McFarlane's comic book business files for bankruptcy

PHOENIX -- A Missouri jury's $15 million award against "Spawn" creator Todd McFarlane has pushed his comic-book business into bankruptcy court.

Todd McFarlane Productions Inc. of suburban Tempe, Ariz., filed for Chapter 11 protection from creditors Friday in U.S. Bankruptcy Court.

A jury in St. Louis awarded former NHL player Tony Twist $15 million after concluding that McFarlane and his company profited by using the former St. Louis Blues player's name without permission and that Twist's publicity rights were infringed.

McFarlane gave the name Antonio "Tony Twist" Twistelli to a New York mob boss character in his "Spawn" comic books in the early 1990s.

The U.S. Supreme Court in January rejected without comment an appeal by McFarlane arguing that his work was free speech.

Last year, he said his McFarlane Cos., then an umbrella of seven businesses, had annual sales exceeding $50 million.

The bankruptcy filing allows McFarlane's company to continue to operate and reorganize its finances while freeing it from the threat of creditors' lawsuits.

Twist's 10-year National Hockey League career ended when his contract with the St. Louis Blues expired in June 1999.

In 1999, McFarlane paid $3 million for Mark McGwire's 70th home-run baseball. He also paid $450,000 last year for Barry Bonds' record 73rd home-run ball and owns Sammy Sosa's 66th home-run ball.