'The Doughfather' pizzeria in New Jersey told to change logo resembling that of 'The Godfather'
MONROE TOWNSHIP, New Jersey (WABC) -- The production company behind the critically acclaimed movie "The Godfather," is demanding a local pizzeria in New Jersey, named "The Doughfather," change its logo due to its resemblance to the film's logo.
The owner of the pizzeria, Max D'Amico, says he received a letter this week from Paramount Pictures telling him to make the change.
If D'Amico wasn't asked to slice away part of his pizza shop's logo, he would have been ecstatic to keep it.
"It's one of the greatest movies ever made," D'Amico said.
When he decided to open a pizza shop a few years back, he dedicated its theme to his favorite movie of all time: "The Godfather."
"I was 7 years old watching it with the family," D'Amico said. "Being an immigrant family, we were all watching it. It was fun. It was a great movie. I'll never forget it. It was a snowy day, we sat there for six hours."
The problem is, his logo is strikingly similar to the movie's logo, and Paramount owns that, and someone ratted D'Amico out.
So, the entertainment company sent him an email telling him to stop using the logo, which is on everything in the pizzeria.
"This is a family-owned business. They're all hard working people that help our community," said Councilman Charlie DiPierro of Monroe Township.
His friends aren't too happy about any of this, especially his buddy who restores magnificent rides, and the one who has a striking resemblance to actor Billy Bob Thornton.
"The staff... they work hard for all of us... and it's unfortunate what's happening," DiPierro said.
"I mean he's not making money off the font. He's not making money off the marionette hands. He's making money off the pizza. He's not making movies," said Pete Tufano, D'Amico's friend and loyal customer. "I don't see the conflict, but the law is the law, and Max is a stand up guy, so he'll change the emblems and comply with whatever they're asking."
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