NEWARK, N.J. (AP) Hasbro Inc. wants a judge to dismiss a federal lawsuit filed by a Fox News anchor who says a toy hamster shares her name and resembles her.
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In September, Faulkner sued Hasbro, contending that a “Harris Faulkner” hamster in the toy company’s “Littlest Pet Shop” product line violated her likeness rights, “caused substantial commercial and emotional damage” and falsely implied her “association with, approval, and endorsement” of the toy rodent.
The Associated Press reports Hasbro maintains the Harris Faulkner hamster is neither based on the Fox News Channel anchor, nor does it resemble her in any way beside the name.
Now, the company has fired back, issuing a dismissal motion that suggests the massive toy conglomerate has retained the services of Deadpan, Bullshit, & Snark, attorneys at law, to write out the differences between the two: “Ms. Faulkner is an adult, African-American, human, female newscaster”, the statement begins, its writers preparing to enter the pantheon of legal heroes alongside Clarence Darrow and Daniel Webster.
The Harris Faulkner toy was introduced in 2014, according to the lawsuit, and was sold in a package as the pet hamster of a terrier named Benson Detwyler. She has also been the host of the Fox program A Current Affair and the Fox current affairs program The Nancy Grace Show.
In it, the six-time Emmy Award-winner said the company’s packaging notes that the toy presents a choking hazard to children. She says the toy wrongfully appropriates her name and persona, harms her professional credibility as a journalist and is an insult.
“Third, despite Plaintiff’s claim, neither the “shape” of the Hamster Toy’s eyes, nor the “design of its eye makeup” misappropriate Ms. Faulkner’s likeness”, Hasbro puts forth.
Hasbro then explained that the toy does not even have the same complexion as Faulkner, and it has fur, not skin, that is “golden yellow, a wisp of “hair” that is medium-brown, a pink nose, and a muzzle that is white”.
Faulkner will now be given the chance to respond to Hasbro’s rebuttal.
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