Philadelphia Inquirer Sues Over Eagles Super Bowl Memorabilia
Plus, judge squashes Krasner's cushy plans for leniency for billboard-famous lawyer.
The Philadelphia Inquirer wants to sell you these commemorative Philadelphia Eagles Super Bowl framed front pages for $190. And it has sued another company over selling similar Eagles Super Bowl memorabilia. (Image via Philadelphia Inquirer Store)
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Philadelphia Inquirer Sues Over Eagles Super Bowl Memorabilia
We all know that Eagles Super Bowl memorabilia is hot right now. So everybody is trying to cash in on it. That includes Wyoming-based company Custom Prints & Frames, aka Title Frame Games, which has been selling framed copies of Philadelphia Inquirer covers related to the two Eagles Super Bowl wins and the NFC Championship win on its website and in its Etsy store. And the Inquirer says that the company is violating the law by doing so and has taken them to court.
On Friday, as Eagles Super Bowl parade fever was in full force in Philadelphia, the Inquirer filed a lawsuit in Philadelphia’s federal court seeking an emergency temporary restraining order that would bar the company from selling any wares displaying Inquirer pages.
In the federal complaint, the Inquirer said that it sent the company three cease-and-desist letters before filing the suit, all of those letters allegedly going unanswered and the company continuing to sell the goods in question. The Inquirer‘s position is that it’s a violation of the paper’s trademark to sell anything bearing the Inquirer‘s name or any printed content that it produced. It’s worth noting that the Inquirer has its own online shop, where it is pushing framed and unframed commemorative Eagles front pages.
The suit accuses the online company of trademark infringement, copyright infringement, and unfair competition. The judge in the case made quick work of approving the temporary restraining order, signing off on that before the end of the day on Friday. And now the lawsuit moves ahead. The court scheduled the next hearing for February 24th.
No one from the allegedly infringing company responded to my request for comment on the lawsuit. But it seems like the company may have gotten the message. All of the items cited in the Inquirer‘s suit appear to have been removed from the site and Etsy.
One down… many to go? A quick Google search makes it pretty clear that there are other companies out there selling what appear to be unauthorized Inquirer covers celebrating the Eagles. Time will tell if the paper plans to go after them as well.
About That Billboard-Famous Lawyer Leonard Hill
Recently, I told you that Philly DA Larry Krasner was seeking ARD (the most cushy form of probation) and no jail time for billboard-famous Main Line personal injury lawyer Leonard Hill after Hill allegedly fired two shots at a guy on Walnut Street.
Photo by Jeff Fusco
Hill’s lawyer says it was self defense. (The guy supposedly had a knife, but there was no mention of a knife in the police report.) But it doesn’t help that Hill quickly changed his clothes and fled the scene and didn’t bother to let police know he was involved in a shooting. Then they showed up at his home in Bala Cynwyd with a search warrant, where they found the (legally owned) gun, and numerous other guns. Nevertheless, Krasner alluded to “highly unusual” circumstances that led him to push for ARD, though he wouldn’t say what these “highly unusual” circumstances were. So much for transparency.
Well, Hill got some bad news yesterday. The judge, who’d have to approve any such deal, said no dice to Krasner’s offer. And now Krasner’s office has to decide how to move forward. He could just drop the case. But the whole mess is already a bad look for Krasner. Maybe just let a jury decide what should be done with this guy.
An SS United States Progress Report
The IKEA boat is finally in the Atlantic Ocean! If you want to see it again, you’ll need a snorkel.
By the Numbers
20: Years since Danielle Imbo and Richard Petrone disappeared after hanging out at a bar on South Street. The case is still very much open.
10: Months left before the start of 2026, aka the Semiquincentennial. Big plans are underway for celebrating the occasion in the Birthplace of America. (I’m talking about Philadelphia, in case you failed civics.) And big people have floated big ideas. But is it all going to be a bust? Our friend Mike Newall at the Inquirer has some tough questions in his deep dive, “Late to the Party?” For more background on the 2026 situation and some of the feuding involved, check out this Philly Mag feature from 2022.
10: Food halls set to open in the Philly area this year, courtesy of a very rich company called Wonder. And we’re not necessarily sure this is a good thing.
Sweet Tooth?
Local Talent
South Philly novelist Liz Moore scored a big New York Times bestselling hit with Long Bright River, a crime thriller set in Kensington amid the opioid crisis. In March, Peacock is debuting a series based on the book. We’ve been waiting to see a trailer. And we finally have it. Looks promising! See for yourself here.
