Posted on 01/07/2008 8:35:48 PM PST by camerakid400
NEW YORK, Jan 7 (Reuters) - Comedian Jerry Seinfeld and his wife were sued on Monday over her top-selling cookbook for kids by a rival author who complained of plagiarism and accused the the star of defaming her on TV host David Letterman's show.
The suit, filed by cookbook author Missy Chase Lapine, claims Jessica Seinfeld copied her own book that explores how to sneak healthy foods into kids' diets. It also accuses the top comedian of embarking on a "slanderous attack" against Lapine on U.S. national television shows.
Jessica's Seinfeld's book, "Deceptively Delicious: Simple Secrets to Getting Your Kids Eating Good Food," was published by Harper Collins in 2007 six months after Lapine's book "The Sneaky Chef: Simple Strategies for Hiding Healthy Foods in Kids' Favorite Meals," the suit said.
Jessica Seinfeld's book plagiarized Lapine's in concept, cover art -- including a similar picture showing hidden carrots -- style and structure, according to the lawsuit that seeks unspecified damages.
When Seinfeld appeared on Letterman's show, he said the books were published at the same time and implied Lapine was a "wacko" and celebrity stalker, comments the suit -- filed in Manhattan federal court -- described as "false."
Seinfeld also joked that Lapine accused his wife of "vegetable plagiarism" and poking fun at Lapine's name and mental condition, including contending that "if you read history, many of the three-name people do become assassins," before citing John Lennon's killer Mark David Chapman, the suit said.
The suit said the comedian later told E! News, "this woman is another kind of nut. You know, she thinks she invented vegetables. And she is accusing my wife of stealing her mashed-up carrots."
Richard Menaker, a lawyer for the Seinfelds, told Reuters "there's not truth" to Lapine's claim of plagiarism and in relation to the defamation allegations said "there's absolutely no basis for any kind of a legal claim." Continued...
The suit said Jessica Seinfeld also made statements similar to those of Lapine in her book about how the author overcame the guilt of tricking her kids into eating healthy food and how to sneak vegetables into kids' meals.
Lapine is a former publisher of "Eating Well" magazine, formerly worked at "Gourmet" magazine and teaches at The New School in New York. She said she researched her book for five years, the suit said. (Reporting by Christine Kearney, editing by Michelle Nichols and Todd Eastham)
Food Nazi Fight!
Jerry: Hold it, Newman, you wouldn’t eat broccoli if it was deep fried in. chocolate sauce.
Newman: I love broccoli, its good for you.
just tell your child its a mashed up chicken nugget. or, its a special green french fry, not a green bean. :)
Was just looking at that, curious..
So, gosh, what, every cook book that features carrots on the cover in some form is now plagiarizing her idea? Thought it has to be mentioned that public money is being used to continue this crackpot suit - our courts. It’d be really nice if we started recovering the costs of moronic lawsuits.
“She thinks she invented vegetables.”
Perhaps Ms. Lapine should write a book featuring Mr. Seinfeld’s comedy routines. She can change the titles and digitally morph Mr. Seinfeld’s image with her picture and use it on the cover. After all, Mr. Seinfeld didn’t invent jokes. I’m sure he’ll slap a knee and give a good, hearty laugh over it.
Catfight!
“Its Potagerism Jerry!
The covers don’t look very much the same. Now if the recipies are identical and/or in pretty much the same order, that to me would be more than coincidence.
...because she looks hotter.
Cue that “ding ding-ding-ding ding” theme music.
wwsd?
Missy looks like a healthy gal; just the way I like them.
I don’t like Seinfeld using his fame to make fun of this woman.
Why bother with trying to trick kids? What’s wrong with, “Eat it because I said so!”?
Will be interesting to see how this plays out... on first reading of the lawsuit on Yahoo... sounds like Ms. Lapine may may have a valid case (now getting a jury to see her side of the issue is another story).
How is this a new idea? We’ve been hiding stuff in dogfood for decades.
You feed dogfood to your kids? Yech. (Just kidding!)
LOL. If I had kids, that wouldn’t be a bad idea considering college tuition.
ELAINE: What? What is this?
JERRY: Veggie sandwich and a grapefruit.
ELAINE: Veggie sandwich and a grapefruit? What are you turning into?
JERRY: A healthy person.
Lol.
Any Hampton tomato recepies?
Or a recipe for a marbled rye?
Which is which? I can’t tell them apart. /s
Exactly. He is using his celebrity here in a disgusting way.
Puddy: It’s a long flight, Elaine. I had to get on with my life.
Elaine: By making time with some floozy across the aisle?
Puddy: Yeah, that’s right. Well, what’s going on over there with you and, uh, vegetable lasagna?
Elaine: This guy? He’s an idiot. he doesn’t mean anything to me.
Passenger: I can hear you.
I don’t like Seinfeld, period.
Mmmmm. I’m not Seinfeld. You like me dontcha. (nodding) yeah you do.
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