Uncle Miltie’s Suit Claims Defamation From Cross-Dressing Ad
The price of fame . . . Seer sues tabloid . . . Nursing a complaint
Remember that $3-million suit “Tootsie” star Dustin Hoffman won against a magazine over a phonied-up photo of Hoffman in a Richard Tyler evening gown? Now it’s Uncle Miltie’s turn to make a federal case out of a magazine’s allegedly exploiting his cross-dressing shtick.
Milton Berle, a.k.a. Mr. Television, is seeking $6 million from Century 21 Real Estate Corp. and the publishers of Out! magazine, alleging they defamed him in an ad.
Berle’s suit, filed in U.S. District Court in Los Angeles, says the ad shows the entertainer in a Carmen Miranda get-up, complete with a fruit headdress, women’s jewelry and makeup.
Next to the photo, which Berle says he did not authorize for publication, is the allegedly offending caption: “Our team of friendly professionals know how to cater to royalty . . . after all, every queen deserves a castle.”
Berle’s lawyer, David Albert Pierce, said the companies’ “reckless behavior” steals celebrities’ “right to say no to tasteless ads.” Flacks for the real estate company and the magazine couldn’t be reached.
Berle first wore a dress back in the 1950s in the tradition of vaudeville, as part of his comic routine. He said in a statement that while he respects the rights of people to pursue their own sexual orientations, he is not gay and does not wish to be portrayed that way.
At 91, Berle still looks better in a dress than in one of those yellow Century 21 jackets.
TRUST NO ONE: Two other celebs who claim their star power is being purloined lost a round in federal court in Los Angeles.
“X-Files” star David Duchovny and “Lois & Clark” star Dean Cain sued an Internet company that sells signed celeb photos. They claimed the company, Truly Unique Collectibles, was stealing their fame by selling forged signatures.
The cases were dismissed after U.S. District Judge Robert J. Kelleher ruled that the stars had failed to prove the signatures weren’t theirs.
“We’ve always sold a legitimate product, so naturally, I feel exonerated. We took on Superman and won,” Truly Collectibles President James Ferrazzano said in a statement.
His company sold Duchovny’s signed photo for $50--such a bargain! Sean Connery fetches $95, Mel Gibson $110, and the once-ubiquitous Spice Girls, $150.
The actors’ attorney, Farhad Novian, plans to appeal.
Novian won $300,000 for Duchovny in another image-pilfering case last year in Los Angeles Superior Court.
PSYCHIC FRIENDS: Courteney Cox’s Beverly Hills psychic and a supermarket tabloid are fighting in court over the identity of one of the tabloid’s sources.
Shooshan George, whose clients include the “Friends” star, Cher, LaToya Jackson and other household names, is suing the tabloid over a story and photos that appeared last June. The story said that George advises Cox on every aspect of her life and that her “Scream” co-star and new husband, David Arquette, would make a perfect love match. The spread’s blurry photos purported to show Cox during a session with her seer.
George charges that the tabloid invaded her privacy. Her suit says a Globe employee followed her to a photo developer and bribed a clerk to make duplicate prints from the negatives.
The recent legal wrangling has involved the identity of a source for the story, publicly identified only as “PT-5.”
Neville Johnson, the psychic’s lawyer, argued that the story was made up and said he doubted PT-5 even exists. But Globe attorney Amy Hogue countered that the tabloid didn’t have to reveal its sources.
Superior Court Judge Judith Chirlin ruled, however, that PT-5’s identity must be revealed at a pretrial deposition--but only to the attorneys and a court stenographer.
“We’re not talking about the Pentagon Papers here,” Chirlin said. The Globe plans an appeal. Until then, the source’s identity remains under wraps.
This begs one question: Shouldn’t the psychic already know who it is?
QUOTABLE: “It was a great decision. I’m happy to be a part of it. I think there’s too much done behind closed doors by the rich and powerful.” --Actress/director Sondra Locke, whose contract dispute with former lover Clint Eastwood gave rise to a landmark state Supreme Court decision upholding the public’s right to attend civil trials.
