There’s no telling how many lawsuits are filed every day, but you can bet that at least some of them will probably sound a little weird out of context.
And sometimes, one of these cases will become strange enough that people on the other side of the world from where it was filed will hear about it. And that goes double if the suit is aimed at a high-profile target.
With that in mind, the fact that the man who once appeared on the cover of legendary band Nirvana’s Nevermind album sued everyone involved in the album’s creation may come as a surprise. However, the fact that his case got everybody talking shortly after a he filed it in late August was only to be expected.
And as is often the case with lawsuits, you might expect all the parties named in it to stay quiet until a decision is reached. But while that’s mostly been true, former Nirvana drummer Dave Grohl has recently broken his silence on the matter.
After a history of complicated feelings about his place in rock history, 30-year-old Spencer Elden alleged that the 1991 album cover consitutes child sexual exploitation.
In court documents obtained by the BBC, he argued, “The images exposed Spencer’s intimate body part and lasciviously displayed Spencer’s genitals from the time he was an infant to the present day.”
He also claimed that his parents never signed a release authorizing the photo’s use and that they were promised that a sticker would cover his genitalia.
Since this didn’t occur, he said he continues to suffer “lifelong damages” from the psychological and developmental effects of the cover’s iconic status.
And so Elden’s lawsuit now seeks $150,000 from each of the 15 defendents named.
According to the BBC, these include Kurt Cobain’s widow Courtney Love and the other managers of his estate, his former bandmates Dave Grohl and Krist Novoselic, and photographer Kirk Weddle.
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As Buzzfeed News reported , Elden is also seeking to change the album’s artwork in the event of a 30th anniversary re-issue.
His lawyer Maggie Mabie made a statement to this effect, saying, “If there is a 30th anniversary re-release, he wants for the entire world not to see his genitals.”
And while the general current status of the lawsuit is unclear, it sounds like Elden may get his wish on this front.
In an interview with The Sunday Times , Grohl revealed that the Nevermind album cover may soon be subject to change.
In his words, “I have many ideas of how we should alter that cover but we’ll see what happens. I’m sure we’ll come up with something good. We’ll let you know.”
As for the lawsuit itself, Grohl said that legal battles are simply something he’s had to get used to since he first entered the public eye.
As he put it, “There’s much more to look forward to and much more to life than getting bogged down in those kinds of things.”
And he added that it probably helps that he’s not the one who has to do all the paperwork.
h/t: BBC , The Sunday Times
