Court rules for Pull My Finger Fred, against Fartman

The U.S. 7th Circuit Court of Appeals has finally handed down its decision in the closely-watched case of Fartman v. Pull My Finger Fred

Originally decided in federal court in Chicago, the case is a clash of novelty toy makers Tekky Toys, creator of the plush, talking Pull My Finger Fred, and Novelty Inc., which made an obvious knock-off. The toy and its clone are described this way by 7th Circuit judge Diane P. Wood, writing for the three-judge panel.

Meet Pull My Finger® Fred. He is a white, middle-aged, overweight man with black hair and a receding hairline, sitting in an armchair wearing a white tank top and blue pants. Fred is a plush doll and when one squeezes Fred’s extended finger on his right hand, he farts. He also makes somewhat crude, somewhat funny statements about the bodily noises he emits, such as "Did somebody step on a duck?" or "Silent but deadly."

Fartman could be Fred's twin. Fartman, also a plush doll, is a white, middle-aged, overweight man with black hair and a receding hairline, sitting in an armchair wearing a white tank top and blue pants. Fartman (as his name suggests) also farts when one squeezes his extended finger; he too cracks jokes about the bodily function. Two of Fartman's seven jokes are the same as two of the 10 spoken by Fred. Needless to say, Tekky Toys, which manufactures Fred, was not happy when Novelty, Inc., began producing Fartman, nor about Novelty's production of a farting Santa doll sold under the name Pull-My-Finger Santa.

Tekky won a quarter-million dollar judgment against Novelty, including attorneys fees. Novelty appealed, arguing that it shouldn't be liable for copyright infringement, and that the award was excessive. The 7th Circuit ruled today that Novelty is full of hot air.

Novelty could have created another plush doll of a middle-aged farting man that would seem nothing like Fred. He could, for example, have a blond mullet and wear flannel, have a nose that is drawn on rather than protruding substantially from the rest of the head, be standing rather than ensconced in an armchair, and be wearing shorts rather than blue pants. To see how easy this would be, one need look no further than Tekky’s Frankie doll, which is also a plush doll, but differs in numerous details: he is not sitting, and he has blond hair, a tattoo, and a red-and-white striped tank. Frankie is not a copy of Fred. Fartman is.

No word yet on whether Fartman plans to appeal to the Supreme Court. (But I wouldn't hold my breath).

Link (.pdf)