Getting screwed by " W " ?
note: This guy better watch out for the Brownwood Taliban ( * see below ) heard on KXYL and led by James Williamson. They refer to anyone who challenges them, or their leader, as " Communists, Pagans, Socialists, left wing counter culture, Gay, baby killing, cockroaches, pimps, perverts, & pedophiles" .
Bush supporter sues RNC over 'W' logo
By DAVID KOENIG
Associated Press Writer
A Texas insurance agent has sued the Republican National Committee and one of its suppliers, claiming they stole his design for those ubiquitous "W" bumper stickers touting President George W. Bush in 2004.
Jerry Gossett of Wichita Falls says he pitched his idea to the RNC's supplier of campaign materials, The Spalding Group of Lexington, Ky., in 2001. Gossett says he left samples of his work with Spalding, but the company said it wasn't interested in using it.
In 2003, Gossett flew to Washington to pitch the design to then-RNC chairman Ed Gillespie, a meeting set up with the help of Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, for whom Gossett had organized a fund-raiser.
A couple weeks later, Gillespie wrote back, "Unfortunately, we are precluded from working with your company by existing licensing agreements."
That seemed to be the end of the story for Gossett. Then in early 2004, one of his sons spotted a similar logo on a Web site and Gossett traced it back to the RNC. This month, Gossett's Rally Concepts LLC sued in federal district court in Texarkana, seeking unspecified damages for copyright infringement and conspiracy.
The RNC and its supplier deny any wrongdoing.
"The only comment I would say is that from the RNC's perspective, the case is frivolous," said Tracey Schmitt, the RNC's press secretary.
Officials at Spalding did not respond to phone messages, but a lawyer for the company dismissed Gossett's claim to the iconic logo.
If the case ever gets to trial, the outcome could hinge on the similarities — and differences — between Gossett's logo and the Spalding design that wound up on so many red-state bumpers.
Gossett said he was inspired by scenes of firefighters raising a flag at the site of the World Trade Center. On a yellow legal pad, he drew an American flag fluttering from a large W, next to the number 43. Bush is the 43rd president, and the number distinguishes him from his father, George H.W. Bush, the 41st president.
Gossett took his drawing to a Wichita Falls print shop, which made a few bumper stickers and caps using the design.
None of Spalding's earlier designs for the Bush campaign looked quite as minimalist as Gossett's logo. There were, however, significant differences between Gossett's version and the one that Spalding produced.
The Spalding design reads "W '04" instead of "W 43." It is also rounded, unlike Gossett's rectangular design.
William H. Hollander, a lawyer for Spalding, said two key elements in the Spalding design had emerged as early as 1999. Bush's campaign used a wavy flag to the right of the "W," and Spalding used a stand-alone "W" in campaign material it produced for Bush, he said.
Gossett's design doesn't meet the legal test of being "substantially similar" to Spalding's, Hollander said in a letter to Gossett's lawyer. He said the company wasn't interested in discussing a settlement.
Gossett says he is a loyal Republican who voted for Bush in 2000 and 2004. Records show he donated $250 last year. But he said he has become jaded by his experience with the business end of politics.
"I just didn't realize how difficult it is to break into the political spectrum," he said. "The big RNC against little me, there was absolutely no chance to win."
source: http://www.statesman.com/metrostate/content/gen/ap/TX_W_Bumper_Sticker_Lawsuit.html
-----------
Brownwood Taliban
<< Home