(a) Carol Cameron was an actress who was best known for playing dramatic roles. She had appeared in several successful movie dramas.
In 2000 she was nominated for a Best Supporting Actress Oscar(r). On 1 January 2001 she signed a contract with Colossus Studios to play one of the leads in Days of Passion, a film which was to be based on an award-winning literary novel. The movie was to be directed by a director who had won an Oscar for another film based on such a novel.
The film was scheduled to be made in London and other English locations during the period between 15 May and 25 September 2002. The contract provided that Cameron would be paid a salary of $5 million.
On 10 February 2002 Colossus informed Cameron that they had decided to cancel the Days of Passion project. Colossus informed Cameron that they were offering her the "leading female role" in a new R-rated action movie starring Sylvester Stallone and Vin Diesel to be made during the period between May and September 2002 on Colossus Studios soundstages and on outdoor locations in southern California. Colossus offered Cameron a salary of $5 million to appear in this action movie.
Cameron declined to appear in the action movie. Cameron filed suit against Colossus for breach of contract. Will this suit be successful? If so, what amount of damages will the court award to Cameron? Explain.
(b) In August 2004 Mariana Martinez, an actress who played one of the lead roles in The Force (a hit TV series produced by Colossus and broadcast on the XYZ Network) announced that she was leaving Hollywood and that she would no longer work on episodes of the TV series for the 2004 season. (Martinez was under contract with Colossus to appear in the series during the 2004-2005 and 2005-2006 seasons. The contract was in writing.). Colossus filed suit against Martinez for breach of contract, asking the court to issue a decree of specific performance.
Will the court grant this remedy to Colossus? If not, what remedies might the court grant? Explain.
(c) Martin Mogul, the CEO of Colossus Studios, entered into a contract with Bozo Construction Co. providing that Bozo would build a guest house on part of a large property that Mogul owned in Bel-Air.
The contract provided that Mogul would pay $30,000 to Bozo before construction began. An additional payment of $30,000 would be paid when the project was half-completed. A final payment of $40,000 was required to be paid 2 weeks after the construction project was completed. Bozo was required to build the house in accordance with plans provided by Mogul. Mogul made the down payment and Bozo began construction. When the project was half-completed Mogul paid another $30,000 to Bozo. The plans required Bozo to install in the guesthouse kitchen a specified model of dishwasher manufactured by Maytag. In fact Bozo installed a similar model of dishwasher manufactured by General Electric. The contract required that all of the interior walls be painted with specified shades of paint manufactured by Sherwin-Williams Paint Co.; Bozo used instead similar shades of paint manufactured by Vista Paint Co. Bozo finished the construction of the guest house. Mogul, claiming that the terms of the contract had not been complied with, refused to make the final payment of $40,000 to Bozo. Is Mogul obligated to make this final payment to Bozo? Explain.
(d) Mogul arranged with Penelope Yang, a contemporary artist, to paint a portrait of Mogul. The written contract provided that the artist would be paid a fee of $500,000. The contract also said: "the artist (Yang) hereby agrees that Mogul's personal satisfaction with the portrait painted by the artist is guaranteed". When the portrait was completed Mogul said "I hate that picture - it makes me look like Rodney Dangerfield". (Mogul liked to imagine that he looked like Brad Pitt.) A reproduction of the portrait appeared in a magazine. Many distinguished artists and museum directors saw it and said that the painting was "magnificent" and "a wonderful work of art". Suzy Starlet (Mogul's wife) said to Mogul: "That is a wonderful picture - it captures the real you - if you divorce me I want to get that painting as part of my property settlement". Mogul refused to pay Yang the fee agreed upon in the contract. Yang filed suit for breach of contract. What will the result of this suit be? Explain.