Meat Loaf, the 90′s rock star best known for his hit song, “I’d Do Anything for Love (But I Won’t Do That),” is suing a tribute act for $100,000.
The “online imposter,” as Meat Loaf describes the man in a legal document via the Los Angeles law firm Lavely & Singer, is Dean Torkington. Torkington told The Daily Mail that he has been a Meat Loaf tribute act since 1996, performing in pubs and music venues around the UK. He is not being sued for impersonating the rock star, but rather for using the domain name www.MeatLoaf.org, capitalizing on Meat Loaf’s celebrity, claims Meat Loaf.
Meat Loaf alleges that Torkington “is now liable for substantial damages, including statutory damages of up to $100,000 for…cyber squatting.”
The real Meat Loaf’s domain name is Meatloaf.net. Meatloaf.com is currently being held by a company that squatted the URL long ago.
Torkington is not backing down very easily, however. He is quoted by the The Sun as saying, “I’m seeing my barrister because there’s a legal term that states if he knew about me and has done nothing before he cannot complain later on.”
The British tribute act says Meat Loaf has been hassling him over this matter for about 10 years. He once paid for VIP tickets to see Meat Loaf at Liverpool Docks. He went backstage only to get reviled by Meat Loaf and his manager, demanding him to take the Meat Loaf paraphernalia down from his van and also to give up his website address. He did neither.
Torkington defends himself by stating, “My webpage has always said that I am a tribute act. I have never tried to say that I am Meat Loaf himself.” He also claims to be the most accurate portrayal of “the Rock God, Meat Loaf,” and is keeping his legacy alive. Torkington uses the website to promote his live act called, “To Hell and Back: A Tribute to Meat Loaf.”
Torkington offered the URL to Meat Loaf for about $12,500, wanting cash to promote his new gig – Bruce Springsteen and Steven Tyler impressions. He is shifting to impersonating thinner rock stars because he has dropped 168lbs, he told TMZ.com.
Meat Loaf denied the offer and is following through with legal charges against Torkington.
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