Wednesday, November 12, 2008

Maybe They Should Have Called Him Istanbulman?

As Yakov Smirnoff likes to say, 'What a country!" In this case, the country is Turkey in which the major of a town named Batman, (yes, Batman) is suing just about everyone involved with the celluloid caped crusader. From E Online (via Yahoo):

The mayor of Batman, a small oil-producing town in Turkey, has filed suit against The Dark Knight director Christopher Nolan and Warner Bros., the studio behind the record-shattering blockbuster, looking for a cut in the film's royalties in exchange for using the city's name without permission.

...In addition to the name share, [Batman's Major] claims the emotional distress that apparently comes from having one of the most indelible superheroes share a moniker with your town has led to several unsolved murders and a high suicide rate.

Source: "Batman's Latest Archenemy: Batman" by Gina Serpe

Let's hope the major of Joker, Texas, is less litigious.