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Don't Play Dirty with @FleurtyGirl

Submitted by YatPundit on Fri, 01/22/2010 - 15:55

It all started with a tweet this morning:

huh? The NFL told Fleurty Girl they couldn't sell their great #WHODAT shirt?  I immediately had flashbacks to my Radio Shack days in the early 1980s, when Radio Shack sued Auto Shack (and won because they sold car audio), and also sued Peanut Shack (and lost, because it was a stupid idea). 

And of all people, Fleurty Girl, a t-shirt shop uptown on Oak Street.  With all the knock-off merchandise sold in the French Quarter year-round, why pick on a small operation on the opposite side of town, in what is by and large a shopping district frequented almost exclusively by locals?

Let's back up a moment, though.  This is the offending t-shirt:

It's on display outside the Fleurty Girl store.  Look a bit more closely at the design:

A gold fleur-de-Lis that doesn't look at all, at all, like the BLACK fleur-de-lis that the Saints use:

The fleur de list that Fleurty Girl uses is more like the ones you find on the flag of the French Monarchy, early incarnations of the English royal arms, and the three on the flag of the city of New Orleans. Maybe the NFL can sue HM The Queen. They can try to sue SeeRay, but the city's still paying pre-storm judgements. I also doubt they'll be sending C&D demands to kingcake bakeries, either.

As for the term "Who Dat," the NFL has no more claim to that than I have to the George Halas trophy.

Fleurty Girl says they're going to agree to the NFL's demands. Probably a good move, even though there's no shortage of lawyers willing to take their side on this. No worries, though, since their other "Who Dat" shirt is not a problem for the NFL:

In other words, all that was gained by someone dropping a dime on Fleurty Girl was to boost their public profile and sales.

.

Comments

Submitted by Dave Ferguson on Fri, 01/22/2010 - 17:36

This is a lot like the idiotic squabble between a Certain Hamburger Chain and a Dane named Allan Pedersen, who started selling sausages at his shop. The Danish supreme court said a Dane could tell the difference.

In a similar British case, this relentless corporatism resulted in a letter to the firm from one Geoffrey Macdonald of Macdonald -- chief of the name, High Chief of Clan Donald, and 34th hereditary chief of Clan Donald, no doubt ready to ask who gets to tell whom what name to use.

Submitted by BayouDax on Fri, 01/22/2010 - 19:16

I would NOT back down...Lauren stand up for what you are doing here..... I would make a shirt that says - In Eff Elle SUCKS!! Its not spelled the same - But sure sounds like it!!

SUPPORT LOCAL BUSINESS!!!!

Submitted by Ygirl on Fri, 01/22/2010 - 20:35

I agree with BayouDax love his idea In Eff Elle Sucks!

And I totally understand your decision, the big guys can afford the big lawyers, but really why pick on a great retailer instead of all the crap in the Quarter. But the reason is you have a quality product that we all love. I am so glad I have a #WhoDat shirt and I will continue to wear it with pride.

Submitted by M Styborski on Fri, 01/22/2010 - 21:00

I would NOT back down. You did NOT use the Saints actual logo and the NFL has NO claim on the whodat slogan. This is bullying in its purest form. The NFL is picking on you because you are based in the U.S. instead of a Third World country like the producers of all the other NFL knock-offs out there. Take it to the Supreme Court and stand up for free enterprise.

Submitted by Tonya Rabalais on Sat, 01/23/2010 - 07:16

The NFL is crazy...and are defintely threatened by your shirts. They are doing this because they know the Who Dat's Dream Team the "Saints" are going to win the Superbowl and they could never dream of making a shirt as good as yours Lauren. Sit back and let the big boys play their games because in the long run... we are gonna be the winners... You will come up with another shirt and you can tell them where the sun don't shine... Make one that say "NFL... Don't Play Dirty with @Fluerty Girl" Lauren you rock and am sure you will come up with a shirt in defense to their stupidity and we will give you 10% of the proceeds.... LOL

Submitted by the all knowing... on Mon, 01/25/2010 - 23:58

The NFL would not win the fight over the fleur de lis in a court of law and they know it. They only have two registered trade marks for the fleur de lis that they can claim. Those marks are very specific and distinctive. They are:
Their SPECIFIC fdl in black and old gold on the Sir Saint shield
Their SPECIFIC fdl in black and old gold on the football helmet

What they are doing and have done for many years, is claim that any fdl that is used in a "football context" is theirs. They rule through intimidation and the power of their money. People who do not fully understand trade mark law, succumb to their arrogance and capitulate.

What they are doing with Who Dat is claiming that if you put a fdl in the Who Dat mark, that it is a "football context", which it is not. In addition, they do not own any trademarks on Who Dat. The company that owns Who Dat is Who Dat?,Inc. They are Steve Monistere, Sal Monistere and a small group of investors. Steve Monistere wrote and produced the first Who Dat? song with Aaron Neville on the record, in 1983.

I encourage everyone in the city of New Orleans that cares about our heritage and the symbol of our city to join the fight against the NFL so that we can keep our fdl. Lauren should be the leader in this fight as she exemplifies the independent spirit of our business community. I implore her to start a campaign and print shirts to spread the word. The shirt and the slogan should be "#Who Dat defend the Fleur de lis!" . Note the "in your face" attitude of spelling out the FDL.... after the fans take back the symbol from the NFL, she can then print the mark instead of spelling it out...... LAUREN...it's all about you girl... gather your troops and fight!

Submitted by linda on Thu, 01/28/2010 - 19:20

We cannot let the NFL get away with this!!!!

Submitted by Priest on Thu, 12/29/2011 - 09:18

I thought I'd have to read a book for a discvorey like this!

Submitted by Wednesday on Mon, 01/02/2012 - 04:05

Glad I've finally found smoenthig I agree with!

Submitted by Danice on Mon, 01/02/2012 - 04:40

This infomtarion is off the hizool!

Submitted by Sunny on Tue, 01/03/2012 - 22:28

Thanks for helping me to see thigns in a different light.

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Who is YatPundit?

YatPundit is the nom-de-blog of Edward Branley author, computer consultant/trainer, and procrastinator extraordinare.

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