Gabibbo is an Italian mascot for the

Mediaset Mediaset Italia S.p.A., also known as Mediaset, is an Italian-based mass media company which is the largest commercial broadcaster in the country. The company is controlled by the holding company MFE - MediaForEurope. Founded in 1987 by former ...

-controlled channel

Canale 5 Canale 5 () is an Italian free-to-air television channel of Mediaset, owned by MFE - MediaForEurope. It was the first private television network to have a national coverage in Italy in 1980. On 4 December 2012, Mediaset launched Canale 5 HD, a s ...

, created in 1990 by Gabibbo's main role has been in the programs '' Paperissima'' and ''

Striscia la notizia ''Striscia la notizia'' () is an Italian satirical television program on the Mediaset-controlled Canale 5. Founded in 1988, it is meant to be a parody of the daily news, which airs right before the program, but ''Striscia'' also satirizes gover ...

'', but he has appeared in several other Canale 5 programs. He is normally a jovial character known for his ability to make wisecracks and his overall humble demeanor. He speaks Italian with a

Genoese Genoese may refer to: * a person from Genoa * Genoese dialect, a dialect of the Ligurian language * Republic of Genoa (–1805), a former state in Liguria See also * Genovese, a surname * Genovesi, a surname * * * * * Genova (disambiguati ...

accent Accent may refer to: Speech and language * Accent (sociolinguistics), way of pronunciation particular to a speaker or group of speakers * Accent (phonetics), prominence given to a particular syllable in a word, or a word in a phrase ** Pitch ac ...

, occasionally using Italianized Genoese words. In fact the word ''Gabibbo'' or ''Gabibbu'' belongs to the Genoese language and it is used to indicate, in an ironic-depreciative way, an immigrant from southern or even central Italy (it may originate from the Arab epithet '' habib'').

Western Kentucky Hilltoppers lawsuit

Gabibbo has also earned negative press surrounding a

lawsuit - A lawsuit is a proceeding by a party or parties against another in the civil court of law. The archaic term "suit in law" is found in only a small number of laws still in effect today. The term "lawsuit" is used in reference to a civil actio ...

brought by Western Kentucky University who claim that Gabibbo is an exact copy of their mascot Big Red. Western Kentucky claims it has a case because in an interview with '' Novella 2000'', Ricci states that he created Gabibbo after seeing Western Kentucky's mascot, further adding that Gabibbo is in fact, "(an imported) Big Red". Ricci claims he was joking in that interview, saying that he made the remark after Novella pointed out the similarities between Big Red and Gabibbo. He goes on to say that there are "100 different mascots who look like Gabibbo", not just Big Red, adding that the '' Sesame Street'' mascots Cookie Monster and Elmo also look like Gabibbo. However, Gabibbo's head is almost an exact copy of Big Red's (a fact repeated by '' The New York Times'''

business Business is the practice of making one's living or making money by producing or Trade, buying and selling Product (business), products (such as goods and Service (economics), services). It is also "any activity or enterprise entered into for pr ...

section, who quip that Gabibbo is simply a "better dressed" version of Big Red) and that Big Red debuted in 1979, almost eleven years prior to Gabibbo. On 12 December 2007, Gabibbo and Antonio Ricci were found to not be liable for infringement by the court of appeals in Milan but on June 7, 2018, the decision was overruled and remanded by the Italian Supreme Court.

References

External links

Mediaset's Page on GabibboMascot Wars: Big Red Loses To Gabibbo
Italian television personalities Male characters in television Male characters in advertising Mascots introduced in 1990 Corporate mascots Copyright infringement Television mascots {{tv-char-stub