Thursday, October 25, 2012

Hells Angels Sue Toys 'R' Us, and It's All About Yo-Yos



OFF THE WIRE
The Hells Angels seem like the kind of guys who would be absolutely allergic to anyone wearing a suit -- unless their somewhat infamous lawyer Fritz Clapp wears a suit.

Clapp and the Hells Angels Motorcycle Club have teamed up for the badass biker move of the week, which involves filing a lawsuit against a yo-yo maker and Toys 'R' Us because they believe there's a yo-yo being sold that uses a Hells Angels logo.

According to Hells Angels lore, Cave Creek's own Sonny Barger -- who was first pissed off about people wearing fake Hells Angels patches -- went to Clapp in the early 90s after he figured he couldn't beat up corporations that infringed on their trademarks.

Since then, they have sued a lot of corporations, and Yomega yo-yos and Toys 'R' Us are just the latest.

In this case, the club accuses the companies of ripping off its "death head" logo, which is essentially a skull with wings. Sure enough, the Hells Angels have trademarks on several versions of the logo.

The lawsuit claims the logo in question has a logo that's "confusingly similar" to the "death head," and says that neither company responded to cease-and-desist letters.

According to an exhibit attached to the lawsuit, Yomega's "Raider" yo-yo has a price tag of $14.99, at least at the Toys 'R' Us in Roseville, California.

You can see the yo-yo and the Hells Angels' trademarked logos that Clapp attached to the lawsuit below:



http://blogs.phoenixnewtimes.com/valleyfever/2012/10/hells_angels_sue_toys_r_us_yomega.php