Aan interesting excerpt from Publisher’s Weekly.
In the movie Evan Almighty, the character played by Steve Carell sets out to build an ark. What book does he consult for this endeavor? Ark Building for Dummies, of course. Late night comedian Jay Leno made audiences howl by featuring Divorce for Dummies by Hillary Clinton, Third Reich for Dummies by Pat Buchanan and Killing Your Parents for Dummies by the Menendez Brothers. And one Facebook user’s page features Do It Yourself Colorectal Exams for Dummies. But you won’t find any of these books on Amazon. They don’t exist.
Since its launch in 1991 with DOS for Dummies, the Dummies brand has become a cultural touchstone. From the mundane—Bond Investing for Dummies—to the arcane—Beekeeping for Dummies—the books are universally recognized, with their black-and-yellow covers featuring a triangular-faced character holding up his finger as if to say, “Even dummies can learn French verbs!” But what happens when universal recognition turns to parody, unauthorized use, copyright and trademark infringement?
That’s where the legal department of John Wiley and Sons (which owns the Dummies series) comes in. The company lets a lot of it slide. Ark Building, Third Reich, Divorce by Hillary Clinton and Killing Your Parents doesn’t upset Wiley. Neither does the Facebook application that lets users generate their own Dummies book covers. Deirdre Silver, legal director of Wiley’s professional and trade division, says, “That’s not a use that we would see sparking any consumer confusion. We certainly don’t see it as trademark infringement. Quite the contrary. It’s an acknowledgement of the strength of the brand and its place in the culture.”
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