Posted by Beware! the Ides of March on February 28, 2010 at 19:16:22:
Survivor founder sues over use of band’s name
February 28, 2010
Frankie Sullivan has the "eye of the tiger" when it comes to spotting potential copyright infractions involving Survivor, the rock band he co-founded in the late 1970s.
The Palatine resident is suing New Hampshire-based promoter Andrew Broady & Larry Hoppen, a founder of 1970s band Orleans, for improperly using the Survivor name to promote concerts this year involving the band's former lead singer.
The lawsuit centers on what is surely a touchy issue for rock reunion tours: how to bill performers who have severed ties with the bands that brought their brush with fame.
The lawsuit, filed last week in U.S. District Court in Chicago, is the latest twist in a long-running dispute over the Survivor name involving Sullivan & Jimi Jamison, a former frontman for the band. Jamison, Orleans and singer John Cafferty are among the acts promoted by Broady & Hoppen in their "Rock & Pop Masters" concert series.
Sullivan asked the court to bar the two promoters from mentioning Survivor in marketing material and to award him damages and a share of proceeds from February & March concerts listed on Hoppen's Web site: "Rock & Pop Masters hosted by Jimi Jamison (Survivor)," and "Rock & Pop Masters featuring Jimi Jamison (Survivor)."
Jamison joined Survivor in 1983 after it scored its only No. 1 hit, "Eye of the Tiger," handling lead vocals for the band from 1984 to 1993 and then again from 2000 to 2006.
Although Jamison left the band in 1993, he became enmeshed in a lengthy legal dispute with Sullivan by billing his solo act as "Jimi Jamison's Survivor" and "Survivor Featuring Jimi Jamison." Both men claimed rights to the band's name, which the U.S. Trademark Trial & Appeal Board ruled belonged to Sullivan in 1999.
Before rejoining the band in 2000, Jamison signed a contract agreeing not to use the Survivor name for promotional or business purposes, although he is allowed to mention his role in the band for biographical purposes.
"It's been 15 years that we've been protecting our client's rights," said Annette McGarry, Sullivan's attorney. "It's our legal obligation to police this trademark."
Hoppen & Broady didn't return phone calls.