Jerry Seinfeld Made Cookbook Author "Frightened And Vulnerable"

NEW YORK — An author who claims Jerry Seinfeld's wife plagiarized her cookbook says she wasn't amused by jokes the comedian made last year on late-night television.

In federal court papers filed Tuesday explaining her position for a December hearing, Missy Chase Lapine said her 7-year-old daughter was upset after Seinfeld joked on David Letterman's show that people with three names _ James Earl Ray and Mark David Chapman, for instance _ turned out to be assassins.

Lapine said she "never felt so frightened and vulnerable" as when her daughter came home from school "and asked, 'Mom, what is an assassin?'"

In a lawsuit filed last year, Lapine claimed Jessica Seinfeld got ideas for her cookbook, "Deceptively Delicious: Simple Secrets to Get Your Kids Eating Good Food," from Lapine's book "The Sneaky Chef: Simple Strategies for Hiding Healthy Foods in Kids' Favorite Meals."

The Seinfelds' attorney said in a statement Wednesday: "As a comedian, Jerry has a right under the First Amendment to tell jokes. Ms. Lapine, on the other hand, was not joking when she maliciously accused Jessica Seinfeld, who also has young children, of plagiarism, a charge that is demonstrably false."

Earlier this year, lawyers for Jessica Seinfeld accused Lapine of falsely claiming she invented the idea of hiding fruits and vegetables in children's meals when "countless prior works utilized this very same unprotectable idea," including a 1971 book. They called the lawsuit "opportunistic."

In her affidavit, Lapine said she did not make accusations against Jessica Seinfeld "to gain media attention, enrich myself or harass the Seinfelds; and I was not lying in wait for an opportunity to become embroiled in a controversy with any celebrity."

Comments

[ElectroJones]

12:32 PM on 10/31/2008

It sure sounds like his wife stole the idea and then he defamed the original author. Hope they hang him.

[DeeW]

06:06 PM on 10/30/2008

Okay, don't jump on me here ... I loved Seinfeld when it was on TV ... but didn't he start dating this woman when she just returned from her honneymoon? I mean ... that just seems wrong, she's married 3 weeks, returns from her honneymoon and starts dating Seinfeld? Who's opportunistic. Or maybe they were really in love and I'm just cranky. I dunno.

[kappa08]

03:59 PM on 10/30/2008

Something abour Jerry reeks...I can totally see his wife stealing this idea.

[frantaylor]

05:00 AM on 10/30/2008

You know, it's so wrong to plagiarize recipes. People spend lifetimes figuring out how much jelly to put on their sandwiches. It's serious business, there is a lot of time and money invested in this. I have spent years figuring out how long to leave my tea bag in the cup. When I get it right, I will patent it and sue the crap out of anyone who has the unmitigated gall to leave their tea bag in the cup for the same amount of time that I spent years figuring out.

[devanate]

05:54 PM on 10/30/2008

huh huh, you said teabag.

[HDR]

08:31 AM on 10/31/2008

Yes, you will then be known as the queen of teabagging!

[Fair]

02:23 AM on 10/30/2008

Cindy Mccain steals recipes all the time....

[mespace]

01:37 AM on 10/30/2008

No matter who wrote either of these books, the whole concept is horrible. Kids should be eating tons of fresh fruits and vegetables. They shouldn't be tricked into eating life-sustaining nutrition. Cooks and bakers steal from each other all the time. Martha Stewart stole from Julia child. If you change a recipe at all, it's legally "new." http://mespace.wordpress.com

[hillpill]

12:12 AM on 10/30/2008

Jerry ain't funny. We know now that Larry (David) was the real deal.

[strifeknot]

08:34 AM on 10/30/2008

Neither is funny, The show sucked on every level.

[RockySoldier]

12:01 AM on 10/30/2008

she's lying. a 7 year old wouldn't have friends watching letterman. it's a lie and despite what she claims, she's trying to enrich herself.

[Charity]

01:50 PM on 10/30/2008

did you even READ the article??????? her kid was NOT watching letterman. her kid CAME HOME and asked her "mom, what is an assassin'? because she heard it at SCHOOL.

are you a paid seinfeld blogger?

[grailknight]

11:44 PM on 10/29/2008

Why are Missy Lapone's seven-year-old daughter's classmates staying up to watch Letterman?

[Loxie72]

07:21 PM on 10/30/2008

Maybe a kid at school heard a parent/older sibling talking about it??

[firelord5000]

11:31 PM on 10/29/2008

This lawsuit was stupid from the beginning. First of all it was a terrible lawsuit, second of all she thought that she could beat Seinfeld with his half a billion dollar fortune with a crappy case that had no merit.

[harriettubman]

11:44 PM on 10/29/2008

No it wasn't. The woman had a great concept. The only problem was some rich woman with no talent stole her idea. That's not how life works. She took on Goliath and I don't blame her one bit.

I've heard several songs from lawsuits that people claimed celebrities stole and one was Michael Jackson's. The music sounded the same. I don't know how the judge didn't hear it or may star struck clouded his judgement.

[thepublicburning]

12:27 AM on 10/30/2008

a great concept?

it's a cookbook!

how can you plagiarize how to make PB&Js?

[hartleytim]

10:49 PM on 10/29/2008

Why was this woman's 7 year old daughter watching David Letterman's show - doesn't that come on at 11?

[Charity]

01:53 PM on 10/30/2008

wow. i thought you people could actually read here at huffpost. guess not. go back and read the article above - granted, it is not well written, but if you try really really hard, you might comprehend what it says.

[provgrays]

10:49 PM on 10/29/2008

Books aren't sold with good concepts. They are sold with a celebrity name attached to the concept. This is why the non-celebrity loses out every time. It's not right, only a law of the jungle.

[ZellaBee]

10:09 PM on 10/29/2008

I never liked the show Seinfeld. Real life in NYC is infinitely more fun and interesting.

[PuddyKatz]

09:24 PM on 10/29/2008

Jerry's put on a little weight but he's still a good looking man.

[antaeus]

11:35 PM on 10/29/2008

OMG, his show was the best thing on TV in the '90s, but Jerry handsome? You are kidding!

[rtblues]

09:13 PM on 10/29/2008

Or, maybe she's an opportunist, lying to get a piece of Jerry Seinfeld's millions?
Lots of nut job litigation out there, how do we know she didn't steal the idea and then
cry foul?

I think the same woman claims that Kramer's Coffee Table Book was her idea too...
:-)