The Disney executives behind mega-hit
Hannah Montana are getting sued. There's a guy out there who says he actually came up with that same concept years before Miley was ever a household name.
Richard Fronduto filed a lawsuit in LA Court Wednesday claiming he wrote an idea for a show called The Secret Life Of Sindi, which he then pitched to Disney. In fact, the studio loved it so much at the time that they asked him to turn in into a two-hour pilot episode! That was 1990.
Cut to 2006, and Hannah Montana is the most popular kid's show on TV. You'd probably be pissed too! Richard says it was his story idea for a young girl to be leading a double life as both an ordinary teenager and a pop star.
The papers reveal that Fronduto found numerous similarities between his discarded pilot episode and the Hannah Montana show - with both featuring a teenage girl who leads a double life as an ordinary teen and successful pop star. Both programs also allegedly contained a 'single-dad' character who acts as the teen's manager.
Fronduto is asking for a "Created by" credit on all future publications and broadcasts of Hannah Montana, as well as damages.
This isn't the first time Disney has been sued for Hannah Montana. In 2007, Buddy Sheffield also claimed to have created the concept for the hit show. We never heard anything coming out of that lawsuit, so we'll have to wait and see if Richard's fate is different. If he did in fact come up with the idea, he's definitely entitled to some money! Hannah Montana has been a huge cash cow for Disney!
