Over in Marshall, a Fort Worth woman named Donna West has taken cross-dressing franchise Tyler Perry to federal court, claiming that Perry used her 1991 play Fantasy of a Black Woman as the basis for his 2005 movie Diary of a Mad Black Woman. West actually filed the suit in May 2007, but the trial's underway at this very moment -- and Perry's attorneys are insisting that West's claims are unfounded, as in: "Why would he need to copy Ms. West's script?"
Dunno, but the jury will likely hear the case for another week and then decide. Till then, you can play along: After the jump, I've uploaded both West's initial complaint -- which includes mention of the play's July 1991 debut at the Junior Black Academy of Arts and Letters at the Dallas Convention Center -- and Fantasy of a Black Woman's script, which was entered into evidence. If nothing else, it seems ripe for a revival. --Robert Wilonsky