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In May 2003, Stephen Joseph of San Francisco sued Kraft foods for putting trans-fat in their Oreo cookies. Joseph wanted an injunction to order Kraft to stop selling Oreos to children. Once the media caught wind of Joseph’s lawsuit, the media blitz became too much for him to handle. He decided to drop the suit.
A Montana man has sued media giant Viacom, saying the MTV show "Jackass" plagiarized his name, infringed on the trademark and copyright o his name and defamed his good character.
The plaintiff's name is Jack Ass. That's right, that is now his legal name. He changed his name from Bob Craft to Jack Ass in 1997, he says, in order to raise awareness about the dangers of drunken driving.
"Jackass," which premiered on MTV in 2000, features a group of guys performing ludicrous and sometimes dangerous stunts. It was made into a movie in 2002.
In the suit against Viacom, which owns MTV, Jack Ass claims the conglomerate "is liable for injury to my reputation that I have built and defamation of my character which I have worked so hard to create."
This Jack Ass, not to be confused with the TV version, says he changed his name after his brother and a friend were killed in a single-vehicle car accident several years ago. He now works to promote responsible choices and designated-driver programs.
He claims that "Jackass" committed "trademark and copyright infringement on my legal name" and on a cartoon character, called Andi Ass, that he created to help spread his message.
The Jack Ass wanted at least $10 million in damages.
