Was sued by hockey player Anthony Twist in 1997 for misappropriation of
his name, because the Spawn comic books featured an extremely violent
character named Tony Twist. After the real-life Twist presented
extensive evidence at trial that McFarlane had him in mind, a jury
returned a verdict against McFarlane and several other defendants for
$24.5 million. However, the verdict was overturned in 2003 by the
Missouri Supreme Court, which concluded that the jury was improperly
instructed and that the use of Mr. Twist's name was probably protected
by the First Amendment.
