San Diego Law Review
Document Type
Comment
Abstract
In this Comment, the author discusses the trend in the entertainment and advertising media of selling celebrity personas in connection with the promotion of commercial products. The trend has progressed such that advertisements are using an imitation of a celebrity voice to attract attention to a product. These advertisements are dubbed "sound-alike" commercials because they involve a third person attempting to sound like a particular celebrity. The author argues that the current legal framework is inadequate to protect the rights of the celebrity. He suggests that the California legislature amend the right of publicity statute to encompass these vocal imitations. An amendment is proposed that would extend the doctrine of the right of publicity to include vocal imitation and thus allow a celebrity to recover for such "sound-alike" advertisements.
Recommended Citation
Katherine L. Blanck,
Restricting the Use of Sound-Alikes in Commercial Speech by Amending the Right of Publicity Statute in California,
26
San Diego L. Rev.
911
(1989).
Available at:
https://digital.sandiego.edu/sdlr/vol26/iss4/6