Cody, Arn Anderson And Conrad Thompson Apply For Intriguing Trademarks

Well, this one is sure to get tongues wagging. Conrad Thompson, who (probably) almost caused Vince McMahon to have a breakdown when he booked The Undertaker for Starrcast, is in the news again after filing for the trademark “Four Horsemen” on March 10.

Perhaps surprisingly WWE does not currently own the trademark to the name Four Horsemen, which was of course the legendary NWA/WCW faction made up of Ric Flair, Arn Anderson, Tully Blanchard and various others over the years.

Thompson via his business Toot Toot has applied for use of the term under the following description:

G & S: Hooded sweatshirts; Shirts; Athletic shirts; Sports shirts; T-shirts; Tee shirts” as well as for “G & S: Entertainment services, namely, wrestling exhibits and performances by a professional wrestler and entertainer; Entertainment services, namely, providing podcasts in the field of professional wrestling and sports entertainment; Entertainment services, namely, live appearances by a professional wrestling and sports entertainment personality; Entertainment services, namely, personal appearances by a professional wrestling and sports entertainment personality

Of note within that is “performances by a professional wrestling”. Does this mean there is a possibility – pending approval of the trademark – that a Four Horsemen group will spring up in AEW? Who would be part of it? Would they feud with Cody, whose father Dusty Rhodes had classic battles with the group in the 1980s?

Speaking of both Arn Anderson and Cody, they too have filed for trademarks in recent days, with Anderson, real name Martin Lunde, applying for his wrestling name (“Arn Anderson”). We would expect that one will be difficult to challenge given his use of the name long predates his time in WWE.

Cody has applied for the trademark “The American Dream”, which was his father’s nickname, and “The American Nightmare”, which was the name he used during his years on the independent scene.

How will Vince McMahon and WWE react to this news? Will they try to challenge some or all of these names? Are we heading for a lengthy legal battle that prevents the three parties for using these trademarks going forwards? It’s a fascinating situation.

• Conrad Thompson
• four horsemen
• Cody
• AEW

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