EllisWeiner.com is the unofficial website presence of Ellis Weiner.

And yet, quite candidly, what does “unofficial” actually mean? It means that the site’s subject has not seen fit to grace it with his formal approval. Let us leave to others the business of ascribing motivations to the author for the unkind withholding of his sanction. They might include sincere modesty, the qualms prompted by a lawyer’s instruction, and the perhaps understandable, albeit regrettable, resentment of the butterfly for the lepidopterist.

No matter. This will not have been the first time the author has found his admirer’s work wanting. One nonetheless perseveres—as a scholar, as a “fan,” and as a man.

I intend the website to be a place where the interested student, the general reader, and the literary professional may turn for timely and accurate information about Weiner, his work, and its influence in the larger world in which all of us—including, I sometimes feel it necessary to add, Mr. Ellis Weiner himself—live. To that end, the Ellis Weiner Website quotes selectively from Weiner's works, in accord with fair use and with the author's implicit consent (see “A Note From Ellis Weiner to the Webmaster”).

I have, throughout the site, taken the liberty of “annotating” many of the entries, appending personal comments, biographical background, and the occasional correction. I trust the users of this site will appreciate their inclusion somewhat more than their (surprisingly touchy) subject.

Prof. Renee Willis
Assistant Professor of Modern and Contemporary American Studies
Euphonia College

The website is not responsible for representing the author’s legal or literary endeavors. The Ellis Weiner Website is not affiliated with NAL, Chronicle Books, Little, Brown, or any other entity that has published or is publishing the work of Ellis Weiner.

All text written by Ellis Weiner is copyrighted © by Ellis Weiner. The Ellis Weiner Website is a nonbusiness entity and the Ellis Weiner Website pages are classified as a nonbusiness site.

Copyright questions concerning the work of Ellis Weiner should be referred to his literary agent (paul@bresnickagency.com). All material not photographic or written by Ellis Weiner is copyright © by Renee Willis. These web pages are intended for educational purposes only. No warranty of any kind is implied, nor will the copyright holder(s) assume any legal liability or responsibility for the content of these pages. The entire risk as to their quality is borne by you. The preceding is a terrible sentence but I feel compelled by the mystique of legalism to include it.

(The ideas and wording in this disclaimer borrow heavily from the Ian McEwan Website disclaimer, which itself borrows even more heavily from the Don Delillo Society's disclaimer, which borrows relatively sparingly from Nicolas Pioch's disclaimer for his Paris WebMusem pages. Pioch’s “USA Lawyers section” (sic) is a model of its kind.)

Willis:

Well, you win. I have consulted with an attorney and he confirms your position. Apparently your appropriation of my likeness, the cover art of my books, the details of my life, and certain quotes of my work are all protected by "fair use." You may indeed include them and, even more amazingly, you may make use of my name--on your website, and there's nothing I can do to stop you.

Look, I'm flattered by your devotion--if that's what it is. But I wish to state unequivocally that I do not authorize this activity. I do not regard, and will not acknowledge, any website you create about me or any aspect of my work, as being "official" in any way. You undertake this project without my consent.

Feeling unfairly used,

Ellis Weiner

PS. As I said in my first correspondence, your name is familiar. Are you the same R.W. who submitted pieces to me at National Lampoon back in 1976?

E.W.