FILE – In this Nov. 1, 2016 file photo, Jerry Seinfeld performs at Stand Up For Heroes, presented by the New York Comedy Festival and the Bob Woodruff Foundation, at The Theater at Madison Square Garden in New York. Seinfeld was sued Friday, Feb. 1, 2019, by a company claiming it bought the comedian’s 1958 Porsche for $1.5 million only to discover it was a fake. Fica Frio Limited’s lawsuit was filed in Manhattan federal court against a comic known for his love of vintage cars. (Photo by Greg Allen/Invision/AP, File)
NEW YORK (AP) — Jerry Seinfeld was sued Friday by a company claiming it bought the comedian’s 1958 Porsche for $1.5 million only to discover it was a fake.
Fica Frio Limited’s lawsuit was filed in Manhattan federal court against a comic known for his love of vintage cars.
Seinfeld mixes his affection for fancy vehicles with his love of comedy in his series “Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee.”
The lawsuit said Fica Frio’s representatives paid $1.54 million at a March 2016 auction in Amelia Island, Florida. The price included the 10 percent auction house commission.
The lawsuit, seeking unspecified damages including the costs associated with the purchase, said they learned the car was not authentic. Fica Frio is based in the Channel Islands.
The auction summary of the Porsche boasted that it was “FROM THE JERRY SEINFELD COLLECTION” and said it was a “stunning example of a rare thoroughbred Porsche.”
According to the lawsuit, Seinfeld left a voicemail last June apologizing and promising a full refund. But it said the refund never came.
Seinfeld’s lawyer, Orin Snyder, said the comedian acted in good faith.
“He has asked Fica Frio for evidence to substantiate the allegations. Fica Frio ignored Jerry and instead filed this frivolous lawsuit,” Snyder said in a statement.
Still, Snyder said, Seinfeld “is willing to do what’s right and fair, and we are confident the court will support the need for an outside evaluator to examine the provenance of the car.”
By LARRY NEUMEISTER
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