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56

Ina Garten Trademarked “How Easy Is That”
Posted on June 13th 2011 by Jillian Madison

This email comes to us from Laura in South Carolina:

Jillian,

I was on The Barefoot Contessa website and clicked on the link to Ina’s overly priced Pantry items. The home page for the shop shows the attached picture of Ina with the caption “How easy is that” followed by a trademark. Is she really in that much danger of someone stealing her “catchphrase”?

I used to really admire Ina, but I think it’s getting a little ridiculous now…

Really, Ina? This is disturbing news. Now, it’s only a matter of time before Guy Ferry catches on and trademarks “slamma jamma.”


Other posts on Food Network Humor:

---Have You Rolled Your Eyes At Anything Yet Today?
---Guy Ferry. Never Forget!
---Top 10 Reasons Ina Garten Rejected The “Make A Wish” Foundation Boy
---Inner Monologue Of Ina Garten Waiting In Line At Trader Joe’s

    56 Responses

  1. Jonathan Doan says:
    June 13, 2011 at 1:31 pm

    Actually, I think it would be a wise idea for Ferry to trademark the saying “slamma jamma”. I mean, who else in the f-ing WORLD would actually WANT to say something so pathetically STUPID???

    It’s not like he’ll ever win any court cases over someone else actually using such a cringe-inducing phrase and trying to claim it as their own…

    Reply
    • Elle says:
      June 13, 2011 at 2:41 pm

      Hey, I fully support him trademarking it. It will make it that much less likely I ever have to hear it from anyone else.

      Reply
    • Jason Reichert says:
      June 13, 2011 at 10:41 pm

      Hakeem Olajuwon and Clyde Drexler can do us all a favor and beat him to it…they were part of the Phi Slamma Jamma at the University of Houston in the early 80s and went to the Final Four twice with that nickname for them and rest of the Cougars.

      Reply
    • Pat says:
      June 14, 2011 at 9:07 pm

      Wasn’t there a song in the 80s, “he’s a bad mamma jamma”?

      Reply
  2. Chucks says:
    June 13, 2011 at 2:04 pm

    Dude naw

    Reply
  3. Eurodancemix says:
    June 13, 2011 at 2:24 pm

    Um, what’s going on with the severe airbrushing on Ina? Wow. I mean, she’s not 20 anymore, but she certainly doesn’t look old.

    Reply
    • Jonathan Doan says:
      June 13, 2011 at 2:35 pm

      That’s the beauty of being a celebrity! You get all-time airbrushing in ANY publicity photo!!

      Reply
    • JConnolly says:
      June 14, 2011 at 8:26 am

      Seriously. She almost looks asian…or maybe polynesion or something. It’s really weird airbrushing, and kind of creepy.

      Reply
    • krosstx says:
      June 16, 2011 at 5:25 pm

      Seriosly..what happened to Ina’s 3 chins? They are nowhere to be found in this airbrushed picture!

      Reply
  4. Jordan says:
    June 13, 2011 at 2:25 pm

    The font seems a bit different for “that?”. So I’m guessing she just trademarked the last word, not the whole sentence. No biggie.

    Reply
  5. Goober says:
    June 13, 2011 at 2:29 pm

    In reference to Ina’s photo, “How old is that?”

    Reply
  6. oh_come_on says:
    June 13, 2011 at 2:57 pm

    How smart is that, being accomplished, shrewd and wealthy?

    Reply
  7. Anne Boulley says:
    June 13, 2011 at 3:01 pm

    I am getting so tired of her and I’m tired of Food Network alway pushing “easy” cooking instead of teaching advanced skills to people who love to cook and want to improve.

    Reply
    • Luna Lovegood says:
      June 13, 2011 at 7:30 pm

      Lol, advanced cooking skills on FN? That’s like searching for the meaning of life on the VH1 channel.

      Reply
  8. Lisa says:
    June 13, 2011 at 3:05 pm

    I am waiting for the post about Guy’s show yesterday on FN- his dad and sons were on and I think it was called the “Fieris Get Fancy”. He said “FIETTI” about 17 times.

    Reply
    • Silvio says:
      June 13, 2011 at 4:07 pm

      He loves sayin his own name fer fucks sakes.
      Something wrong with people that like to say their own names out loud. I am sure their is a syndrome name for it.

      Reply
    • krosstx says:
      June 16, 2011 at 5:29 pm

      Maybe he keeps saying it because it’s not really his last name…it’s FERRY. Wonder how his dad likes how douchebag Guy changed their last name from Ferry To Fietti? If I was gonna change any part of his name it would have to be Guy. I mean, who names their kid “Guy”? Might as well go with “Dude” or “Boy”

      Reply
  9. Diane says:
    June 13, 2011 at 3:28 pm

    I’m going to trademark “How stupid is that?”

    Reply
  10. Eternally Hungry says:
    June 13, 2011 at 4:32 pm

    I wonder if the TM has something to do with the name of her most recent book being “How Easy Is That”..

    Reply
  11. Lauren says:
    June 13, 2011 at 6:18 pm

    Yup, the whole phrase is trademarked…United States Trademark #77461671

    Here’s a link to the trademark
    http://www.seravia.com/trademark/united-states/ina-garten-llc-how-easy-is-that-k1d960qh8

    Reply
  12. Lauren says:
    June 13, 2011 at 6:19 pm

    Wow, on a side note…where have I been? When did you start moderating comments?

    Reply
  13. Keith Lee says:
    June 13, 2011 at 8:16 pm

    What about RR’s “EVOO”, “sammies”? Aunt Sandy’s “super super easy!”, “delllicious…”? Pat Neely’s “y’all’ (I think he uses it more than Paula)? Lots of stuff to trademark at FN!

    Reply
    • Sue Z says:
      June 13, 2011 at 8:28 pm

      I kind of doubt you can copyright drunken slurred speech. But I’m surprised “tablescapes” isn’t

      Reply
    • Lisa says:
      June 14, 2011 at 8:42 am

      I wondered why RR never trademarked “30 Minute Meals” or “EVOO”. There is actually an olive oil sold in stores called “EVOO” but it’s not hers, and there are lots of books with 30 Minute Meals in the titles. She missed an opportunity there but maybe it was early on when she didn’t have an agent and all of that.

      Reply
  14. Anne says:
    June 13, 2011 at 11:54 pm

    Guy has already trademarked “Flavortown” so I’m not surprised about slamma jamma or whatever the F that is.

    Reply
  15. Anne says:
    June 14, 2011 at 12:05 am

    I took a class on starting a small baking business and our instructor said you can put “TM” next to your business name or a saying even if you haven’t applied for a trademark, for whatever that’s worth. If Ina is going trademark one of her sayings, I think she should get a lock on “good” – like “good” olive oil, “good” vanilla and “good” eggs. When she says that, I want to scream! Really Ina? Would you get “bad” ingredients from your quaint little store in the Hamptons? I think not!

    Reply
  16. Lisa says:
    June 14, 2011 at 8:43 am

    BTW I saw her friend the model in a Macy’s commercial yesterday so he is now an official actor. I forget his name.

    Reply
  17. Rootietoot says:
    June 14, 2011 at 9:52 am

    Bless Her Heart ™. Whatever it takes for validation. Maybe if she trademarks thing she’ll feel more secure and quit with the nervous giggle(tm)

    Reply
  18. Spork-no-more says:
    June 14, 2011 at 11:52 am

    Technically, ‘how easy is that?” is a service mark, which does have to be trademarked if Ina wants to protect it. Many reasons to do that, at her level of enterprise. Not defending her tiresome rhetorical phrases – which I personally loathe. Just saying….

    Reply
  19. Pat says:
    June 14, 2011 at 9:15 pm

    I don’t follow Ina that closely, but if she has a book titled “How Easy Is That?” then that phrase/title would be copyrighted. I don’t know the exact legalities of the differences between copyrights and trademarks; i think the the first is for published written material and the latter is for…other media? By the same measure, if i want to use the phrase “I’m lovin’ it” — does McDonald’s have a copyright or trademark to those words?

    Reply
  20. Donna says:
    June 14, 2011 at 11:19 pm

    I bow down to you, Jillian. You made me truly laugh aloud when you typed out what knife you wanted. And your response to clueless person number 2 was sublime. You are the shit! (Unlike Guy being a shit stain, I mean that in the best way possible!)

    Reply
  21. Mal_Pal says:
    June 15, 2011 at 1:37 am

    Wow, just checked out Ina’s Pantry website. I will admit that I like Ina and I watch her show, but the prices on those items are like insanity come true. I mean a dozen frozen cream cheese biscuits at $25 plus $10 shipping??? I think it’s a sad day in the life of any person who feels the need to spend that much on about 50 cents worth of flour, water, and a dab of cream cheese. How absurd is that?

    Reply
    • Daria says:
      June 15, 2011 at 1:44 pm

      It gets confusing because it is linked in with this ‘Stonewall Kitchen’ company who makes these foods, so really all they did was take their products and slap a Barefoot Contessa label on them. Ina’s products are stuff like brownie and cake mixes for 13 bucks that probably don’t taste any different than Duncan Hines.

      Reply
  22. ScoopLV says:
    June 15, 2011 at 10:44 am

    I’m sure there will be a line of “How easy is that” cookware, kitchen gadgets, black aprons, German sedans, and flippin’ gay hydrangeas coming out at Target very soon.

    “Yorkshire pudding isn’t as hard as you think. Just pour the batter in to this piping hot popover pan. How easy is THAT?”

    “Use this no-stick silicone scraper to get the last bit of batter. How easy is THAT?!?!?!?”

    “This apron is made from teflon-coated fiber. So if you spill the good vanilla on it, it cleans up quickly. How easy is THAT!?!?!?!?!?!!?!?!?”

    Reply
  23. Ina Garten DaVida says:
    June 15, 2011 at 11:14 am

    Actually, I believe I’ve heard Rachael Ray utter the immortal words “How easy is THAT?”

    So maybe it’s a bit of a jab at RayRay.

    Reply
  24. Amy says:
    June 15, 2011 at 4:28 pm

    It’s the name of her cookbook…

    Reply
  25. krosstx says:
    June 16, 2011 at 5:31 pm

    SHe should trademark, “How to ignore a kid with cancer for 5 years in a row”!

    Reply
  26. Sweet peppa says:
    June 24, 2011 at 11:17 pm

    Look, I just want to see some NEW episodes of Barefoot Contessa”.
    Love that show.
    Hate all these boring competition shows about cupcakes,24hr nonsense,next food network flop etc.

    Reply

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