Mrs. Pataki Relents in Fight Against ‘the Real New Yorkie’

The governor’s wife, Libby Pataki, suffered an embarrassment yesterday at the paws of a 5-pound Yorkshire terrier named Schmitty.In her new children’s book, “Madison in New York,” Mrs. Pataki named her heroine’s sidekick New Yorkey. The problem is that a pre-existing, unrelated make-believe pooch, who stars in her own line of quirky greeting cards, is named Schmitty the Real New Yorkie.Schmitty’s handlers held a press conference yesterday at the Midtown office of her lawyer, Linda Steinman, to announce that Mrs. Pataki had agreed not to seek licensing of the similarly named New Yorkey character, which the governor’s wife had planned to use for merchandise related to the book.Schmitty’s owner, Elly McGuire, said she was surprised that when she brought the trademark infringement issue to Mrs. Pataki’s attention, it wasn’t graciously resolved with a simple phone call and a name change.“I thought people in Albany would support small businesses,” Ms. McGuire said. Instead, a legal battle ensued, which ended this weekend when Mrs. Pataki agreed not to seek licensing involving Madison’s companion.“There is no question that she could have come up with this on her own,” Ms. Steinman said of Mrs. Pataki, when asked if it were possible that the similar names was more than a coincidence, “but she should have checked the registrations in the patent and trademark office before announcing licensing plans.”Mrs. Pataki’s lawyer, Gloria Phares, agreed in writing on Saturday that while the book can continue to be distributed, future Madison books will not include the New Yorkey character. Ms. Phares could not be reached for comment yesterday.Ms. McGuire, who applied for trademark protection for “the Real New Yorkie” in 2003, said it was hard to believe Mrs. Pataki could have missed the prior claim to the name. After all, Schmitty had her own window display at Barnes & Noble, where Mrs. Pataki’s books are also for sale, and Schmitty has gotten plenty of exposure in recent months. She made her first foray into politics during the presidential election, when she headed the “Bark the Vote” project, to encourage dog owners to walk to the polls. Then came an appearance at the Republican National Convention, where she had her own booth and posed for pictures with Barbara Bush.Among Schmitty’s future plans are a commitment from Sam’s Club stores to market New Yorkie-themed gift baskets next Christmas. In addition, Ms. McGuire said, an idea for a movie is being tossed around and a television show is in the works.“The governor’s wife is the big dogs,” Ms. McGuire said, but she continued, “I like to believe that no matter what your W-2 says, we’re all equals.”Mrs. Pataki and Wilson Kimball coauthored the story about the adventures of an 8-year-old girl who wants to show her new puppy, New Yorkey, the landmarks and diversity of New York City.

Mrs. Pataki Relents in Fight Against ‘the Real New Yorkie’

Mrs. Pataki Relents in Fight Against ‘the Real New Yorkie’

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