Evil Knievel sues Kanye West over video
edonline
Evil Knievel sues Kanye West over video
By MITCH STACY, Associated Press Writer
Evel Knievel has sued Kanye West, taking issue with a video in which the
rapper takes on the persona of "Evel Kanyevel" and jumps a motorcycle over a
canyon.
Knievel, whose real name is Robert Craig Knievel, filed a lawsuit in federal
court Monday claiming infringement on his trademark name and likeness. He
also claims the "vulgar and offensive" images depicted in the video damage
his reputation.
"That video that Kanye West put out is the most worthless piece of crap I've
ever seen in my life, and he uses my image to catapult himself on the
public," the 68-year-old daredevil said Tuesday.
West, 28, couldn't immediately be reached for comment Tuesday. The lawsuit
asks for damages and seeks to halt distribution of the video.
In the video for the song "Touch the Sky," West dons the familiar Knievel
star-studded jumpsuit and jumps a canyon in a vehicle "visually
indistinguishable" from the Skycycle that Knievel used when he attempted to
jump Idaho's Snake River Canyon in 1974, the lawsuit said.
Knievel, who lives in Clearwater, has been in poor health in recent years.