Re: Question About Names

Holly Huckeba <huckeba[_at_]nevada.edu> wrote:
>
> My question: What rights does a person have to
> their own first and last name? I would think that as long as I'm using
> another person's name not to impersonate them or make money from it's
> use it would be okay. I need more information on this issue. Thanks.

A year or so ago, when the Marilyn Monroe stamp was issued by the USPS, I noted something like the following language on the plate: "The name, likeness, and image of Marilyn Monroe are trademarks of the Marilyn Monroe Estate" though I don't remember the phrasing verbatim. USPS then proclaimed its copyright over the stamp (apparently reasserting its independence from the U.S. Government). Curiously, a few months later I ran across a piece of Marilyn memorabilia: some plastic iconography as I recall, which hinted that the Monroe estate was located in Malaysia, or some such place. Perhaps it was just Malaysian plastic though; the image depicted was a fairly familiar photo, probably snapped by a US photographer who bartered away rights to later use. Warhol's use of Marilynia presumably involved intricate negotiation. Soup cans are probably easier.

David Dailey (ddailey[_at_]williams.edu) Received on Thu Oct 31 1996 - 16:28:05 GMT