MOVIES - June 12, 1989

With two weeks to go before the opening of “Batman,” the movie, Warner Communications has launched a nationwide campaign to close Batman, the illegal merchandise. Federal marshals, armed with warrants resulting from a private six-week investigation, are moving in on manufacturers, distributors and sellers of bootleg Batman souvenirs. A Warner Communications spokesman said that unauthorized Batman merchandise was seized Friday from a dealer in the Soho district of Manhattan and that federal marshals in Los Angeles were to move in over the weekend on four area flea markets. “It’s probably one of the largest . . . anti-counterfeiting efforts in connection with motion pictures,” said Bruce Fiigen, senior trademark counsel for Warner Communications. Warner owns Warner Bros., the film’s distributor, D.C. Comics, the publisher of Batman, and the Licensing Corp. of America, which licenses both the film and the comic book. A federal marshal in Los Angeles said early Sunday that no arrests had been made here yet, but that some were expected soon. Fiigen said seizures of bogus Batman goods will also be made in Canada and that plans are being made for action in France and Australia.