Michael Lucas Sued for Copyright Infringement for “La Dolce Vita”

It had to happen… or did it?

Michael Lucas is being sued by International Media Films, Inc., who own the rights to Federico Fellini’s La Dolce Vita, for trademark and copyright infringement, over the gay porn Michael Lucas’ La Dolce Vita Parts 1 and 2.

International Media apparently believes the gay porns “infringe, tarnish and dilute” its trademark in the 1961 Fellini film. They claim consumers are likely to become confused, thinking the porn film is actually a derivative of the Fellini film, apparently.

“Nobody can be confused and think they’re buying Fellini’s movie by buying mine,” Michael Lucas says. The lawsuit also claims the “good name and dignity” of Fellini’s movie “is being sullied” by Lucas’ movies, in the words of an Associated Press article.

Personally, I don’t think this lawsuit is going to be successful. A product has to cause “confusion in the marketplace” in order to prove trademark infringement. As if!

Little Richard’s Gay Sex Slave: The “ew” factor on this story is high, but this is Gay Sex Blog so I must report it.

Little Richard, pop star of yesteryear, famous for his lavender-colored face makeup and a pencil moustache to put John Waters’ to shame, apparently took a liking to a 17-year-old audience member at one of his concerts in 1979, who dropped out of school to follow his idol around the country.

At a Holiday Inn, Moses Brown says Little Richard asked him to take off his clothes and they got in bed together. “He started to fondle himself… it scared me, but all I could think about was a recording contract.” Brown claims to be heterosexual.

Although 11 years went by without that record contract materializing, Brown continued the relationship, which involved “touching” and Little Richard “pleasur[ing] himself” as the two lay in bed together.

Probably the lowest moment: “I washed the collard greens he ate in the same bathtub I bathed him in!” Brown says.

Michael Lucas has made an official comment on the lawsuit on his blog.

Overall, I have mixed feelings about this whole thing. On one hand, I am very proud that my film is being taken so seriously by my opponent ñ although pornographic, I take great pride in creating high quality productions with realistic situations about the benefits of honestly enjoying your sexuality ñ something noticeably absent from Felliniís film. On the other hand, I can see that their actions are incredibly homophobic. There is a straight pornographic movie that was produced in Italy in 2003 called “La Dolce Vita.” It contains many of the same elements in the Fellini version, bears exactly the same title, and has been sold all over the world for the past 4 years. But International Media Films did nothing about it for years. International Media Films, apparently, feels that only my gay film, which sells for considerably more than DVDs of either Felliniís film or the straight porn film of the same name, could tarnish the reputation of the Fellini classic.