Tom Cruise May Face Legal Action Over Hitler Globe

Today's NY Post reports Tom Cruise and "Valkyrie" may face legal action over their use of a likeness Hitler's globe in the film:

Cruise, who fights the Nazis in "Valkyrie," might now have to battle a San Francisco advertising executive who says the couch-jumping star used a replica of one of Adolf Hitler's prized possessions in the movie without permission.

Robert Pritikin - who penned such jingles as "Rice-a-Roni, the San Francisco Treat" and has a $40 million art collection - owns several Hitler artifacts, including the Fuehrer's notorious globe, which he used to plan U-boat attacks from his compound in the Bavarian Alps.

The globe was replicated and prominently featured in "Valkyrie," the thriller about a real-life plot to assassinate Hitler - and that has Pritikin mulling legal action. In 2007, Pritikin paid $100,000 for the globe and had its likeness copyrighted to keep it from being used in propaganda by sick neo-Nazi groups.

When Pritikin bought the globe, he paid 5 times it's pre-auction estimate. It was sold by an American soldier named John Barsamian who had found it in the ruins of Hitler's "Eagle's Nest" in the Bavarian Alps in May 1945.

Barsamian, below, is photographed with the globe by the AP shortly before the auction in October 2007.

Comments

[Icantbelieveher]

Greed is not pretty!

[HARVIN]

Mr. Pritikin ought to spend the money he's paying lawyers on a few nights with Ashley Dupre.The old man could pretend he's the Governor of New York.

[Robson]

Mr Pritikin has far too much money and too much time on his hands. Bernie Madoff missed a big time opportunity. And the media should worry about what's really important instead of deflecting from what they think is important.

The big entertainment / media folks have been attempting to marginalize this film for some time and for some reason. They know why but most Americans don't. So tell us.

[ramblingjohnny]

Don't worry he just flagged himself has a mark for all the Madoff of the world to him trick into loosing some of his money!

[binq56]

Tempest in a teacup!

[ReportThis]

How do you copyright the "likeness" of a globe???????

[jymfrancais]

Then destroy the darn globe.....­..........

[soapington]

The movie's prop designer did not create the globe from the original, but from a likeness of the original and from photographs. This makes it, like many things in the world, a likeness of other likenesses.

[OliverTwist]

He may have a good case.

[JBS]

He's so full of $h*t his eyes are brown.

[aicon]

RIDICULOUS. Another thousands of Dollars spent on ludicrous BS. Why isn't Barsamian making a statement and giving the money to a food bank and help the poor instead of doing this?

[OhReallySheSaid]

Robert Pritikin is the current owner of the globe mulling a lawsuit. The picture with the story is confusing.

[mouselion]

Well, unfortunately for Cruise and "Valkyrie", the guy is the copyright holder. No way around that.

[Fernando]

I'm not a lawyer and I can even win that suit.

"Your honor, the globe in question was created from a photograph from the German Museum of History, which predates Mr. Pritikin's ownership of the globe. So the globe was designed from a "likeness" which even predates ownership by a third party. May it oblige the Court to throw this frivolous case out and stop wasting taxpayer's money."

[Bettysdad]

Pritikin obviously spent so much time checking out the props, he didn't notice what the movie's about.

[NeoLiberal]

Unless the movie makers actually used the real globe or images of it photographed AFTER Pritkin became owner and allegedly was allowed to copyright it, then I would think that this case would go nowhere.

For example, I see an old photo of it in the public domain that is not copyrighted. I remake/rebuild it. How can Pritkin claim he has rights to other people's images of it before he bought it?

[NeoLiberal]

Cashing in on the hol*o*c* aust?

Stories of romance during WW2 recently debunked?

What's going on?

[steveinohio]

Who is allowing the likeness of a globe to be copyrighted? They should have thrown his application in file 13.

[ramblingjohnny]

Yeah is there even a copyright and patent possible for general globe design? It not like it a very recent invention a quick search confirmed that the greek started making globe around 150 B.C that 2150 years ago. lolll Maybe he should also think about suing the Chaplin estate and whoever own the right to The Great Dictator! lolll

[Mom2xx2xy]

It's just a globe, looks like any globe you can buy at Walmart, just an older version.

[CornellRedneck]

Ah, but that's just the point! Pritkin can also file a suit against WalMart for copyright infringement, if he wins the suit against Tom Cruise.