Phillies Sue Phanatic Mascot Creators for Copyright Ownership (1)

The Philadelphia Phillies have gone to court over the ownership of the team’s famed Phillie Phanatic mascot.

The team argues in an Aug. 2 lawsuit filed in Manhattan federal court that the co-designers of the Phillie Phanatic, Harrison/Erickson Inc., can’t terminate the Phillies’ copyright interest in the mascot.

The Phillies said it worked with H/E to create the mascot in the late 70s. H/E co-founder Bonnie Erickson is a puppet designer largely known for her work designing Jim Henson’s Muppets. The Phillies used the mascot under a licensing agreement with H/E that the team says “expressly states that the transfer ...