Jumpman (logo)

For other uses of "Jumpman", see Jumpman (disambiguation).
The "Jumpman" logo is used by Nike to promote the Air Jordan shoes, among other merchandise.

The "Jumpman" logo is owned by Nike to promote its Michael Jordan-related merchandise, including the well-known and successful Air Jordan brand of basketball shoes. The logo is a silhouette of Michael Jordan performing a dunk.

History

The first recorded event of Michael Jordan doing the "Jumpman" pose came in a photoshoot for LIFE Magazine leading up to the 1984 Olympic Games before Michael Jordan had signed with Nike. The photo was staged, with Jordan performing a ballet technique known as a grand jeté to make it appear as if he was leaping for a slam dunk, a movement not actually consistent with Jordan's jumping style. [1][2]

The Air Jordan III, released in 1988, was the first Air Jordan shoe to feature the Jumpman logo, replacing the "Wings" logo, which had been a feature of the Air Jordans I and II.

In 1993-94, Nike ran a series of Air Jordan commercials pairing Michael Jordan with Warner Brothers' owned Bugs Bunny. As a tie-in, Nike created a line of merchandise which featured a spoof of the Jumpman using Bugs' silhouette, combined with a "Hare Jordan" caption. This campaign was followed by the 1996 film Space Jam, which references the Jumpman logo during its climax, in which Jordan dunks from half-court.

Controversy

On January 22, 2015, photographer Jacobus Rentmeester filed a suit against Nike claiming copyright infringement over the use of the Jumpman logo. Rentmeester asserted that slides of the for LIFE Magazine photograph shot by him of Jordan prior to the 1984 Olympics was used by Nike as inspiration for the Jumpman logo. The suit was brought before a federal court in Portland, Oregon for an unspecified amount of damages.[2][3]

References

  1. ↑ "History of the Air Jordan Jumpman Logo". http://www.nicekicks.com''. Retrieved 24 January 2015.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 Rovell, Darren (January 23, 2015). "Nike sued over Michael Jordan logo". ESPN. Retrieved 24 January 2015.
  3. ↑ "Photographer sues Nike over Michael Jordan photo copyright". Associated Press. January 23, 2015. Retrieved 24 January 2015.