The Naked Cowboy, that guitar-strumming Times Square fixture, is suing M&M Mars for trademark infringement after the candy conglomerate created a candy-coated briefed busker in his likeness. I used to walk past this guy almost every day, marveling at how a guy who is neither naked nor a cowboy could create the Naked Cowboy persona. You gotta hand it to him,though- he’s dedicated, braving some sick weather day after day to entertain tourists and commuters alike. I always suspected a master plan beyond busking, and sure enough… I’m not saying that Robert Burck created his y-front-wearing persona to foment lawsuits, but rather to create a marketable brand. Mission: Accomplished, and now he’s defending that brand.

The musician/tourist attraction says the company used his likeness on a video that played on the two huge billboards at the M&M’s store.



He says the suit was filed after the company refused to deal with him.



“My manager had made the effort to initiate the adequate compensation for coopting with The Naked Cowboy,” said “The Naked Cowboy.” “But my understanding is they were not prone to that idea, and, in fact said, we would not work with that guy.”



The suit seeks $2 million for violating the trademark and another $2 million for violating his “right to publicity.”

Source: ny1.com via jordan

For nearly a decade, Robert Burck has been a fixture in Times
Square, where he strums a guitar on a street corner while dressed
in his skimpy signature costume.

In a lawsuit filed this week in Manhattan federal court, Burck
said that two oversized Times Square billboards that promote
M&Ms used his look without compensating him.

Source: smh.com.au via jordan

“My initial response was like, ‘Wow that’s cool,’ ” said Burck, 37. “The artist seeks to create the world in his own image. Obviously I was overjoyed . . . . It took years for people not to say that’s a stupid idea. . . . All I’ve got is my underwear. It’s the most brilliant thing that’s ever been created from a marketing perspective. You can’t stop it.”

Source: blogs.wsj.com via jordan

There is a precedent for Burck’s suit: recording artist Tom Waits sued Frito Lay in 1988 for using a soundalike in an advertisement after Waits himself refused their request (transcript in pdf form). This scenario repeated several more times with Levi Strauss, Audi, and Opel.