Eddie Aikau’s surviving siblings Myra, Solomon and Clyde Aikau have filed suit in Hawaii’s First Circuit Court to stop Glendale, California based Your Half Media Group from “claiming the right to make” a bio-pic on their brother, according to a story on Courthouse New Service.
The Aikaus claim Your Half is falsely claiming publicity rights to Eddie Aikau’s life story, and deterring other film companies from making such a movie. . . The Aikaus, who say they already held all trade and service marks to the use of Eddie’s name, formed Aikau Family LLC in 2010 to reserve publicity rights to his name. . . According to the complaint, in 2004 and without advice of counsel, the plaintiffs executed an agreement giving Your Half Pictures an 18-month option “to use plaintiffs Myra, Solomon and Clyde Aikau’s ‘names, likeness, personal history, etc. as needed, in conjunction with a feature film based upon a book by entitled, ‘Eddie Would Go,’ by Stuart Holmes Coleman.”
But the Aikaus claim Your Half Media failed to make “a significant payment to the Eddie Aikau Foundation” and made no progress on film production. Now the Aikaus are seeing “seek declaratory and injunctive relief and treble damages for tortious interference with prospective economic advantage, unfair and deceptive trade, unfair competition and infringement of publicity rights.” We hope this gets sorted out soon, because Eddie Would Go is a movie we’d like to see.
[Link: Court House News]
