Larry Flynt has won a jury verdict in a four-day trial over his nephew’s violation of his trademark and invasion of his privacy. Flynt prevailed on the trademark case. One of the more interesting aspects of the trial was Flynt’s admission that (while his company is worth many millions of dollars) he fired his brother and his nephews’ father, Jimmy Flynt Sr.,to help pay for the costs of suing his sons.
Flynt testifed at trial that “I told him that this lawsuit was going to be expensive to finance it, and the only way I could was to not have him working for the company,” Flynt testified during the trial.
The trial itself showed a steady stream of porn on a big-screen TV. Flynt told the jury that his name stood for quality porn and his nephews were cheapening it with “trashy” movies. It appears that Flynt is the Shakespeare of the skin trade.
The jury ruled against Flynt’s nephews, Jimmy Flynt Jr. and his brother, Dustin Flynt, on the infringement claim for using the word “FLYNT” in large capital letters above the titles. They rejected the privacy claim.
Flynt’s attorney, Mark Hoffman, insisted that “this has been very hard on Mr. Flynt. He never wanted to go this far. All he wanted to do was the right thing.”
The nephews launched their own business after their uncle fired them from executive positions at Larry Flynt Publications in November 2007. Jimmy Jr., 37, had worked there for 17 years and brother Dustin, 34, had been there 10 years.
I continue to find it astonishing how sweeping these claims have become. Their name is Flynt. I am not sure why, if they did not include symbols indicating that it was their uncle’s business, that they are not allowed to use their own name. I am assuming that, if they added a disclaimer that it was not associated with their uncle, that they would have had a stronger case.
For the full story, click here.
This may be this blog’s best post on the web!
I couldnt agree with you more
Terrific piece of writing
http://virginia.lawblogger.org/index.php/topic,20698.0.html
Names as serious business for branding purposes are nothing new. If the ‘kids’ were publishing a product that featured the name “FLYNT” prominently above the title they were clearly capitalizing on the Larry’s ‘brand’ and in so doing were wrong.
My detailed comment and letter @ the above web address.
Rob
Hustler Magazine is mysogynistic filth. Larry’s not a guy I would want to have dinner with. however, he has been right all along on a few issues and for that I praise him.
Names as serious business for branding purposes are nothing new. If the ‘kids’ were publishing a product that featured the name “FLYNT” prominently above the title they were clearly capitalizing on the Larry’s ‘brand’ and in so doing were wrong.
The comedian Tim Conway was born TOM Conway. He told the story that when he started to work in Hollywood and joined the union he was told he would have to pick another name because there was already someone using “TOM Conway” as his screen name. That Tom was actually Tim’s birth name did not matter so he, Tom, picked “Tim” because it was close.
Those are the rules, you just can’t infringe someone else’ name-brand. The nephews wouldn’t have put “FLYNT” above the title if they weren’t looking to capitalize on the brand.
Larry Flynt, I wouldn’t want to have a drink with him but I absolutely respect his value as a 1st Amendment advocate.
I would have thought Mr Flynt would’ve been given a medal!
After all, to succeed in America, you have to engage in all manner of dubious activities which include ripping off the public as well as your relatives and friends.
S-Mom,
I most emphatically do not think that Flynn is hero either; however, he has a right to publish his smut–that millions of men and woman must like because it has made him $million$–as long as he does not violate the law.
I’m with you fellas.
Flynt is a hero of free speech.
He’s also an ethically reprehensible toad with women issues.
The two are not mutually exclusive.
Issac Newton is the Father of Modern Physics.
He was also a crashing boor and most people would have rather spent time with family they didn’t like rather than dinner with Issac.
Byron values individual liberty.
He also values a form of economics that is antithetical to liberty . . . except to those who buy theirs with the blood of others (which is not actually liberty, but I digress).
Reinhardt Heydrich was a genocidal madman.
He also loved and was loved by his children.
Hitler loved his dog. Knowing dogs, it was reciprocal. Because dogs keep it simple. They love you or they don’t. You’re good by them, they are usually good by you. Dogs live the Golden Rule every day with humans.
Humans are contradictory creatures and not nearly as well behaved as dogs. To varying degree and effect. It’s part of the fun of knowing them but conversely one of the most annoying features of the species. We are all ying and yang. But when discussing a guy like Larry? Yeah, you got to use those “free speech” qualifiers when talking Larry as hero. I have to go with Swarhmore mom on this one: even if you forget the porn pics, his editorial choices in re “humor”?
Pretty damn barbaric.
Larry is probably not a guy one would want to spend a lot of time with if there is no money involved would be my guess. But he stood up for his rights when he was being screwed with and won one for the Constitution. I’ll give him that.
Doesn’t mean I want him coming over for the holidays. Fighting the good fight and being a good human are not always the same thing. It is an old saw that evil cam come from good and good can come from evil.
Larry Flynt has been accused by his daughter of sexually abusing her. I don’t know if is true or not. Larry Flynt is not a hero. He had a regular cartoon in his magazine about a molester of young girls. The magazine was full of rages against women and even had a picture of a woman going through a meat grinder. I know where Mr Flynt stands. He is a denigrator of females.
Larry Flynt is a true hero of freedom of expression.
I concur with Mike Spindell and Maggie Knowles. At least you know where Mr. Flynt stands and that is more than we can say about many of our public figures.
http://www.moldea.com/Barr.html
The Flynt Project:
Exposing Hypocrisy, Exhibiting Restraint
By Dan E. Moldea
…the President’s removal from office had dissipated considerably after the circumstances of Bob Livingston’s resignation on December 19–and was further diminished by Flynt’s continuing crusade to expose hypocrisy in the wake of his revelations about Bob Barr on January 11. In fact, … there was no single factor which had a greater impact on the impeachment process than Larry Flynt.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
My thanks to Larry Flynt.
….especially if the nephew were a ‘black sheep’ of the family name…
I would have more of an issue with this ruling if the nephews had started a business by that name in another industry. What would the professor do if his nephew were to start a law blog called TURLEY?
Larry Flynt is no paragon of virtue, but I’ll take him as a human being above the Bush/Cheney Mob any time.
However, JT abuts on a rather serious issue that will become more and more important and stultifying if current trends continue. The intellectual property concept is getting way out of hand and threatens a whole range of technological advances, in addition to literary abuses.
Unethical people surrounded by unethical people.
Who’d have thunk it?
Such a quality human being being taken advantage of by his nephews. It is so nice to hear that Larry Flynt has sucked his entire family down to his level. Yeech!
Smut porn, soft porn, no porn in the trademark infringement suit it seems that if you’ve been shot at and hit and are still making this you’re going to have many more lives.
If memory serves me, the nephews started this while they were working for the uncle….