Trademark infringement.
"We're very grateful," said a relieved Cathryn Falwell as she put the finishing touches on a "Diagon Alley" storefront Tuesday morning. "We're one of the very few organizations that were granted permission."
Meaning that Warner Bros., which owns all things Harry Potter except for the books, will let the show go on. Provided, of course, that Mugglefest plays by the rules.
It all started last fall, when Youth and Family Outreach, of which Falwell is a board member, decided that its fundraising strategy needed an overhaul.
To better support the program, which includes the Preble Street Learning Center for young children and the Teen Adventure program for at-risk early adolescents, the board decided to go beyond the traditional bake sale and do something different, something big.
Enter Kirsten Cappy of Curious City, an event organizer.
Cappy's suggestion: A family festival that centers on Saturday's release of "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows," the seventh and final book in J.K. Rowling's series.
Corporate sponsorship was slow in developing -- Falwell's theory is that Youth and Family Outreach lacked the track record of a big-time nonprofit. But an ever-growing team of volunteers, joined by Books Etc., persisted.
The results were, well, miraculous. For weeks, volunteers worked on the street facades for the shops along Diagon Alley, a mythical street in the Potter series. Businesses signed on to operate them.
The Narrow Gauge Railroad (aka Hogwarts Express) was hired to transport festival-goers from Portland's East End Beach to the festival site at The Portland Co. Volunteers, from tellers at Gorham Savings Bank to doctors and nurses at Maine Medical Center, lined up by the dozens to help out.
Then, last month, Mugglefest organizers received an e-mail from Warner Bros., threatening legal action if they failed to conform with the company's "guidelines" for Harry Potter- themed events.
"We were panic-stricken," said Falwell. "This thing was unstoppable at that point."
The back-and-forth negotiations lasted for weeks.
Gone were the fees paid by businesses to set up shop. Instead, vendors will make "donations" to the outreach program.
No merchandise bearing the word "Mugglefest" can be sold.
The non-alcoholic "Butter Beer" served at The Leaky Cauldron (aka Bull Feeney's) became "Margarine Mead." (The new brew's irresistible slogan: "I can't believe it's not butter beer!")
Bottom line: Contrary to rumor, Mugglefest has not been canceled. In fact, with only 300 of 5,000 tickets remaining, it's expected to sell out.
And in an upbeat e-mail late Tuesday from London, Warner Bros. spokeswoman Deborah Lincoln said the company and author Rowling "wish (Mugglefest) every success with their event in support of Youth and Family Outreach."
Let's hear it for happy endings.
Columnist Bill Nemitz can be contacted at 791-6323 or at:
bnemitz@pressherald.com
Reader comments
Click here to view or add comments on this story
Were you interviewed for this story? If so, please fill out our accuracy form