Uncle Miltie would be spinning in his dress ...

A bicoastal rift is brewing between competing factions who respectively refer to themselves as the "Friars Club." In one corner of this fight is the famed century-old New York Friars Club, known for its star-studded roster of entertainment legends past such as Milton Berle and Frank Sinatra. Out in the Sunshine State, the Friars of Beverly Hills has been transformed under new ownership into a for-profit venture--a strict departure from its non-profit origins decades ago when the L.A.-area club still shared ties with the club back East.

According to a New York Times article, the feud began shortly after the Beverly Hills Friars Club was purchased in 2005 by Daniel Schaeffer, a young pharmaceutical heir. The New York Friars Club, known officially as the Friars National Association, sued for trademark infringement in federal court. At the center of the dispute, however, is essentially a culture clash between the old and new. According to the Times, the New York club has struggled to maintain its status with the gradual passing of its older membership, while the Beverly Hills club is actively marketing itself as an entertainment destination through the inclusion of such features as an XBox game room. Schaeffer himself has stated that he plans to spend $10 million in renovations "to have the best private club on the West Coast," the article said.

Meanwhile, the New York Friars Club intends to protect the brand identity of a name that has a century of history behind it.