Mantra Entertainment, purveyors of the "Girls Gone Wild" franchise, has
withdrawn its motion for an injunction against various Panama City Beach,
Fla., officials.
According to Mantra, that move follows declarations by the mayor and police
that they have no intention of interfering with GGW camera crews, which film
young women baring various body parts in public places as part of such ritual
revelries as spring break and Mardi Gras.
Saying that the Panama City Beach mayor and others had harassed and
threatened to arrest a GGW crew in town partly in preparation for a planned live
pay-per-view event March 13, Mantra had earlier this week sued in the Northern
District of Florida for a temporary restraining order and injunctions to
prohibit law-enforcement officials "from further harassment or intimidation or
threats of arrest for the action of Mantra in filming matters within public view
or for uttering nonspecific innocuous statements such as 'go wild,'" according
to Mantra attorneys.
At least as far as the PPV event goes, the point was moot (GGW also has a
video, DVD and Web-site business to keep stocked with flashers).
The PPV event was moved to South Padre Island, Texas, but Mantra spokesman
Bill Horn said the reason was that the site producer -- Mantra is teaming up with
World Wrestling Entertainment Inc. on the production -- decided that the Panama City Beach venue's electrical system
was not up to snuff.
