Suit Says Agency Copied ‘Austin Powers’ in Ad

New Line Productions, maker of the hit comedy “Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery,” has sued a Maryland ad agency for allegedly copying the zany character in a drugstore commercial. Los Angeles-based New Line, a unit of New York-based Time Warner, released “Austin Powers,” starring comedian Michael Myers, in May 1997. The suit, filed in U.S. District Court in Baltimore, contended that Baltimore-based ad agency Trahan, Burden & Charles and Neighborcare Pharmacies used “defining idiosyncrasies” of the Powers character, including horn-rimmed glasses, frilly clothing and a psychedelic car, in a 30-second television commercial. New Line is asking a federal judge to stop the drugstore chain from running the commercial again and seeks unspecified damages.