The day SpongeBob went to trial after being accused of plagiarizing a “sponge toy”.

The day SpongeBob went to trial after being accused of plagiarizing a “sponge toy”.

SpongeBob SquarePants had to face unemployed SpongeBob in court

culture pop it is full of creative conflicts that have been taken to court. IN Neil Gaiman This Todd McFarlane before sponge Bob Square Pants This Bob Unemployed Sponge. In this curious case of the sponges of the same name Stephen Hillenburgcharacter creator Nickelodeonwas accused of plagiarism Troy Walkertoy inventor.

• Who is this Jobless Bob’s sponge?
• When was SpongeBob SquarePants created?
• What was the verdict?

Who is this Jobless Bob’s sponge?

IN 1991Troy Walker created a comic about a sponge looking for work. Main character, Mister. beanit was a sponge rectangular shape with arms, legs and shoes; Round eyes; point like your nose This expressive eyebrows.

Bob lived with his wife, Beautifuland a daughter named bubbles (bubbles in literal translation) apple street (Apple street). Everything was fine until Bob was fired from the local soap factory.

Jobless SpongeBob was created by Troy Walker in 1991.

Later that year, Troy was selling a comic along with a toy sponge with Bob’s face on it. 1992announced his character in the newspaper Auckland Tribune. Years later, Troy will file a lawsuit against Nickelodeon, claiming that SpongeBob SquarePants is a lot like his character and so it was Copyright infringement.

When was SpongeBob SquarePants created?

While Troy brought his sponge to life in 1991, Stephen Hillenburg only created Bikini bottom V 1999. Bob Esponya will arrive on Nickelodeon in May, remaining in the North American media to this day.

SpongeBob creator Stephen Hillenburg

Was 2007 that the legal battle has become public. In March of the same year, the journalist Bruce Gertsman published an article in which it was reported that the TV channel was accused of plagiarism by Troy Walker.

What was the verdict?

To the casual eye, these two characters have a lot in common. Not only body shapeand Name and even the fact that they both live in “fruits”since SpongeBob SquarePants lives in a pineapple and Bob in apple street.

But even if the resemblance seems unsettling to some, the court found no reason to file a lawsuit. The main reason was bob’s inconsistencyas it was presented differently depending on the media it was inserted into.

According to the official statement:

“In addition to being an uncharacteristic comic book character, Mr. SpongeBob SquarePants is not always depicted in comics, sponge dolls, and Oakland Tribune commercials. The sponge “doll” was produced in three different colors, had movable “bulging eyes”, and had no arms or legs, while the version in the Oakland Tribune advertisement does not even look like a sponge. Instead, the cartoon appears more human, with different shaped hair, ears, eyes, and nose, and wears a hat and shirt, as well as differently shaped shoes than in the comic. This lack of consistency nullifies the author’s claim that the “SPONGE BOB” character is copyrighted.”

Even with some similarities, Troy lost his lawsuit against Nickelodeon.

Indicating that there were more differences than similarities, the court dismissed the lawsuit after Hillenburg presented evidence that none of the works were original because, in 1989, another sponge named Bob was created.

“Plaintiff highlights the fact that both characters use the name ‘Bob’ and are anthropomorphic sponges; however, not only is “Bob” a common name, but more importantly, Defendant Hillenburg provided overwhelming evidence that he created “SpongeBob”, an anthropomorphized sea sponge, in 1989—two years before Plaintiff created “Mr. “. Spongebob”. The only physical similarity between the two characters is that they are both rectangular anthropomorphic sponges with arms and legs and large, round eyes. However, these are just standard elements derived from the idea of ​​humanizing the sponge.”

After winning the courts, SpongeBob will do something similar again just to protect Mister. Krabs process driven plankton. But that’s another story.

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