Absurdist report in today’s Washington Post:
Mikhail Gorbachev is tired of his image being tarnished. The former leader of the Soviet Union, who readily lent his name to Apple computers and Pizza Hut during the 1990s, has now secured his last name along with his moniker ” Gorby” as official brand names in Russia, an aide says.
This effort to “defend Mr. Gorbachev’s name by legal means” came after increased use of his image in commercials without his consent, press attache Vladimir Polyakov says. The spokesman declined to give details about the trademark, saying only that it is applicable “worldwide.” Gorbachev is in the midst of a dispute with a vodka producer who used the former leader’s portrait on bottles of his product. From here on out, Gorbachev says he’ll associate only with “honorable products.”
Guess that rules out Soviet communism.