Mary Bono: Last News

The widow of Sonny Bono has urged a Californian court to throw out a recent legal claim made by Cher, which centres on how the pesky termination right in US copyright law impacts on a deal done in the 1970s after Bono and Cher split up both professionally and personally.Bono and Cher began working together in the early 1960s, subsequently marrying and then enjoying much success together in both music and on TV. However, the marriage ended in 1975, and their double act ended soon after.

Cher and Mary Bono are once again locked in a dispute over the royalties to hit songs including ‘I Got You Babe’ and ‘The Beat Goes On’.The dispute first arose several years ago when Sonny Bono’s copyright grants became eligible for termination in 2018. Upon hearing the news, his widow, Mary, intervened and sought to invoke the right.She was then sued by Cher – who was married to Sonny between 1967 and 1974, recorded together, hosted a show together and had a child together – in 2021 for $1million (£792,000).

The judge overseeing a dispute between Cher and Sonny Bono’s widow has declined to dismiss the former’s lawsuit, although he has trimmed it down somewhat.The dispute centres on how the pesky termination right in US copyright law impacts on a deal done in the 1970s after Cher and Bono split up both professionally and personally.Cher and Bono began working together in the early 1960s, subsequently marrying and then enjoying much success together in both music and on TV. However, the marriage ended in 1975, and their double act came to an end soon after.Following all that, a deal was done in 1978 that provided Cher with a 50% share in the royalties being generated by the recordings and songs that had been released during the couple’s time together, professionally and personally.

Cher is taking legal action against Sonny Bono’s widow.