Comic Related - If It's Comic Related, You'll Find It Here!

A small-time Brisbane clothing retailer has taken on a multimillion-dollar US company over a comic book superhero - and lost.

International comic book company Marvel Characters Inc came out blazing when Gary Charles, who has a clothing store at Eagleby, in the city's south, applied to register the words "Ghost Rider" as a trademark.

Marvel's Ghost Rider comic book character has a flaming skull, its motorcycle is surrounded by flames and it often wields a flaming chain.

In his trademark application, Mr Charles said: "We don't use the flaming skull or the Harley. I just liked the name so I searched IP Australia and it wasn't trademarked so I applied."

Mr Charles provided photos of his men's and women's denim shorts featuring the words Ghost Rider. Some also had an embroidered image of a motorbike rider.

At a hearing, solicitor Fiona Brittain, for Marvel, showed photos of what she claimed were Mr Charles's Ghost Rider jeans and a swing tag that showed a motorcyclist with a flaming head, riding a flaming motorcycle, wielding a flaming chain.

Mr Charles, who first applied for the trademark in May 2009, said when Marvel objected and threatened legal action, he decided to go ahead with his case.

"I thought why should I let them push me around," he said. "But if I'd known the trouble it would be I would have dropped the trademark."

A delegate of the Registrar of Trade Marks refused his application on September 14. Mr Charles was last week still trying to offload his remaining Ghost Rider stock.

Source: Courier Mail