J.D. Salinger Tries to Block 'Sequel' to 'Catcher in the Rye'
By ROBERT KAHN - Courthouse News Service

Reclusive author J.D. Salinger claims a man writing under the name of J.D. California is about to publish an unauthorized sequel of "The Catcher in the Rye," violating Salinger's copyright in the novel and its main character, Holden Caulfield.

Salinger also sued London-based Windupbird Publishing, Sweden-based Nicotext, and SCB Distributors, of Gardena, Calif. Salinger calls the new book "a rip-off pure and simple."

Salinger says the cover of the new book describes it as a "sequel to one of our most beloved classics." His complaint in Manhattan Federal Court continues: "The sequel's author, 'J.D. California,' explains that 'Just like the first novel, he leaves, but this time he's not at a prep school, he's at a retirement home in upstate New York. ... It's pretty much like the first book in that he roams around the city, inside himself and his past.'"

Salinger, whose "Catcher in the Rye" is one of the best-selling books of all time - with 65 million copies printed - is not only an extremely private man, but litigious. He succeeded in blocking publication of a biography by the respected biographer Ian Hamilton in 1987, forcing Hamilton to rewrite the book without quoting from Salinger's unpublished letters.

Salinger took on Random House in that case, and won. The decision in the 2nd Circuit set new rules for fair use of letters, complicating the task of biographers. Hamilton rewrote his book and published it as "In Search of J.D. Salinger."

The full report at Courthouse News Service.