Stolen Credit — Plagiarism as Control
Plagiarism and misattribution in 20th-century media function as a control mechanism. One objective: consolidate world fame into a small number of controlled personalities. Celebrities identified as the original benefactors of stolen credit often vanish from public view during or shortly after their fame (Beethoven, Mozart, Bruce Lee, etc.) and the public never finds out who was responsible for the works they love.
Related: Why 21st Century Gaming Sucks — Walking Series video on gaming decline.
Featured Investigations
Video Game Industry
| Investigation | Summary |
| Nintendo–Sony Breakup & FF7 | SNES CD collapse, Square defection, FF7 designed for Nintendo’s never-released platform |
| Square Battle System Lineage | Nasir Gebelli (Iran/revolution); FF5 never in US; FF12 lost Matsuno; talent exodus |
| Nobuo Uematsu | FF7–9; sprite/engine schism; post-Nintendo decline; leftover music accusations |
| Dave Wise / Rare | Donkey Kong Country; Nintendo R&D credit; Eveline Fischer; Yukio Kaneoka on copyright |
| Rare & Nintendo R&D | Games without credits; Battletoads, PIN·BOT; 335+ games in VGMPF database |
| Minako Hamano | Super Metroid (Ridley, Maridia, Mother Brain); “often credited only to Yamamoto” |
| Capcom / Mega Man | Platform betrayal, composer churn, leftover theory; MM9 from original projects |
| Yasunori Mitsuda | Chrono Trigger third hands; Chrono Cross RD Edition corruption; never again at Nintendo level |
| Robin Beanland | DKC Aquatic Ambience four-way copyright; role vs. Wise/Fischer |
| Koji Kondo | Nintendo institutional support; Kaneoka; unrecognized Zelda composers |
| Kinuyo Yamashita | Mega Man X3 — composed, credited to “Minakuchi Engineering Staff” |
| Tommy Tallarico | Confirmed plagiarist — Earthworm Jim, Video Games Live |
Classical Composers
| Investigation | Summary |
| Mozart / Nannerl | Sister’s sonatas lost; Wolfgang credited her as teacher |
| Gershwin / Kay Swift | “Intimately involved” in Porgy and Bess; no formal credit |
| Fanny Mendelssohn | 6 songs under Felix’s name; Easter Sonata misattributed 40 years |
| Ferde Grofé | Rhapsody in Blue orchestration; blurry composition line |
| Beethoven / Deafness | “Stone deaf” myth exaggerated; Schindler forgeries |
Methodology
| Reference | Summary |
| VGM Preservation / Credits | 335 games without credits; publisher policies; ROM/hex methodology |
Additional Media
Full Index
Keywords: #Stolen #Credit #Plagiarism #Control
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