Photo: Getty (2)
For celebrities —much like Marlo fromThe Wire— their name is their name. It’s their livelihood, it’s their first point of recognition for their fans, and in some cases, it’s roughly 90 percent of their earthly value. So you can understand why they might be pretty protective of it.
With Beyoncé and JAY-Z at the center of thelatest legal battleover trademarking the full name of their little “cultural icon,” we decided to take a look back at some other celebrity lawsuits involving either their name or, in some cases, a certain phrase very near and dear to their hearts.
Blue Ivy Carter vs. Blue Ivy
The brief also asserts that “Blue Ivy Carter is a cultural icon who has been described as a ‘mini style star’ and has been celebrated for her ‘fashion moments’ overs [sic] the years.” Can I trademark that description as my epitaph?
Kylie Minogue vs.Kylie Jenner
Getty (2)
The Australian pop singer faced off with the then-budding beauty mogul back in 2016, filing a notice of opposition to Jenner’s attempt totrademark their shared first name. Minogue already owned trademarks for various “Kylie” related terms as well as Kylie.com, and the court documents slammed Jenner as a “secondary reality television personality” best known for her “photographic exhibitionism” and “controversial posts” on social media, claiming that approval of her application would confuse audiences and dilute Minogue’s brand. Fast-forward to 2019 and not only have the pair settled out of court, clearing the way for Jenner’s Kylie Cosmetics to achieve its billion-dollar cult status, but Minogue evenlaunched her own beauty linenamed — you guessed it — “Kylie,” in June of this year.
Sarah and Bristol Palin vs. All Other Sarah and Bristol Palins
Source: Bristol Palin/Instgram
In June 2011,Sarah Palin finally succeededin becoming a brand — and she took her daughter, Bristol, with her. It was a process that began in November 2011; the pair’s trademark covered “education and entertainment services.” Palin’s relatively normal name caused trouble for at least one other Sarah Palin, a then-20-year-old University of Texas Austin junior. “If I ever open up a business, I guess I could use my middle name,”she told TIME. “Sarah Beth Palin isn’t trademarked.”
Taylor Swiftvs. Various Phrases of the English Language
Taylor Swiftwent ona trademark spree in 2015, attempting to register the phrases “this sick beat,” “Nice to meet you, where you been?” and “Party like it’s 1989,” among roughly 30 others. Unlike copyright law, this is totally acceptable — traders rights don’t require the phrase in question to be entirely unique or for the applicant to have coined the phrase. One battle she lost, though, was against Blue Sphere, a California company that was waging war against her in court over the phrase “Lucky 13.” The company ran the Lucky 13 clothing brand, while Swift just really liked the number, running a “Lucky 13” sweepstakes and a partnership with a greeting card company.They eventually settledout of court.
Paris Hilton vs. Hallmark
Victor Chavez/WireImage
Paris Hilton sued the Hallmark Company over a card bearing her “signature phrase,” “That’s hot,” in 2007. The battle dragged on for three years, before an appeals court rejected Hallmark’s protected-speech argument andfound in Hilton’s favor.
Snooki vs. a Fictional Cat
The Situation vs. the World
Tim Tebow vs. Prayer Stances
Tim Tebow’srepresentatives trademarked his signature prayer stance in 2012, ensuring that no one would be able to profit from a common global gesture ever again.
Lady Gagavs. Ice Cream
Madonna vs. a Different Material Girl
Madonna owns “Madonna,” which makes sense, but her attempts to trademark the name of her signature hit haven’t gone as well.A federal judge in California rejected her claimto the title — she was battling LA Triumph, a clothing retailer that’s been selling “Material Girl” clothing since 1997 — saying that “the singing of a song does not create a trademark.”
source: people.com
