Denice Halicki and Eleanor From Gone in 60 Seconds on Celebrity Justice
Press Contact: Kathy Pinckert/Communication Art Forms Tel: 310 562 0691 Email: katpinckert@earthlink.net DENICE HALICKI AND ELEANOR FROM GONE IN 60 SECONDS WILL BE FEATURED ON CELEBRITY JUSTICE THANKSGIVING WEEK-END Los Angeles, CA (November 24, 2004) – Denice Halicki and Eleanor from Gone in 60 Seconds will be one of the feature stories airing this Friday, November 26, 2004 on Celebrity Justice, and which will be repeated over the Thanksgiving week-end. The story will focus on Ms. Halicki’s recently filed lawsuit to stop Carroll Shelby from branding and marketing his line of high-end retrofitted Ford Mustangs with the name “Eleanor” from the classic film Gone in 60 Seconds. Ms. Halicki claims that she and her husband, the late filmmaker H.B. “Toby” Halicki, were the first to use the Eleanor and Gone in 60 Seconds marks, and that Mr. Shelby has no right to market Eleanor-branded vehicles and merchandise without her permission. Local listings for Celebrity Justice can be found at: http://celebrityjustice.warnerbros.com. Ms. Halicki is the CEO of Halicki Films and filed suit on October 25, 2004 for copyright and trademark infringement of her rights to the film Gone in 60 Seconds and its feature character Eleanor against Carroll Shelby, Carroll Shelby International, Inc. (OTC-CSBI) (Bulletin Board: CSBI), Carroll Hall Shelby Trust and Unique Motorcars, Inc., among others. In February 2004, Ms. Halicki alleges that she discovered that the Defendants were manufacturing and marketing unauthorized motor vehicles which are copies of the character Eleanor featured in Gone in 60 Seconds, and which sell at prices ranging from $90,000 to $150,000 each. She claims that the Defendants have further expanded their exploitation of her Eleanor trademark by marketing bronze scale models of Eleanor and selling them for $5,900 apiece; selling Eleanor clothing; selling posters of Mr. Shelby and Eleanor; licensing Eleanor to Quaker State Motor Oil; and made a race car with the names Gone in 60 Seconds and Eleanor on it. In 1974, Toby Halicki wrote, produced and directed the original film Gone in 60 Seconds which starred Eleanor, a 1971 Fastback Mustang that he customized to become a Mach 1 Fastback Mustang. In 1989, Toby was tragically killed during a stunt sequence while filming Gone in 60 Seconds 2, which also featured Eleanor. In 1994, his widow Denice Halicki obtained all right, title and interest to the original film Gone in 60 Seconds and Eleanor from her husband’s estate. In 1995, Ms. Halicki contracted to remake Gone in 60 Seconds and was an executive producer. In 2000, the remake of Gone in 60 Seconds was released starring Nicholas Cage, Angelina Jolie and Eleanor. Since 1974, the Halickis consistently maintained control and protection over the Eleanor character Gone in 60 Seconds, from selling model toys of Eleanor and other Eleanor- and Gone in 60 Seconds-related merchandise to appearing at automotive events, including the first Long Beach Grand Prix, the California Classic Car Rally, the L.A. 2000 NASCAR Street Race, and as one of the stars of the Peterson Automotive Museum’s “Great Cars of the Movies” exhibit. Even though Ms. Halicki is the first and prior user of the Eleanor mark, Defendant Carroll Hall Shelby Trust registered the Eleanor trademark in 2004 with the US Patent and Trademark Office, registration number 2837333 for “vehicles, namely, automobiles, engines for automobiles, and structural parts for automobiles”. Shelby also applied for a registration for the Eleanor trademark for “toys, namely, die-cast metal model cars” in 2001, which has not yet been registered. Additionally, Plaintiff seeks to have the Court declare Shelby’s claim that registration of the “GT-500" trademark does not permit it to market Eleanor-branded vehicles because Ms. Halicki owns the Eleanor mark. Ms. Halicki is represented by Jeffrey S. Kravitz with the Los Angeles office of Lord, Bissell & Brook, LLP. Halicki vs. Carroll Shelby International, Inc., Case No. CV04-8813 SJO (PJWx). # # # Editor’s Note #1 Plaintiff Denice Halicki is CEO of Halicki Films (www.gonein60seconds.com) and is based in Los Angeles, CA. She is represented by Jeffrey S. Kravitz with the Los Angeles office of Lord, Bissell & Brook, LLP (www.lordbissell.com); Tel: 213.485.1500. Defendant Carroll Shelby’s (www.carrollshelby.com) legal interests are represented by M. Neil Cummings of Los Angeles, CA; Tel. 310.914.1849. Editor’s Note #2 Also named as Defendants are: Carroll Shelby Licensing, Inc., Carroll Shelby Engineering, Inc., Carroll Shelby Motors, Inc., Carroll Shelby Distribution International, Inc., Unique Performance, Inc. and Sanderson Sales & Marketing.