Want to touch my monkey?

Paul Frank has been fired from Paul Frank Designs, and he's pissed. Pissed to the tune of a multimillion-dollar lawsuit. The South Bay designer started by sewing a monkey, Julius, onto a wallet. We remember hearing that Julius was something his mom or grandma designed first, but we can't find that online. Is maternal credit due?

Anyway, one bright vinyl monkey led to another, and another, and the next thing you know 12-year old girls in Peoria have flannel Julius jammies. Paul Frank's partners go back to the early days, and deserve some credit for making the business grow, in cute way, to Hilfiger proportions. But do they deserve all the credit? Paul Frank (born Paul Frank Sunich) thinks not, as his lawsuit shows. He says without him, the company should shut its doors.

What, no more monkeys?