Carson v. Here's Johnny Portable Toilets, Inc.
United States Court of Appeals, Sixth Circuit
698 F.2d 831 (1983)
A portable toilet company (defendant) adopted the name "Here's Johnny" — the phrase famously used to introduce Johnny Carson (plaintiff) on The Tonight Show — with its founder admitting the phrase's association with Carson was precisely why he chose it. Carson sued for unfair competition and violation of his right of publicity; the district court dismissed both claims, finding no likelihood of confusion and holding that publicity rights extend only to an actual name or likeness, neither of which the phrase constituted.
Whether a celebrity's right of publicity is violated when a defendant appropriates the celebrity's identity for commercial advantage through a phrase closely associated with the celebrity, without using the celebrity's actual name or likeness.