Bettie Page's estate sues over licensing

INDIANAPOLIS, March 30 (UPI) -- CMG Worldwide, the firm that represents Bettie Page's estate, is suing a Web site for using the 1950s Hollywood pinup model's name without permission.

The Indianapolis Star said CMG filed the lawsuit against Stockingirl.com in U.S. District Court in Indianapolis. Indiana laws against unlicensed use of celebrity images reportedly are among the most restrictive in the country.

CMG claims the Web site is using Page's name to sell intimate women's apparel after its license to do so expired.

"Different states have various statutes for their right of publicity," Mark A. Roesler, chairman of CMG, told the Star. "The statute in Indiana is 100 years of protection after (the celebrity's) death. That's one of the longest in the country."

The newspaper said Stockingirl.com owner Edward Miccinati has since promised to remove any items that used Page's name from his Web site.

Page died two years ago at the age of 85.