The Return of the Pink Panther

(1975)   Tags: United Artists

United Artists Corp. v. Ford Motor Co.

The principal issue to be resolved in this case, tried to the Court on the issue of liability only, is whether the use in defendants’ television commercials of an animated humanoid feline character infringes on any proprietary rights of the plaintiffs who are the owners or assignees of copyrights in the motion pictures entitled “The Pink Panther” and “The Return of the Pink Panther”.

Judgment: Our factual conclusions with respect to the principal issue lead us also to conclude that plaintiffs have suffered no infringement of any rights arising under state or federal unfair competition laws.