Skyhorse Publishing and Author Fred Stoller Win Seinfeld Related Defamation Lawsuit Brought by Real Life "Cosmo Kramer"

Court Dismisses $1 Million Lawsuit Filed by Kenny Kramer and Kramer's Reality Tours, Inc.

New York, NY, July 15, 2014 - Fish & Richardson announced today that its client, Skyhorse Publishing, Inc., and comedian/author Fred Stoller have won a defamation lawsuit brought on by Kenny Kramer - the real life inspiration for "Cosmo Kramer" on the Seinfeld show - and owner of Kramer's Reality Tours, Inc. On July 14, 2014, the Supreme Court of the State of New York dismissed the $1 million lawsuit, which centered on a well-known Seinfeld episode called “The Outing" and the now famous catch phrase, “Not that there’s anything wrong with that."

Kramer sued Skyhorse Publishing and Stoller in December 2013 claiming his reputation was damaged in the gay community after Skyhorse published Stoller's memoir, “Maybe We’ll Have You Back: The Life of a Perennial TV Guest Star,” in April 2013.

"This is a well-deserved victory not only for our client, Skyhorse Publishing, and the author of the book, Fred Stoller, but for anyone who's been the target of a nuisance suit like this one. This case could have been a Seinfeld episode itself, since it was trying to make something out of nothing," said John Johnson, a principal at Fish & Richardson in New York who was lead counsel on the case with Kristen McCallion, also a principal in Fish's New York office.

"We are thrilled that Kenny Kramer's absolutely ludicrous lawsuit was dismissed. It's a triumph not only for Skyhorse Publishing but for the entire book community," said Tony Lyons, President and Publisher of Skyhorse Publishing. He added, "Our book was written by comedian Fred Stoller who was trying to be funny and there's certainly 'nothing wrong with that'!"

Skyhorse Publishing was launched in September 2006 by Tony Lyons, former President and Publisher of the Lyons Press. The company has grown from 2 people in its infancy to 62 current employees. Skyhorse with its twelve imprints (Allworth Press, Arcade Publishing, Carrel Books, Gary Null Publishing, Helios Press, Night Shade Books, Not For Tourists, Skyhorse, Sky Pony Press, Sports Publishing, Talos Press, and Yucca) has published 8 New York Times bestsellers, including Jesse Ventura's American Conspiracies and Roger Stone's The Man Who Killed Kennedy. The Skyhorse publishing program includes books on history, politics, humor, cooking, business, art, fiction, memoir, sports, health, fitness, and children's books. For more on Skyhorse Publishing, please visit www.skyhorsepublishing.com.