Fairplay Must Fix Bonaduce Suit

Judge gives Survivor star 20 days to amend smackdown lawsuit

By Josh Grossberg Mar 12, 2008 7:01 PMTags

Jonny Fairplay's got some more scheming to do if he wants his smackdown suit against Danny Bonaduce to survive.

A Los Angeles judge has given the Survivor villain 20 days to amend his lawsuit against the former Partridge Family player and the producers of Fox Reality Channel's Really Awards over an onstage scuffle during the Oct. 2 ceremony.

Days after their confrontation, Fairplay, whose real name is Jon Dalton, sued Bonaduce, as well as Fox Reality Channel and production company Natural 9 Entertainment  for battery, intentional infliction of emotional distress, negligence and negligent supervision.

Footage of the telecast shows the 34-year-old Fairplay, who moonlighted as a pro wrestler, jumping into Bonaduce arms. Bonaduce in turn flips Fairplay over his shoulder. The Survivor alum claims he sustained multiple injuries to his face, jaw, mouth, gums and teeth.

The self-proclaimed Most Hated Man in Reality Television says he required dental surgery after losing a tooth, breaking another and loosening two more in the fall.

On Tuesday, Superior Court Judge Michael C. Solner sided with Vicki Greco, an attorney for the producers, who argued that Dalton's camp did not offer enough specifics for why her clients might be held responsible for spontaneous actions undertaken by Bonaduce.

"I think more facts should be set forth," the judge ruled.

Greco had stated that producers could not have predicted what the 48-year-old star of VH1's Breaking Bonaduce was going to do on stage, and therefore could not be held liable for the altercation.

She said allegations by Fairplay's camp that her clients cheered on such "gladiator-type" behavior "absurd."

Should Fairplay—who famously made up a story about his dead grandmother during Survivor: Pearl Islands and was the first to be booted from the current all-star edition, Survivor: Micronesia—fail to better explain why Natural 9 executives played a part in the row, he risks having his complaint tossed.

Still, Fairplay's attorney, Daniel Lapidus, insists the producers were in on the action. "[Bonaduce] told them what he wanted to do and they told him to do it," the lawyer said.

Bonaduce himself appeared on Adam Carolla's nationally syndicated morning radio show after the altercation and predicted that he'd face a lawsuit over the backflip.

One bright spot for the former kid star: Los Angeles prosecutors decided against filing any criminal charges, determining Bonaduce acted in self-defense after Fairplay flung himself into his arms.

The next hearing in the case is set for May 12.