'Man Show' sued by unwitting butt of off-color joke. (Law).WITH reality television's popularity leading producers to search for sometimes unwitting subjects, the suit filed by Patrick Finnegan was probably inevitable. Finnegan was caught on a tape that aired on Comedy Central's "The Man Show," having what he felt was an embarrassing conversation with a young boy. Claiming he never gave permission for his likeness to be used by the show, he brought suit in L.A. Superior Court on Aug. 9 against the network's parent companies, Viacom Inc. and Time Warner Entertainment Co. LP, and show producer Stone Stanley Entertainment Stone Stanley Entertainment was an American television production company founded by TV producers David G. Stanley and Scott A. Stone, who both began their careers working at Lorimar-Telepictures (then Telepictures) in the 1980s. . He is asking the court to enjoin To direct, require, command, or admonish. Enjoin connotes a degree of urgency, as when a court enjoins one party in a lawsuit by ordering the person to do, or refrain from doing, something to prevent permanent loss to the other party or parties. them from airing material that does not have the consent of those that have been taped. "The producers of 'The Man Show' systematically defraud To make a Misrepresentation of an existing material fact, knowing it to be false or making it recklessly without regard to whether it is true or false, intending for someone to rely on the misrepresentation and under circumstances in which such person does rely on it to his or and/or deceive TO DECEIVE. To induce another either by words or actions, to take that for true which is not so. Wolff, Inst. Nat. Sec. 356. members of the public who are taped by the defendants for commercial gain," the suit says. Finnegan was at the beach with a female friend when a boy of between 10 and 14 years old asked them to help him blow up a beach ball, said Nathan Goldberg, an attorney at Allred Maroko & Goldberg PPC See Pocket PC, PowerPC and pay-per-click. PPC - PowerPC who represents Finnegan. When Finnegan's female friend began to blow up the ball, the boy made "lewd sexual comments" that were "highly offensive" to Finnegan. After the boy left, several camera operators appeared, informing Finnegan that he was on "The Man Show," Goldberg said. Finnegan never signed a release authorizing "The Man Show" to air the conversation he had with the boy, the suit says. But tape of the conversation aired as part of a one-minute segment, Goldberg said. Finnegan sued over misappropriation misappropriation n. the intentional, illegal use of the property or funds of another person for one's own use or other unauthorized purpose, particularly by a public official, a trustee of a trust, an executor or administrator of a dead person's estate, or by any of likeness and unfair business practices. Time Warner referred calls to Comedy Central spokesman Tony Fox, who did not respond for comment. Calls to Stone Stanley Stanley, town (1991 pop. 1,557), capital of the Falkland Islands, S Atlantic Ocean, on East Falkland island. It is the main port and trading center of the islands. The name is sometimes written as Port Stanley. , which is based in L.A., were not returned. Staff reporter Amanda Bronstad can be reached at (323) 549-5225 ext. 225, or at abronstad@labusinessjournal.com. |
|
||||||||||||||||||||||
Printer friendly
Cite/link
Email
Feedback
Reader Opinion