"IF this is the case, then isn't SOMEONE out there the original "imaginator" of a vampire and its distinctive fangs?" I do believe that would come under folklore & mythology, which have, (AFAIK but remember he ain't a lawyer!) always been fair game. It might even have come from some ancient religion. In any case I think it's fairly safe to assume the statute of limitations has long since run out. Btw, did I or did I not hear/read somewhere that "hobbit" was an Old English term for some type of faery critter until Tolkien appropriated/recycled it to describe his Shirefolk?