Recently, you may have heard the news about Tom Brady, a
somewhat well-known quarterback in the professional sport of
American football. His company, TEB Capital Management, Inc., filed
two trademark applications seeking registration of the mark TOM
TERRIFIC, one for shirts and one for trading cards, posters, and
photographs. The applications were filed on an intent-to-use
basis.
Apparently people keep track of what this guy does. So the news
of these applications broke days after the applications were filed.
It is not unusual for athletes and others in the entertainment
field to convert a nickname into a brand for use with goods and
services and seek to protect it as a registered trademark. But it
may be less usual for an athlete to do this when the nickname is
one shared with another beloved athlete. In this case, it appears
that many sports fans recognize TOM TERRIFIC as the nickname of Tom
Seaver, a Major League Baseball Hall of Fame pitcher who played
with the
