Peppers Hot Over ‘Californication’ TV Show

The Red Hot Chili Peppers is suing to stop Showtime Networks from using the name of one of its popular songs as the title of a TV series starring David Duchovny.

The series is called Californication, the name of a Chili Peppers song featured on a 1999 album with the same name, the Associated Press reports. One of the characters on the show is named after another of the band’s more recent songs, "Dani California."

The suit claims unfair competition, dilution of the value of the name and unjust enrichment.

The executive producer of the show, which stars Duchovny as a novelist suffering from writer’s block, said he had seen the term used on 1970s bumper stickers objecting to California residents moving to Oregon. They read, “Don't Californicate Oregon,” he said.

A hat tip to Blogonaut, which posted the news.