The inspiration for the House of Blues nightclub chain originally sprung from the 1980 cult classic “The Blues Brothers,” starring John Belushi and Dan Aykroyd.
More than 20 years later, that legacy is turning out to be a major source of irritation for the chain’s parent, Hollywood-based HOB Entertainment Inc.
HOB is caught in a legal slam dance with Belushi’s widow, Judith Belushi Pisano, a co-founder of the company who claims to be owed about $800,000 in royalties.
Pisano’s pursuit of the royalties prompted HOB in June to slap her with a lawsuit, claiming that she interfered with the company’s trademark contract negotiations with Sony Signatures Inc. A U.S. District Court judge’s ruling on the matter is pending.
Neither Pisano nor the other two House of Blues co-founders, Aykroyd and Hard Rock Caf & #233; impresario Isaac Tigrett, are involved in management of the company.
HOB general counsel Daniel Fishkin declined to comment on the litigation.
But Victor Pisano, Judith Belushi Pisano’s husband, said HOB has had problems paying the Pisano family royalties since new management took over the company in the mid-1990s.
The basis of the dispute dates back to a 1992 licensing agreement that Pisano and Aykroyd entered into with Tigrett. At issue is whether Pisano, who designed the original Blues Brothers logo and album covers, should receive royalties on certain Blues Brothers merchandise and sales at HOB concert venues and restaurants, and whether HOB is subject to the original 1992 licensing agreement.
About three years ago, Pisano had her accountant conduct an audit of the firm. Its conclusion, according to a motion she filed to thwart the lawsuit, was that HOB owed her at least $794,182 in royalties. After HOB did not respond to the audit’s findings, Pisano tried to settle the matter in mediation several months ago, according to the motion.
She intended to move the dispute to an arbitration hearing when HOB filed its lawsuit. Now, a federal court in Los Angeles will decide whether the matter can be bumped back to arbitration.
In its suit, HOB asserted it was not part of the original licensing agreement and is therefore not subject to rules in the agreement regarding required mediation and arbitration over trademark disputes. HOB also argued Pisano had no rights to royalties from ticket sales and revenues at HOB’s concert venues and had been paid royalties from food, beverages and related merchandise sales at the restaurants.
