MOVIES - Nov. 9, 1988

Lassine Ousseni, a sometime actor-producer who said he’s a Nigerian prince named Prince Johnny, lost his bid Monday to dismiss a $10-million lawsuit filed by another man, Shelby Gregory, who claims Eddie Murphy’s latest film, “Coming to America,” movie was based on his (Gregory’s) idea. Gregory filed the copyright suit against Murphy in July, contending the actor-comedian and two of his employees used his ideas for the movie without compensating him. Ousseni had sought a dismissal of Gregory’s suit, alleging that Gregory was working for him and thus didn’t have the legal right to file against Murphy. But U.S. District Judge A. Wallace Tashima in Los Angeles denied the dismissal motion, saying the terms of the employment were unclear, but did not set a date for further action in the suit.