The Marked

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The Marked were a Gothic\New Wave band which formed in Chicago, Illinois in 1985, but later on moved to Florida with the hopes of attaining a bigger fan base. The bands name was obtained from Billy Corgan and Ron's portwine birthmarks. The band were reported to of played around 20 shows in and around St. Petersburg, Florida before Dale eventually left after a small show, later Ron and Billy decided to return to Chicago. The original band members were Billy Corgan (Vocals\Guitar\Bass), Dale Meiners (Vocals\Bass) and Ron Roesing (Drums). In 1986 Dale left the band and was replaced by Len (Surname unknown). Len left the band shortly after and was replaced in 1988 by guitarist James Iha with Billy taking up the bass position. The Marked then became The Smashing Pumpkins.

In 2000, The Marked reappeared in a lawsuit against Billy Corgan, the Smashing Pumpkins, Virgin Records America, and Modivational Films for breach of contract, breach of confidence, fraud and deceit, negligent misrepresentation, declaratory relief, constructive trust, and injunctive relief stemming from the use of a clip of The Marked in the 1994 Smashing Pumpkins video Vieuphoria. JM Productions (Jonathan Morrill) objected to the use of band footage taken from his short film "Video Marked". Morrill was an associate of the band during it's lifespan, who Corgan stayed with temporarily during his time in Florida. He is also likely the inspiration behind the title of "Song for Jonathan". In court documents Morrill stated there were only two copies of "Video Marked", which appears to essentially be a video for the song "The Trance". Morrill claimed Corgan confiscated the backup tape without his permission, and was unaware of the content of Vieuphoria until 1999. Morrill states he approached Corgan in 1996 about the release of "Video Marked" and other content but Corgan was apprehensive about any plans, citing the quality of available materials. Morrill also objected to the packaging of the video which advertised "super secret material shot by the band" yet failed to credit his work. The case, Morrill v. The Smashing Pumpkins (157 F. Supp. 2d 1120) was resolved when the court granted the Smashing Pumpkins' motion for summary judgment on Morrill's claims of copyright infringement, fraud and deceit, and breach of confidence. However, it is a fact that Billy Corgan used the Marked Video footage in the video Vieuphoria without previous permission from the owner Jonathan Morrill.