# A Question About "Zippy The Pinhead" **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [January 10, 2012, 9:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-question-about-zippy-the-pinhead/609084 "2012-01-10T21:47:54Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 6\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![ralph124c](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/8797f3/32.png) [@ralph124c](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ralph124c)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2012, 9:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-question-about-zippy-the-pinhead/609084/1 "2012-01-10T21:47:54Z")
From time to time, the guy who writes “Zippy” will insert characters from other (old) comic strips (like “Sluggo”, “Nancy”,etc. Does Griffith ever get in trouble for this? How about his portrayals of Mickey Rooney? ---
**Author:** ![Snowboarder\_Bo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowboarder_bo/32/229_2.png) [@Snowboarder\_Bo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snowboarder_Bo)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2012, 10:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-question-about-zippy-the-pinhead/609084/2 "2012-01-10T22:47:55Z")
As far as I know, he’s never been sued at all. I’ve certainly never heard about a lawsuit even being filed, nor did a quick google search turn anything up. I would think he’s covered by the fact that he’s not exploiting the images of other comic/cartoon characters, he’s using them as satire. And it’s hard for a public figure to sue anyone unless it’s an out-and-out lie and done with malice, AFAIK. ---
**Author:** ![Kamino\_Neko](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kamino_neko/32/34_2.png) [@Kamino\_Neko](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kamino_Neko)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2012, 11:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-question-about-zippy-the-pinhead/609084/3 "2012-01-10T23:10:00Z")
Comic strip writers borrow each other’s characters a lot - Stephan Pastis in Pearls Before Swine and Mark Tatulli in Lio do it all the damn time. (Pastis has a particular love of The Family Circus, Tatulli classic comics - Blondie, Peanuts, etc - [here’s a cameo from last week](http://www.gocomics.com/lio/2012/01/05).) ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2012, 11:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-question-about-zippy-the-pinhead/609084/4 "2012-01-10T23:16:32Z")
> [@Snowboarder\_Bo](#): > > As far as I know, he’s never been sued at all. I’ve certainly never heard about a lawsuit even being filed, nor did a quick google search turn anything up. > > I would think he’s covered by the fact that he’s not exploiting the images of other comic/cartoon characters, he’s using them as satire. > > And it’s hard for a public figure to sue anyone unless it’s an out-and-out lie and done with malice, AFAIK. And a lawsuit would be free publicity for his strip, and make all the copyright-holders suing him look like pricks. ---
**Author:** ![Tim\_R.Mortiss](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tim_r.mortiss/32/142_2.png) [@Tim\_R.Mortiss](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tim_R.Mortiss)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2012, 11:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-question-about-zippy-the-pinhead/609084/5 "2012-01-10T23:43:02Z")
“Family Guy” does it all the time, too. And that’s a lot higher on the radar screen than Zippy has ever been! ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2012, 1:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-question-about-zippy-the-pinhead/609084/6 "2012-01-11T01:48:02Z")
Other comic book cameos were the entire point of **[Sam’s Strip](http://www.toonopedia.com/samstrip.htm)**. And Alfred E. Neuman made an appearance in **[Peanuts](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XkBStU51yfE)** in 1973. Comic artists usually like it when other comics use their characters.