/522_2.png) [@Rick\_Kitchen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rick_Kitchen)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2016, 4:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/using-real-people-in-work-of-fiction/754891/6 "2016-05-16T04:29:54Z")
The sf series beginning with _Weapons of Choice_ has the aircraft carrier _USS Hillary Clinton_, named for “the most uncompromising wartime president in the history of the United States”. ---
**Author:** ![pool](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pool/32/4152_2.png) [@pool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pool)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2016, 4:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/using-real-people-in-work-of-fiction/754891/7 "2016-05-16T04:36:18Z")
I always thought it was humorous in the novel American Psycho, that the serial killer protagonist Patrick Bateman lives in the same building as, and has an interaction in an elevator with Tom Cruise, its even funnier because in the film Christian Bale claims he used Cruise as a source for his characterization because of the creepy vibe he felt after seeing an interview of Tom Cruise on TV. ---
**Author:** ![Trinopus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/2bfe46/32.png) [@Trinopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trinopus)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2016, 4:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/using-real-people-in-work-of-fiction/754891/8 "2016-05-16T04:59:24Z")
You’re (likely) safe if they’re prominent public figures, like politicians and other celebs. You’re (likely) safe if you don’t demean or denigrate them. (In the U.S. In other countries, things can get weird. Remember the guy who derided Chiropractic in Great Britain…) Still, and overall, there’s a reason most works of fiction have the disclaimer, “Any resemblance of any character in this book to any real person is purely coincidental.” Why take chances? Even if some bozo files a lawsuit that cannot possibly succeed, you still have to go through the effort of fighting it in court. ---
**Author:** ![jtur88](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e9c0ed/32.png) [@jtur88](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jtur88)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2016, 6:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/using-real-people-in-work-of-fiction/754891/9 "2016-05-16T06:10:08Z")
I’ve always wondered about the portrayal of real-life former Chicago Cubs manager Dallas Green, in Ron Currie Jr’s novel “Everything Matters”. The protagonist in the story has a brother who is a big league ballplayer, and there is a scene in which a fist-fight takes place in Green’s office at Wrigley Field, describing Green in very negative terms as obnoxious and belligerent and out of control. The 2009 novel won several national book awards, but I’ve never heard anything about whether Green authorized his portrayal in the book. Even googling Currie’s and Green’s name together yields no insight. ---
**Author:** ![PatrickLondon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/patricklondon/32/4422_2.png) [@PatrickLondon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PatrickLondon)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2016, 6:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/using-real-people-in-work-of-fiction/754891/10 "2016-05-16T06:48:37Z")
There was a case in the UK where someone with an unusual name sued an author who invented a murderer with that name - for libel. Whether Boris Johnson would consider it libellous to imagine that he might one day be Prime Minister and then extend his period in office indefinitely, well, that’s a matter of judgement; I think I can guess what his might be. I don’t think his particular personality type resents having his name mentioned in more or less any context, even if there were any law applicable to a simple mention of his existence, which there isn’t in this country, to my knowledge. ---
**Author:** ![Rick\_Kitchen](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rick_kitchen/32/522_2.png) [@Rick\_Kitchen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rick_Kitchen)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2016, 7:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/using-real-people-in-work-of-fiction/754891/11 "2016-05-16T19:50:06Z")
One of my favorite baseball books is _If I Never Get Back_, a time travel story in which a modern-day protagonist winds up traveling back to 1869, where he hooks up with and becomes a player for the 1869 Cincinnati Redlegs. The book uses all of the 1869 players, and adds a fictional sister of real-life player Andy Leonard, with whom the protagonist falls in love. ---
**Author:** ![suranyi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e36b37/32.png) [@suranyi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/suranyi)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2016, 8:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/using-real-people-in-work-of-fiction/754891/12 "2016-05-16T20:50:49Z")
Historical fiction often uses real people as characters, at least in cameo roles. Of course, they are usually dead now. Herman Wouk made up whole conversations involving such people as Churchill, Stalin, and Roosevelt in “The Winds of War”. ---
**Author:** ![eburacum45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eburacum45/32/8690_2.png) [@eburacum45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eburacum45)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2016, 8:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/using-real-people-in-work-of-fiction/754891/13 "2016-05-16T20:56:48Z")
Just mention Prime Minister Johnson. That leaves the options open (it might be Boris, or it might be Rachel, or Jo, or even Oli). ---
**Author:** ![Saint\_Cad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/saint_cad/32/18907_2.png) [@Saint\_Cad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Saint_Cad)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2016, 8:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/using-real-people-in-work-of-fiction/754891/14 "2016-05-16T20:59:33Z")
I believe the OP may be referring to the 1956 movie _Anastasia_\*. Anna Anderson sued claiming it was based on her life and after that movies put in the disclaimer > [@](#): > > This motion picture is protected under the copyright laws of the United States and other countries throughout the world. Country of first publication: United States of America. Any unauthorized exhibition, distribution, or copying of this film or any part thereof (including soundtrack) may result in civil liability and criminal prosecution. The story, all names, characters, and incidents portrayed in this production are fictitious. No identification with actual persons, places, buildings, and products is intended or should be inferred. \*Wackypedia claims the movie in question is _Rasputin and the Empress_. That was a defamation lawsuit not a “You stole my life story” suit. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2016, 10:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/using-real-people-in-work-of-fiction/754891/15 "2016-05-16T22:04:06Z")
There’s no requirement to get permission to use a celebrity in a work of fiction. It also insulates you from libel, which is a false statement of _fact,_ (By definition, fiction is not factual.) ---
**Author:** ![Exapno\_Mapcase](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/exapno_mapcase/32/1051_2.png) [@Exapno\_Mapcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Exapno_Mapcase)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2016, 11:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/using-real-people-in-work-of-fiction/754891/16 "2016-05-16T23:54:18Z")
I wish people who are talking about writing would use words with precision. Any idiot can sue you at any time for any reason. The OP’s real question is whether a real person can successfully win a suit for a mere mention. The answer to that is no. They can’t. There must be a million pieces of fiction in existence mentioning real people. Have you ever heard of a suit for a mention? Ever? They don’t happen. ---
**Author:** ![foolsguinea](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/foolsguinea/32/14751_2.png) [@foolsguinea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/foolsguinea)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2016, 4:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/using-real-people-in-work-of-fiction/754891/17 "2016-05-17T04:18:17Z")
What OP describes is _standard operating procedure_ for near-future speculative fiction. I am neither a solicitor nor in the UK, but in general, public figures (the Queen, Boris Johnson, the Pope, etc.) are in the public domain. Boris would probably be flattered. ---
**Author:** ![Exapno\_Mapcase](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/exapno_mapcase/32/1051_2.png) [@Exapno\_Mapcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Exapno_Mapcase)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2016, 2:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/using-real-people-in-work-of-fiction/754891/18 "2016-05-17T14:44:38Z")
> [@foolsguinea](#): > > What OP describes is _standard operating procedure_ for near-future speculative fiction. > > I am neither a solicitor nor in the UK, but in general, public figures (the Queen, Boris Johnson, the Pope, etc.) are in the public domain. Boris would probably be flattered. I’m not a lawyer either, and I don’t know UK law. But I do know that a fictional depiction that would hurt a public figure’s reputation and known by the writer to be false would be actionable in the U.S. It would be difficult to make the case - it’s hard to show actual harm and parody can be used as a defense - but even public figures can be libeled. See [Proving Fault: Actual Malice and Negligence](http://www.dmlp.org/legal-guide/proving-fault-actual-malice-and-negligence). ---
**Author:** ![Boyo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2016, 3:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/using-real-people-in-work-of-fiction/754891/19 "2016-05-17T15:27:24Z")
> [@Exapno\_Mapcase](#): > > I wish people who are talking about writing would use words with precision. > > Any idiot can sue you at any time for any reason. The OP’s real question is whether a real person can successfully win a suit for a mere mention. The answer to that is no. They can’t. There must be a million pieces of fiction in existence mentioning real people. Have you ever heard of a suit for a mention? Ever? They don’t happen. No, that’s not ALL of the question, because the problem is not simply a successful lawsuit. It is the bringing of a suit or even the threat of a suit, that may cost you money or resources you don’t have. There was a case of a real-life lawyer who claimed he was the basis of a fictional lawyer on Law & Order, and that portrayal could be deemed libelous. [Here is one story about it](http://www.dailyreportonline.com/id=900005560870/Attorneys-15-Million-Libel-Lawsuit-Against-Law--Order-Creators-NBC-Goes-Forward?slreturn=20160417112050). IIRC, the producers ultimately settled the case out of court. But there was indeed a case filed, and it survived an attempt to get it summarily thrown out of court. And it clearly cost the defendants considerable time and money to contest it. SO I wouldn’t be entirely certain that it can’t happen again. ---
**Author:** ![Exapno\_Mapcase](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/exapno_mapcase/32/1051_2.png) [@Exapno\_Mapcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Exapno_Mapcase)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2016, 5:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/using-real-people-in-work-of-fiction/754891/20 "2016-05-17T17:46:42Z")
> [@Boyo\_Jim](#): > > No, that’s not ALL of the question, because the problem is not simply a successful lawsuit. It is the bringing of a suit or even the threat of a suit, that may cost you money or resources you don’t have. There was a case of a real-life lawyer who claimed he was the basis of a fictional lawyer on Law & Order, and that portrayal could be deemed libelous. [Here is one story about it](http://www.dailyreportonline.com/id=900005560870/Attorneys-15-Million-Libel-Lawsuit-Against-Law--Order-Creators-NBC-Goes-Forward?slreturn=20160417112050). > > IIRC, the producers ultimately settled the case out of court. But there was indeed a case filed, and it survived an attempt to get it summarily thrown out of court. And it clearly cost the defendants considerable time and money to contest it. > > SO I wouldn’t be entirely certain that it can’t happen again. Do you understand the difference between a _portrayal_ and a _mention_? Because the law does. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/using-real-people-in-work-of-fiction/754891.md?page=2)