Nintendo would like you to quit monkeying around with its intellectual property. The video-game giant has filed a request to trademark the phrase “It’s on like Donkey Kong,” which references the girlfriend-stealing, banana-loving gorilla who’s been appearing in Nintendo games since 1981 (and just so happens to be starring in a new game debuting in less than two weeks, Donkey Kong Country Returns). The phrase often pops up in TV and movies — it was even a trailer tagline for the gaming-influenced Scott Pilgrim vs. the World — though Nintendo’s main beef may be with Ice Cube, who either coined the phrase or popularized it in his 1992 cut “Now I Gotta Wet’Cha.” (Still, let’s hope Nintendo stops its copyright crusade before doing the Mario is outlawed.) [CNN]
