The Briefing Room
General Category => Sports/Entertainment/MSM/Social Media => Topic started by: Cincinnatus on February 17, 2013, 09:48:48 pm
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File under the Frivolous Lawsuit category or...?
Chubby Checker, the musician best known for his 1960 hit recording of "The Twist," is suing HP over a novelty app for Palm OS of the same name that claims to check the size of your "chubby." The sum sought is a mind-boggling half a billion dollars.
The rock-and-roll star, whose real name is Ernest Evans, filed the suit this week in a Florida federal court, simultaneously releasing a statement describing the reasoning behind the suit. Willie Gary, an attorney who has already chalked up a number of large-sum legal wins, says that the app has caused "irreparable damage" to Evans' reputation and legacy.
"Chubby Checker" was a $0.99 app originally made for Palm OS (which was abandoned in 2009 in favor of Palm's WebOS). It allowed users to input the size of a male subject's feet and receive, in return, an estimation of the size of that guy's genitalia. For entertainment purposes only, of course...
The suit and supporting documents can be read here (PDF), and readers can form their own opinions as to its merit. But factor this in: Though the $500 million requested in the suit includes compensation for damage to reputation and other measures, the app itself was a dud. According to records at unofficial Palm app archival site House of Palm, it was downloaded only 84 times, potentially netting the parent company a grand total of around $25.
http://www.nbcnews.com/technology/gadgetbox/chubby-checker-sues-hp-over-penis-size-app-1C8383682#/technology/gadgetbox/chubby-checker-sues-hp-over-penis-size-app-1C8383682
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If he were still with us, what would Slim Whitman do?
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There is no way this suit goes anywhere. If Mr. Checker really wants to embarrass himself in public, that's his prerogative.
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HP and Palm OS are weak, and will likely buy a settlement to avoid negative OR.
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HP and Palm OS are weak, and will likely buy a settlement to avoid negative OR.
They'd likely do that anyways simply to avoid the higher costs of litigation. I'm not sure if this is a strike suit or not, but it sure smells like it.