Fake Brand Endorsement Lawsuits - Naked Cowboy Sues Mars Candy (VIDEO)

For 10 years, Robert Burck, has been entertaining tourists in Times Square as “The Naked Cowboy.” His outfit consists of a white hat and cowboy boots and skimpy white underwear. He has trademarked his, well, “likeness” to companies for product endorsements and advertising. One of his commercials for Chevrolet appeared during a Super Bowl.

Along comes Mars candy company, maker of M&Ms, and they, well, put his “likeness” on a blue M&M billboard ad without permission. They also ripped off likenesses of the Statue of Liberty and King Kong. U.S. District Court Judge Denny Chin denied a motion by Mars attorneys to dismiss the $6 Million lawsuit; however, he also dismissed Burck’s right to privacy, whatever is left of it, since he’s been strutting his stuff for 10 years in public. (Does this sound like an episode of “Boston Legal”?).

A pretrial hearing will take place on July 11, 2008; stay tuned.

(I can visualize Boston Legal’s Denny Crane as The Naked Cowboy, can’t you? ‘’Does this make me look fat?’’ Denny Crane, Boston Legal: Spring Fever.)