MK Ultra News

SPIKE A GO: Spike Lee and Viacom settled a dispute Monday that allows the media giant to rebrand its TNN network as Spike TV, ending a lawsuit that contended the new moniker was a deliberate attempt to hijack Lee's image. Lee had obtained a temporary injunction in June that prevented the name change, but on Monday state Supreme Court Justice Walter Tolub lifted the order. The ruling means Viacom can proceed immediately with plans to call the network Spike TV, the "first television network for men."

Details of the settlement were not released, but a Viacom rep said,
"We're very happy with the outcome." The ruling clears the way for Viacom to proceed with its plans to rebrand TNN as Spike TV, the "first network for men." The temporarily nameless network (simply calling itself "The New TNN") had launched its testosterone-friendly programming two weeks ago with a two-hour block of randy cartoons aimed at the 18 and over crowd.

Lee got the injunction claiming Spike TV was looking to cash in on his
name (actually Shelton Jackson Lee on his birth certificate) and hard-won reputation as a director of movies like Malcolm X and Do the Right Thing.

He also objected to the "demeaning, vapid and quasi-pornographic
content of Spike TV."

The network airs syndicated reruns of Baywatch, Miami Vice, Star Trek and CSI. Among its new animated series is one featuring Pamela Anderson as the voice and double-D inspiration of Stan Lee's Stripperella, an exotic dancer superhero.

Spike Lee was initially ordered to post a bond of $50,000 on June 13 to cover Viacom's potential losses in case he couldn't prove his
self-proclaimed monopoly of the moniker. At a hearing two weeks ago,
the judge ordered Lee to fork over an additional $2 million and gave him until Monday to come up with the money.

TNN said its scuttled relaunch had cost the net $16.8 million, and the
network claimed it could lose up to $42 million if prevented from
rebranding itself as Spike TV.

The extra $2 million was never posted; instead, the judge dismissed the
injunction after both Spikes reached an agreement.

Lee wasn't actually around to bury the hatchet--the director's busy in
Los Angeles shooting Sucker-Free City for Showtime, which is owned by Viacom.

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SPIKE TV FULL SPEED AHEAD
	SPIKE A GO: Spike Lee and Viacom settled a dispute Monday that allows the media giant to rebrand its TNN network as Spike TV, ending a lawsuit that contended the new moniker was a deliberate attempt to hijack Lee's image. Lee had obtained a temporary injunction in June that prevented the name change, but on Monday state Supreme Court Justice Walter Tolub lifted the order. The ruling means Viacom can proceed immediately with plans to call the network Spike TV, the "first television network for men." Details of the settlement were not released, but a Viacom rep said, "We're very happy with the outcome." The ruling clears the way for Viacom to proceed with its plans to rebrand TNN as Spike TV, the "first network for men." The temporarily nameless network (simply calling itself "The New TNN") had launched its testosterone-friendly programming two weeks ago with a two-hour block of randy cartoons aimed at the 18 and over crowd. Lee got the injunction claiming Spike TV was looking to cash in on his name (actually Shelton Jackson Lee on his birth certificate) and hard-won reputation as a director of movies like Malcolm X and Do the Right Thing. He also objected to the "demeaning, vapid and quasi-pornographic content of Spike TV." The network airs syndicated reruns of Baywatch, Miami Vice, Star Trek and CSI. Among its new animated series is one featuring Pamela Anderson as the voice and double-D inspiration of Stan Lee's Stripperella, an exotic dancer superhero. Spike Lee was initially ordered to post a bond of $50,000 on June 13 to cover Viacom's potential losses in case he couldn't prove his self-proclaimed monopoly of the moniker. At a hearing two weeks ago, the judge ordered Lee to fork over an additional $2 million and gave him until Monday to come up with the money. TNN said its scuttled relaunch had cost the net $16.8 million, and the network claimed it could lose up to $42 million if prevented from rebranding itself as Spike TV. The extra $2 million was never posted; instead, the judge dismissed the injunction after both Spikes reached an agreement. Lee wasn't actually around to bury the hatchet--the director's busy in Los Angeles shooting Sucker-Free City for Showtime, which is owned by Viacom.

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