Mitt Romney and his wife, Ann, seem to believe they're the rightful political heirs to the cache of TV's Friday Night Lights because Buzz Bissinger, the author of Friday Night Lights, agreed with his politics and endorsed his campaign in the early '90s.
In fact, during his campaign appearances, Romney has been using a catch phrase that Coach Taylor from the TV series shouts to inspire his team to a victory: "Clear eyes, full hearts, can't lose."
Yet the phrase nor Coach Taylor's character ever appears in the book.
Peter Berg, the writer-director of Friday Night Lights, is pissed and sent a letter saying to Romney. The Hollywood Reporter was able to obtain a copy:
October 12, 2012 c/o Romney for President P.O. Box 149756 Boston, Massachusetts 02114-9756Governor Romney:
I created the TV show "Friday Night Lights" and came up with the phrase "Clear Eyes, Full Hearts, Can't Lose."
I was not thrilled when I saw that you have plagiarized this expression to support your campaign by using it on posters, your Facebook page and as part of your stump speeches. Your politics and campaign are clearly not aligned with the themes we portrayed in our series.
The only relevant comparison that I see between your campaign and "Friday Night Lights" is in the character of Buddy Garrity - who turned his back on American car manufacturers selling imported cars from Japan.
Your use of the expression falsely and inappropriately associates "Friday Night Lights" with the Romney/Ryan campaign. Mitt, we all wish you and your family the best. We are grateful for your support of our beloved show, but we are not in any way affiliated with you or your campaign. Please come up with your own campaign slogan.
Sincerely,
Peter Berg
