In 1991, when crime was high in New York City and public opinion of Central Park was much lower than today, Donald Trump applied for a trademark on the name "Central Park" and got it. He has held on to, and profited from, a widening variety of trademarks ever since, slapping the name Central Park first on parking garages, then onto furniture, pillows, pencil boxes, "non-electric coffee percolators," chandeliers, keychain, and other items. And Trump paid no more than the filing fee to become the single largest private for-profit trademark holder of Central Park trademarks for specific goods.
Alan Garten, general counsel for The Trump Organization, declined to tell The Associated Press how much money Trump has earned from his Central Park trademarks, only saying that "Mr. Trump, over the course of his career, has owned and developed some of the most iconic buildings in the city, many of which... sit only footsteps away from Central Park." The park is operated by both New York City and the private Central Park Conservancy, which can sell items like umbrellas with the official Central Park logo. Neither the city nor the Conservancy can revoke Trump's trademarks, though the city has tried and failed to derail several trademark applications but found no way to, NY1 reports.
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