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Odd name changes

posted by Jason Kottke   Jul 30, 2008

Law professor Eugene Volokh rounds up some cases where courts ruled on unusual name changes (like Talula Does the Hula From Hawaii).

Misteri N***er, second “i” silent. No, said the California Court of Appeal in 1992, because it constitutes “fighting words”: “[I]f a man asks appellant his name and he answers ‘Mister N***er,’ the man might think appellant was calling him ‘Mister N***er.’ Moreover, third persons, including children hearing the epithet, may be embarrassed, shocked or offended by simply hearing the word.

Ah, the old “them’s fightin’ words” argument.