Taint funny, McGee

Jay Leno

It appears that no one is allowed to use Jay Leno's jokes. Not even Jay Leno.

The late-night talk-show host's jokes will no longer be purloined and published by writer Judy Brown, author of a series of joke books, according to a settlement. Leno and NBC had sued Brown for copyright infringement for her use of Leno's, and other comedians', material in her books, including "Jokes to Go," and "Comedy Thesaurus."

Brown apologized publicly and promised not to do it again. Financial terms of the settlement, if any, were not disclosed. Leno said, in a statement, "I thought it was important to make it clear that jokes are protected like any other art form."

Meanwhile, a few weeks earlier, the Writers Guild of America announced it would take some as-yet unspecified action against Leno for using his own jokes on the Tonight Show during the ongoing writer's strike. Leno is a member of the Guild, and it seems his using his own material is deemed to be a kind of scabbing. "He's not getting a free pass," said Guild spokeswoman Sherry Goldman. Apparently, Leno and NBC think that position is laughable, that he is not covered by the rule. We'll see who laughs last.