What do Bill Murray and Donald J. Trump have in common?
At first glance, very little, one is a comedian and actor, the other is, of course, President!
Yet, while everything drives them apart, both are golf enthusiasts, one owns a clothing golf company and the other owns many prestigious courses but, most importantly, both are true fans of The Doobie Brothers! And, as if that weren’t enough they both have one more thing in common – they used the music of The Doobie Brothers without permission and most importantly, without paying the required fees.
This is where it gets complicated…
The story begins with the choice of the team in charge of promoting Bill Murray’s golf polos bearing the trademark “Zero Hucks Given” using the famous The Doobie Brothers’ song, Listen to the music. Unfortunately, and as it happens too often, the promotion team used this song without making the usual verifications and, most importantly, without first obtaining permission from the copyright holders. This choice obviously did not go unnoticed because Bill Murray’s team quickly received a formal notice from the lawyers of The Doobie Brothers. They rightly recall the rights of their clients to this song. Probably lulled by the lyrics of their client’s song, they didn’t just do it in a standard way, but rather in a very humorous way.
Indeed, after comparing the situation to the fact that Donald J. Trump is also responsible for using their clients’ song without rights, the lawyers point out that they are too tired to quote the usual legal articles which recall their clients’ rights, while stressing that Bill Murray knows very well he cannot use the song in an advertisement without paying to obtain this right. The lawyers also point out that their clients would almost have been willing to wipe the slate clean if the clothes in question were not so ugly! But things being what they are, the lawyers claim compensation for the unauthorized use.
Three days later, Bill Murray’s lawyers responded to the formal notice with the same tone. While underlining the good faith of his client by quoting Bill Murray, “The more relaxed you are, the better you are at everything”, Bill Murray’s lawyer offers to the members of the group to forward them samples of the clothes marketed by Bill? Murray!
Will this case be resolved without recourse to the courts and, as Murray’s lawyer indicates, “Takin ‘It to the Streets – rather than to the courts” …. ??
Who said receiving a letter of formal notice couldn’t be fun!
