During its 12 season run, The Big Bang Theory featured so many iconic moments between Kaley Cuoco and Jim Parsons. Fans couldn't get enough of the relationship between Penny and Sheldon on the series. However, one iconic recurring scene in particular almost caused some major problems for the show. Cutting the scene would've been very unpopular given the success of this song on the show, and how it created so many great scenes.
Looking back at some of the most iconic moments on The Big Bang Theory, Penny singing Soft Kitty to Sheldon will always be remembered among the most enjoyable scenes between the two.
However, some people felt differently about the scene, and that included a certain school teacher...USA Today writes, "According to the Associated Press, Edith Newlin's daughters, Ellen Newlin Chase and Margaret Chase Perry, assert that the show's song uses lyrics similar to those written by Newlin in the 1930s without paying for the rights."
"TMZ posted a picture of the original Newlin lyrics page. In the show, the song's opening line is, "Soft kitty, warm kitty, little ball of fur..." In Newlin's version, the song is called Warm Kitty and starts, “Warm kitty, soft kitty, little ball of fur.”
According to Reuters, the lawsuit claiming Big Bang Theory stole Soft Kitty was dismissed. The decision was made two years later in 2017. Usually, these types of cases are settled outside of court, but it seems like those on The Big Bang Theory were sure the show didn't copy the 1930s poem.
Reuters writes about the final verdict, "In a decision posted on Tuesday, U.S. District Judge Naomi Reice Buchwald in Manhattan said the plaintiffs, Ellen Newlin Chase and Margaret Chase Perry, failed to show they held a copyright on their mother's lyrics, and deserved damages.
"The judge said that, under a federal copyright provision that was "hardly a model of clarity," Willis Music's renewal in 1964 of its registration for "Songs for the Nursery School" did not also renew Newlin's copyright for “Warm Kitty.”
Political Analyst Mithun Vijay Kumar took exception to a season two episode that saw problematic comments made about Bollywood star, Madhuri Dixit. Raj said about Dixit during the episode, "Aishwarya Rai is a goddess, by comparison, Madhuri Dixit is a leprous prostitute.
Mithun Vijay Kumar voiced his displeasure on X, "Recently, I came across an episode of the show Big Bang Theory on Netflix where Kunal Nayyar's character uses an offensive and derogatory term to refer to the legendary Bollywood actress@MadhuriDixit."
“As a fan of Madhuri Dixit since childhood, I was deeply disturbed by the dialogue. I found it highly derogatory and offensive towards Indian culture and women. So I asked my lawyer to send a legal notice to Netflix, requesting that they remove the episode from their platform. It's important to hold media companies accountable for the content they distribute, and I hope that @NetflixIndia will take this matter seriously.”
