Tag Archives: Parody

A Christmastime Copyright Tale Featuring A (Very) Grown Up Cindy-Lou Who

Are you sick and tired of the Christmas spirit?  Apparently, you are not alone.  Meet Matthew Lombardo, the author of a comedic play called Who’s Holiday!  Billed as “the show Dr. Seuss doesn’t want you to see,” Who’s Holiday! is a one-woman play running Off-Broadway until December 31 featuring Cindy-Lou Who as a down-and-out, hard-drinking, Who-Hash-smoking, 45-year old woman recovering from her disastrous relationship with the Grinch.… More

“National Association For The Abortion of Colored People” Trademark Case Heads To Fourth Circuit

naacpWe previously reported on the dispute between the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) and the conservative activist Ryan Bomberger. Bomberger had repeatedly referred to the NAACP in online articles not by its actual name, but by the name “National Association for the Abortion of Colored People.” Bomberger characterized this alternative moniker as a parodic critique of what he perceived to be the NAACP’s pro-choice politics. … More

Say Good Bye to Boston Cream Thigh: Caballero Video Gives Up “Ben & Cherry’s XXX Ice Cream” Franchise

Ben & Jerry's - August 1

It turns out that the folks at Caballero Video were gentlemen after all, at least from Ben & Jerry’s perspective.   Last September, the ice cream maker brought a trademark action in the Southern District of New York to put a stop to Caballero’s “Ben & Cherry’s XXX Ice Cream” line of pornographic videos.  Caballero consented to preliminary injunctive relief during the pendency of the action. … More

The North Face Moves for Contempt Against “THE SOUTH BUTT” Defendants Over New Trademark “THE BUTT FACE”

nf1  sb2

Readers of this blog might remember our previous coverage of the 2010 trademark dispute between The North Face Apparel Corp. and The South Butt, LLC. The defendants in that case adopted the trademark THE SOUTH BUTT for clothing that resembled the style of clothing sold under the well-known mark THE NORTH FACE. According to the Complaint, South Butt repeatedly attempted to register THE SOUTH BUTT as a trademark and offered to sell its business to The North Face for $1 million.… More

Trademark Parody Dispute Puts Fashion Law in the Spotlight

Yesterday the University of Pennsylvania Law School’s Penn Intellectual Property Group (PIPG) held its annual symposium, which this year focused on fashion law. David Nimmer, of copyright treatise fame, delivered the keynote, entitled “Copyright and the Fall Line.” However, despite the light-hearted topic and big-name headliner, the event was probably most notable for the apparent absence of a late-invited guest, Michael Pantalony, in-house counsel at Louis Vuitton.

Pantalony set the blogosphere atwitter a few weeks ago by sending a sternly-worded cease and desist letter to the law school’s dean complaining about the artwork on the poster advertising the event,… More

Facebook’s Evil Twin: Lamebook

Lamebook, LLC operates a website, www.lamebook.com, at which people can submit amusing (or merely “lame”) messages and photos appearing on facebook.com – its tag line is “the funniest and lamest of facebook.” (Warning: some of the content is funny or lame mainly because it is off-color.) The editors screen the submissions and remove identifying information before displaying them on the site in various categories (such as “TypOHs”),… More

The Political Parody Problem

In a bid to win the hearts and minds of voters, lately political candidates have touted, among other things, their musical predilections. In at least two recent cases, candidates have sanctioned the alteration of the lyrics, but not the tune, of some of their favorite music to shore up political support. The musicians who own the copyrights in those songs weren’t exactly thrilled.

All They Want To Do Is Campaign

In April 2009,… More

Settlement of South Butt Case Unfortunate for Trademark Owners and Parodists Alike

In a lawsuit that has grabbed the attention of the trademark community, The North Face Apparel Corp. sued The South Butt, LLC, its founder (college student Jimmy Winkelmann), and a pharmacy that sold allegedly infringing goods for using the mark THE SOUTH BUTT on clothing that resembled the style of clothing sold under the well-known mark THE NORTH FACE. According to the Complaint (PDF), South Butt repeatedly attempted to register THE SOUTH BUTT as a trademark and offered to sell its business to North Face for $1 million.… More