Jamie Oliver in the soup over Village People trailer
Last Updated: Saturday, December 19, 2009 | 2:49 PM ET
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British TV chef Jamie Oliver has a new series called Jamie's American Road Trip. (HarperCollins Canada)A lawyer for the Village People, the iconic group from the 1970s and 1980s, has threatened legal action against a British network for airing a promotion with star chef Jamie Oliver dressed as all six members.
Channel 4 is running a trailer for Oliver's TV series Jamie's American Road Trip, in which the young chef is dressed up as a construction worker, a cowboy, a traffic cop, a Native American, a sailor and a biker.
Those were characters used by the group, whose hits include YMCA, Macho Man and In the Navy.
During the promotional film, the characters (all played by Oliver) are making their way through an airport. One of the characters Oliver plays has a whisk down his pants while another has his sea salt confiscated — mistaken for drugs.
Lawyer John Giacobbi sent the network a letter stating "the Village People are still a huge, multimillion-dollar global business."
The names and costumes of the Village People are trademarked.
Channel 4 released a statement to The Guardian newspaper saying the Village People had had four months to take action and hadn't done so.
"We are confident that the promotional campaign for Jamie's American Road Trip does not infringe any copyright/trademark rights which the Village People may have. No parties have received a formal legal claim from the Village People and, if one is received, it will be vigorously defended."
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