Did WWE really send Cody Rhodes a cease and desist letter to stop using the Rhodes name?

No.

 

At least according to Cody himself:

 

Edit: On second thought, Cody didn't deny it. Kinda ambiguous. Could be read that he's raring to fight for his name.

 

Cody Rhodes
✔
@CodyRhodes

I own Rhodes

He was with me for my first breath and I was with him for his last

There's no piece of paper on Earth that takes my name away
3:44 PM - 15 Jul 2016

 

https://twitter.com/CodyRhodes/status/754038879993401344

 

What a scumbag move by WWE if true, especially when Dusty worked for them until the day he died and Dustin still works there now.

If they trademarked it, which all accounts seem to suggest they did in 2009, they kind of have to in order to protect their trademarks. Dusty and Dustin worked under the Rhodes name prior to WWF/WWE but Cody never did. They trademarked "Cody Rhodes" like they would any other person coming up through developmental.

 

Also this is why second/third generation guys are never allowed to use their family names anymore.

Eh. If Rhodes meant that cradle-to-grave much to Cody, he should have changed his legal name or trademarked it before WWE could. Certainly it would have seemed useful to him long before he seemed useful to WWE, and certainly he was raised to know how WWE works.

Did he work as Cody Runnels in developmental?

Did he work as Cody Runnels in developmental?

 

 

I believe he did at some point in OVW.

Did the WWE also trademark the word "petty" ?

I think Gary Hart picked out the name Dusty Rhodes in the late 1960's , he had just watched " A Face in the Crowd ". So Dusty worked the Amarillo and Tri - State territories before even the AWA days. Would the WWE claim to the Rhodes name hold up in court ? Would this be like trademarking the Von Erich name and telling Kevin , Marshall and Ross they can no use the their own ring name ?

I think Gary Hart picked out the name Dusty Rhodes in the late 1960's , he had just watched " A Face in the Crowd ". So Dusty worked the Amarillo and Tri - State territories before even the AWA days. Would the WWE claim to the Rhodes name hold up in court ? Would this be like trademarking the Von Erich name and telling Kevin , Marshall and Ross they can no use the their own ring name ?

Apples and oranges. Cody's real last name is Runnels, not Rhodes.

Von Erich isn't their real last name either

For whatever it's worth, "Dusty" Rhodes was also a fairly well-known baseball player 10 years before "Dusty Rhodes" ever wrestled a match.

For whatever it's worth, "Dusty" Rhodes was also a fairly well-known baseball player 10 years before "Dusty Rhodes" ever wrestled a match.

 

There have been quite a few of them according to Wikipedia, so it's a pretty common homophone pun.

WWE is in a tough place, because if they don't enforce the trademark with Cody they set a precedent they don't want, and if they do enforce it they're seen as being dicks to the son of a beloved employee.

They can sell it to him or lease it to him. They've done that in the past, I'm pretty sure, with both Rock and Undertaker.

They can sell it to him or lease it to him. They've done that in the past, I'm pretty sure, with both Rock and Undertaker.

 

Pretty sure they did it for the Rock so he would use the name in movies. Also those are two guys Vince can be most assured of (after Hunter I guess) that they won't ever try to work for a rival wrestling company.

 

I think Gary Hart picked out the name Dusty Rhodes in the late 1960's , he had just watched " A Face in the Crowd ". So Dusty worked the Amarillo and Tri - State territories before even the AWA days. Would the WWE claim to the Rhodes name hold up in court ? Would this be like trademarking the Von Erich name and telling Kevin , Marshall and Ross they can no use the their own ring name ?

Apples and oranges. Cody's real last name is Runnels, not Rhodes.

 

 

Well the point is that the WWE is trademarking a name/ character that was created by Gary Hart in the 1960 's. I am not a lawyer , so I don't know if the WWE can just trademark names and characters that were created years before McMahon was even working in Wrestling . Somebody ' s shoot got nothing to do with anything.

 

 

I think Gary Hart picked out the name Dusty Rhodes in the late 1960's , he had just watched " A Face in the Crowd ". So Dusty worked the Amarillo and Tri - State territories before even the AWA days. Would the WWE claim to the Rhodes name hold up in court ? Would this be like trademarking the Von Erich name and telling Kevin , Marshall and Ross they can no use the their own ring name ?

Apples and oranges. Cody's real last name is Runnels, not Rhodes.

 

 

Well the point is that the WWE is trademarking a name/ character that was created by Gary Hart in the 1960 's. I am not a lawyer , so I don't know if the WWE can just trademark names and characters that were created years before McMahon was even working in Wrestling . Somebody ' s shoot name got nothing to do with anything.

 

 

 

Gary Hart didn't come up with "Cody Rhodes" though. If I become a wrestler and decide to call myself Sek Hogan, it doesn't mean WWE can't copyright my name because Hulk Hogan was around 40 years ago.

I get that and you could be right , like I said I am not a lawyer . However , Cody could argue his dad really owns the name and it down to him and Dustin. I don't know . The right thing for Vince to do is back off and just let Cody use his dad's name.

I don't know if it's 100% across the board, but the general rule of thumb is that if you've used a name prior to WWE they can't keep you from using it after unless you sign the rights over to them. Dustin used the Rhodes name prior to WWE, but Cody didn't. Sucks for him, but WWE is technically correct, and as Hermes Conrad would tell you, that's the best kind of correct.

Like I said you may be right. However , I would like to see this go to court if McMahon does not back off. You just never know.

I know, I just wanted to sneak in a Futurama reference whenever I can.