If any Philadelphia sports team was to sue the creator of its mascot, one could reasonably presume it would be the Flyers. Alas, Gritty will remain while the Philadelphia Phillies are suing the New York company that created the Phanatic to prevent the green furry fan favorite from becoming a free agent. In a complaint filed Friday in US District Court in Manhattan, the AP reports that the team alleged Harrison/Erickson threatened to terminate the Phillies' rights to the Phanatic next year and "make the Phanatic a free agent" unless the team renegotiated its 1984 agreement to acquire the mascot's rights. The Phillies asked for declaratory judgments affirming their rights and sued H/E claiming unjust enrichment and breach of good faith.
The team said it contracted with Harrison/Erickson in 1978 at the behest of then-Phillies executive vice president Bill Giles to develop the mascot for $3,900 plus expenses, which turned out to be about $2,000. The Phillies said they reached an agreement to cover promotional items, paid Harrison/Erickson more than $100,000 in royalties and were sued by the company in 1979. As part of the settlement later that year, the Phillies said they made a $115,000 one-time payment and agreed to pay $5,000 annually, increasing by $1,000 per year. The Phillies said they reached an agreement with H/E in 1984 to buy all rights to the "artistic sculpture known as the 'Phillie Phanatic'" for $215,000. The team said Harrison/Erickson lawyers sent a letter to the Phillies on June 1 last year claiming H/E had the right to terminate the 1984 agreement and saying absent a new deal the Phillies would not be able to use the Phanatic after June 15, 2020.
(More
Philadelphia Phillies stories.)
,
uBlock 
,
and
Ghostery 
)
