Bond
04-26-2004, 05:04 PM
Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen aren't playing.
The tween twosome are, like, totally mad at Acclaim Entertainment, which has allegedly done a slipshod job of developing and marketing a line of videogames featuring the adventures of the young millionaire duo.
According to a lawsuit filed last week in Los Angeles and posted online by celebrityjustice.com, Acclaim has "blatantly abandoned the Mary-Kate and Ashley line and has taken the franchise of the Mary-Kate and Ashley brand in videogames and has now run it into the ground."
The litigious starlets are suing the videogame giant for close to $500,000 for breach of contract and back royalty fees.
And then there's the irreparable damage done to their brand name; according to the suit, Acclaim's mishandling of the videogame line has created "the single dark spot on the otherwise unblemished success story of the Mary-Kate and Ashley brand across myriad media and territories."
Which is, like, so lame.
Not that it's hurt them financially. Thanks to their tremendous marketing empire, Dualstar Entertainment, the twin Trumplettes are worth a reported $150 million...each. By the time they turn 21, it's estimated that they'll be billionaires.
In June, they'll turn 18, to the joy of operators of various Websites that feature timers counting down the seconds till the twins are of legal age. (Um, even we find that, like, totally gross.)
Their first feature film, New York Minute, opens May 7 to the squealing delight of preteen girls everywhere. This fall, they'll head off to New York University to begin their freshman year.
All signs point to the fact that the Olsen twins are growing up...so much so, that their publicist has issued a request that they no longer be referred to as the Olsen twins, but by their first names instead, which they prefer.
As the Olsen twins have lived their lives under a public microscope since the days they shared the role of Michelle Tanner on Full House, they've become accustomed to debunking public myths about themselves.
In the May 3 issue of People, which features the Olsen twins as its cover girls, the 17-year-old sisters scoff at rumors of drug use and eating disorders.
"Being in the public eye, you're labeled that you have an eating disorder," said Ashley.
"You have a drug addiction," Mary-Kate chimes in.
"We don't have problems!" Ashley said. "There's nothing to worry about."
But it was Mary-Kate who put it most succinctly.
"If I had a drug addiction, I would be in a thingy--like Promises, the Malibu [rehab] place. You don't see me there. So, like, come on. It's crazy."
While the twins' line of video games is lagging, other products popular amongst Wal-Mart shoppers, such as their clothing line, action figures, cosmetics and even their official line of toothpaste, continue to soar. Their next development plan is a clothing line for boys.
Not that they'll develop just anything--the twosome have turned down offers for Mary-Kate and Ashley SpaghettiOs, wrapping paper, and even birthday party appearances.
Next up for the duo: live television. The Olsen twins will serve as hosts of Saturday Night Live on May 15.
Source: Yahoo (http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=796&e=3&u=/eo/20040424/en_celeb_eo/13959)
What a sarcastic writer.
The tween twosome are, like, totally mad at Acclaim Entertainment, which has allegedly done a slipshod job of developing and marketing a line of videogames featuring the adventures of the young millionaire duo.
According to a lawsuit filed last week in Los Angeles and posted online by celebrityjustice.com, Acclaim has "blatantly abandoned the Mary-Kate and Ashley line and has taken the franchise of the Mary-Kate and Ashley brand in videogames and has now run it into the ground."
The litigious starlets are suing the videogame giant for close to $500,000 for breach of contract and back royalty fees.
And then there's the irreparable damage done to their brand name; according to the suit, Acclaim's mishandling of the videogame line has created "the single dark spot on the otherwise unblemished success story of the Mary-Kate and Ashley brand across myriad media and territories."
Which is, like, so lame.
Not that it's hurt them financially. Thanks to their tremendous marketing empire, Dualstar Entertainment, the twin Trumplettes are worth a reported $150 million...each. By the time they turn 21, it's estimated that they'll be billionaires.
In June, they'll turn 18, to the joy of operators of various Websites that feature timers counting down the seconds till the twins are of legal age. (Um, even we find that, like, totally gross.)
Their first feature film, New York Minute, opens May 7 to the squealing delight of preteen girls everywhere. This fall, they'll head off to New York University to begin their freshman year.
All signs point to the fact that the Olsen twins are growing up...so much so, that their publicist has issued a request that they no longer be referred to as the Olsen twins, but by their first names instead, which they prefer.
As the Olsen twins have lived their lives under a public microscope since the days they shared the role of Michelle Tanner on Full House, they've become accustomed to debunking public myths about themselves.
In the May 3 issue of People, which features the Olsen twins as its cover girls, the 17-year-old sisters scoff at rumors of drug use and eating disorders.
"Being in the public eye, you're labeled that you have an eating disorder," said Ashley.
"You have a drug addiction," Mary-Kate chimes in.
"We don't have problems!" Ashley said. "There's nothing to worry about."
But it was Mary-Kate who put it most succinctly.
"If I had a drug addiction, I would be in a thingy--like Promises, the Malibu [rehab] place. You don't see me there. So, like, come on. It's crazy."
While the twins' line of video games is lagging, other products popular amongst Wal-Mart shoppers, such as their clothing line, action figures, cosmetics and even their official line of toothpaste, continue to soar. Their next development plan is a clothing line for boys.
Not that they'll develop just anything--the twosome have turned down offers for Mary-Kate and Ashley SpaghettiOs, wrapping paper, and even birthday party appearances.
Next up for the duo: live television. The Olsen twins will serve as hosts of Saturday Night Live on May 15.
Source: Yahoo (http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=796&e=3&u=/eo/20040424/en_celeb_eo/13959)
What a sarcastic writer.