Whose idea is it anyway?

Marc Porter Zasada in Sunday's Los Angeles Times: Just Whose Idea Is It Anyway? In the new "Age of Copyright," dynasties are founded on cartoon characters, lawyers play extreme sports, and we all break the law. It's never been easier to stake a creative claim — or jump one.

Sidebar: Defining the limits of intellectual property

As the "copyright economy" expands, lawsuits abound. Attorney David Nimmer keeps a file of some particularly creative efforts:

• In 2002, Fun Spot Action Park, an amusement park in Orlando, Fla., sued nearby Magical Midway, claiming the other park had wrongfully imitated the design of its go-kart tracks. Fun Spot won the first round of the legal skirmish.

• In 2003, photographer Penny Gentieu sued a stock photo house for getting other photographers to imitate her way of photographing naked babies against a white background. "Given the impermissibly expansive nature of Gentieu's claims," noted the court, "it is only surprising that she has not asserted a copyright in the universe of babies as well." Gentieu lost big time.

• A photographer whose work was used to sell plastic picture frames in retail stores sued a company in 2003 for copying his disposable paper inserts. The photographer lost.

• In course work toward a marketing degree, Noel Roque Rodriguez came up with a plan for " 'Rumba Caribbean Bar & Cuisine,' intended to capture Puerto Rican traditions and folklore through food, drinks, salsa music and dance." In 2003 he sued a restaurant in Miami for allegedly copying his idea. The judge gave his suit a failing grade.

• In 2002, a novelty company called JCW Investments Inc. sued Novelty Inc. for imitating its "Pull My Finger Fred" doll, which shakes, makes a crude noise and offers scatological clichés when its finger is pulled. For example, Fred says "Silent, but deadly" and "Did somebody step on a duck?" It turned out that neither plaintiff nor defendant developed the idea: Years earlier, someone else had gone on the radio with a sketch titled "Pull My Finger Charlie" showing a hypothetical toy doll that made a similar noise and joked, "Did someone step on a duck?" when its finger was pulled. Still, after a trial tracing flatulence jokes back to Emile Zola, the plaintiff won.