The Eagles have filed a lawsuit accusing the owners of
a Mexico hotel of using the name "Hotel California," arguably the
band's most famous song, without permission.
In a complaint filed late on Monday (May 1), the Eagles
said owners of the 11-room Todos Santos hotel in Baja California
Sur "actively encourage" guests to believe the hotel is associated
with the band, in order to sell T-shirts and other merchandise, and
make guests feel welcome.
This allegedly included piping Hotel California and
other Eagles songs through the hotel sound system, and selling
T-shirts in that refer to the hotel as "legendary," resulting in
apparent confusion among many guests who posted online reviews.
The Eagles also noted that the defendant Hotel
California Baja LLC has applied with the US Patent and Trademark
Office to register the Hotel California name.
"Defendants lead US consumers to believe that the Todos
Santos Hotel is associated with the Eagles and, among other things,
served as the inspiration for the lyrics in Hotel California, which
is false," the complaint said.
The lawsuit filed in Los Angeles federal court seeks a
variety of damages and a halt to any infringement.
Neither the hotel nor the lawyer who filed its
trademark application immediately responded on Tuesday to requests
for comment.
The Todos Santos hotel was named Hotel California when
it opened in 1950, but went through a series of name changes before
a Canadian couple, John and Debbie Stewart, bought it in 2001, and
according to the Eagles began using the original name in
marketing.
Hotel California is the title track from the 1976
Eagles album of the same name and won the 1977 Grammy award for
record of the year.
It is known for its long guitar outro featuring Don
Felder and Joe Walsh, and complex lyrics sung by Don Henley.
In an interview with CBS News last year, Henley said
the song is about "a journey from innocence to experience. It's not
really about California; it's about America."
ST