Aunt Jemima image ‘exploitation’ case falls flat
A US court has dismissed a $2 billion lawsuit in which Quaker Oats Company and PepsiCo were sued for exploiting the image rights of the lady who was allegedly used for the Aunt Jemima brand.
In a decision handed down at the US District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, Judge Edmond Chang dismissed the complaint by two men who claimed to be the great grandsons of Anna Short Harrington, whose image they claimed was used to portray ‘Aunt Jemima’.
‘Aunt Jemima’ is a fictional character whose face appears on the brands of syrup and pancakes of the same name.
The dispute started when D W Hunter and Larnell Evans claimed they were due unpaid royalties from Quaker Oats and Pepsi maker PepsiCo.
In a lawsuit filed at the Illinois court in August last year, they argued that Quaker Oats, later acquired by PepsiCo, had selected Harrington for the ‘Aunt Jemima’ character in 1935 because of her own pancake recipe, which they then reproduced. They said the companies had then “exploited” her image rights and recipe for profit.
Hunter and Evans said they were due $2 billion, plus further damages to be determined at trial.
In 1937, Quaker Oats registered a US trademark for the Aunt Jemima brand, which included the words and the picture. But according to the complaint, the plaintiffs did not discover the registration until 2013.
Hunter and Evans further alleged that Quaker Oats had dissuaded Harrington from using a lawyer so that the company could not pay her a percentage of sales from the use of her recipes and image. Harrington died in 1950 but the plaintiffs said her likeness continues to be used today.
But dismissing the case on February 18, Chang said: “[T]he only information about plaintiffs’ connection to Harrington … is an account of how Hunter received a photograph (now lost) of Harrington from his grandmother and of plaintiffs’ attempt to locate Harrington’s grave in Syracuse, New York.”
PepsiCo said in a statement that it was pleased with the court’s decision and that the claims in the lawsuit were “frivolous and unsubstantiated”.
“The Aunt Jemima brand is not, and never has been, based on any one person. We have taken steps to contemporise the ‘Aunt Jemima’ trademark to ensure it represents a more modern look and feel, and today represents a sense of caring, nurturing and comfort that families have come to know and love,” PepsiCo added.
