The use of a bird’s furcula, or “wishbone,” for divination purposes dates back to the ancient Etruscans, and the ritual of two people pulling on the furcula to determine who would get married first has its origins in late medieval Europe. From there, some version of the custom likely was brought to America by the pilgrims, who would have referred to the bone as a “merrythought.” Given all that history,… More
Tag Archives: Thanksgiving
Which Trademark Came First, BUTTERBALL Turkey Or BUTTERBALL Ham?
We used to have a Thanksgiving turkey tradition at the Trademark and Copyright Law Blog. Just before every fourth Thursday of November, we’d type in our LEXIS NEXIS password and find a judicial opinion from a turkey trademark case. We covered the 2007 genericide of the TURKEY STICK, explained the 1976 GOBBLE GOBBLE dispute, and even discussed the 1981 fight over BAKED TAM.… More
The Genericide of the Turkey Stick: Another Thanksgiving Trademark Tale
For the past few years, the Trademark and Copyright Law Blog has marked Thanksgiving with a note about the history of turkey trademarks. Last year, we discussed the ownership of GOBBLE GOBBLE, and before that we told you why you can’t buy BAKED TAM anymore. This year, our subject is the TURKEY STICK.
Hickory Farms was founded in 1951,… More
Turkey Purveyors Try to Gobble Up Trademark Rights
Last year, in the spirit of Thanksgiving, we told you about Horace W. Longacre’s unsuccessful attempt to register BAKED TAM as a trademark for its “turkey ham” product in the early 1980s. This year we bring you a related tale, involving another trademark loss for Longacre’s turkey ham product, just a few years earlier. The deadpan introduction to Judge Alfred Luongo’s 1976 opinion for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania sets the stage admirably:
“Gobble-gobble.”… More