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Hey! Ho! Let's Go! ...to court.
Apple is among the companies named in a lawsuit filed by Richard Reinhart, aka 'Richie Ramone'.
During his time in the band, Richie Ramone never got much respect. As the thrid drummer for the pioneering punk group, he was overshadowed by predecessor Marky Ramone and never got fully accepted during his four-year run. In fact, Richie was considered so much of an outsider that the other band members cut him out of merchandise revenues.
Now, it seems Mr. Reinhart-Ramone has had enough, and he's looking for some Gabba Gabba green from the iTunes store.
The drummer is suing Apple, Walmart, and Real Networks, along with the estate of Ramones guitarist John Cummings and the band's music publishers, according to a Reuters report.
T-shirt sales, apparently, weren't the only thing Richie got cut out of. The suit alleges that Reinhart was never paid royalties by Apple and others for songs that he co-wrote. Among the titles Reinhart claims credit for are "Somebody Put Something In My Drink" and "I'm Not Jesus".
It would first seem strange that Apple would be sued for a royalty issue (which is normally the responsibility of the publisher,) but it is not without precedent. Earlier this year, rapper Eminem sued Apple in a similar dispute, claiming that the company had sold his songs through the publisher without permission.
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