Judge Dismisses Velvet Underground Copyright Claim vs. Warhol Over Banana

A federal judge has dismissed part of The Velvet Underground’s lawsuit accusing the Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts of violating its rights to an iconic banana image used on the rock band’s best-known album. While Velvet Underground’s trademark case remains untouched, U.S. District Judge Alison Nathan in Manhattan rejected its request for a court order that the Warhol Foundation had no copyright claim to the banana image. Nathan said the Warhol Foundation’s agreement not to sue for copyright infringement over Velvet Underground’s use of the image eliminated any copyright dispute for her to resolve, according to a decision released Friday evening.