A photographer accuses Nike of violating the copyright of his 1984 photograph of a soaring Michael Jordan, an image later used as a logo for the highly successful Jordan Brand line of footwear and clothing, according to a lawsuit filed Thursday.
Photographer Jacobus Rentmeester of New York seeks unspecified monetary damages from the Oregon sports footwear and apparel company in the lawsuit filed in federal court in Portland. The filing contends Nike has for decades made unlawful use of the photograph as well as the iconic "Jumpman" image that is the logo of the Jordan Brand.
The lawsuit says Nike paid photographer Rentmeester $150 in August 1984 for temporary use of two 35mm transparencies of Jordan he shot for Life magazine, later returning the images lest the company be charged an additional $500.
But by February 1985, the lawsuit says, Nike shot a photograph of a soaring Jordan in a scene that recreated key elements of the image Rentmeester took of Jordan when the future NBA Hall of Famer was still a student at the University of North Carolina.
UPDATE: A Nike spokesman on Friday morning declined to comment on the lawsuit. The case on Friday was assigned to federal Judge Michael W. Mosman. No hearing dates had been set as of Friday afternoon.
Rentmeester contacted Nike upon learning of its image and "Nike initially refused to speak with Mr. Rentmeester regarding the issue," the lawsuit says, "and only responded to his repeated requests when Mr. Rentmeester threatened litigation."
The lawsuit says Nike paid Rentmeester $15,000 in March 1985 for a limited license to use the image of the soaring Jordan for two years.
But Nike exceeded the agreement in marketing materials as well as creating, in 1987, the Jumpman logo — a silhouette inspired by the soaring image, the lawsuit says.
In 1997, Nike created the Brand Jordan Division which designs, develops and markets Michael Jordan footwear and apparel. The division has helped Nike become the basketball sneaker market share leader.
While the lawsuit says Rentmeester is "the continuous and exclusive owner of the copyright" of the 1984 photo, it also says he "registered the Jordan Photo with the United States Copyright Office on December 18, 2014."
Regardless of the outcome of the legal action, sneakerheads, Jordan Brand aficionados and photography buffs will likely be captivated by the detailed description the complaint provides of Rentmeester's preparation to shoot the Jordan picture.
Rentmeester — known professionally as "Co" — photographed Jordan as part of a special section Life magazine published for the 1984 Summer Olympics.
Rentmeester, who worked as a staff photographer for Life magazine from 1966 to 1972 and as a freelancer for the publication until 2000, took photographs of track star Carl Lewis, diver Greg Louganis and hurdler Edwin Moses in addition to Jordan for the 22-page photo essay titled "American Excellence," the lawsuit says.
It says Rentmeester arrived on the University of North Carolina campus in the summer of 1984 with two assistants. University staff told him Jordan would be available for 20 minutes.
Rentmeester convinced university officials the photograph should take place outdoors and not inside a gymnasium. He chose "a relatively isolated knoll with little visual distraction," the lawsuit says.
It says Rentmeester told the assistants to buy a basketball hoop, backboard and pole and position it at the photo shoot location.
"To further minimize visual distractions," the lawsuit says, "Mr. Rentmeester asked his assistants to borrow a lawn mower from the UNC groundskeeping staff. They mowed the grass as low as possible to maximize attention on Mr. Jordan's soaring figure."
Before Jordan's arrival, Rentmeester took several practice photographs with an assistant standing in for Jordan, who that year had been named the NCAA College Basketball Player of the Year by The Associated Press.
Rentmeester shot photos of the assistant with a Polaroid camera so that he could show Jordan the desired pose, the lawsuit says.
It says:
Over approximately one half hour, Mr. Jordan practiced leaping according to Mr. Rentmeester's instructions. The pose differed substantially from Mr. Jordan's natural jumps, during gameplay or otherwise (for instance, Mr. Jordan typically held the basketball with his right hand), and required practice and repeated attempts. Mr. Jordan was enthusiastic and a quick study. Mr. Rentmeester photographed Jordan at the apex of his "grand jeté" leaps, using a Hasselblad camera with 6x6cm film, with powerful strobe lights that required specialty outdoor electricity generators to power. The large strobe lights allowed Mr. Rentmeester to photograph Mr. Jordan with the sun shining directly into the lens, creating a sharp and compelling silhouette of Mr. Jordan against a contrasting clear sky.
The lawsuit includes another photo it says Nike created. That image features several aspects of the shot from the summer of 1984, including the outdoor setting, similar lighting and a splaying and soaring Jordan. In that image and Rentmeester's, the right-handed Jordan is holding the basketball in his left hand.
A copy of an Aug. 22, 1984, invoice for Nike's $150 fee is included in the filing.
The invoice is addressed to Peter Moore, then Nike's creative director who, the lawsuit says, "is credited with designing the Air Jordan line of athletic shoes."
Moore later left Nike and played a key role in reconstituting the Adidas brand in the U.S., eventually becoming president of Portland-based Adidas America.
--Allan Brettman
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