Yup! There was a Planet Money episode about this, called Frank Sinatra's Mug. It's all about how Frank Sinatra had the laws in California changed in order to

Yup! There was a Planet Money episode about this, called Frank Sinatra's Mug. It's all about how Frank Sinatra had the laws in California changed in order to protect the likeness - including the sound - of a celebrity. Apparently it's Section 3334 of California's Civil Code. Quoting from the episode: "Essentially what it says is that you can't take somebody's name, or their likeness, or their signature or their voice, and use it for commercial gain without permission from that person. And if you do that, you're liable." The full episode is here - it's one of Planet Money's best. http://www.npr.org/templates/transcript/transcript.php?storyId=459116467 http://www.npr.org/templates/transcript/transcript.php?story...