COURTNEY LOVE, JOEY RAMONE's Brother Angry Over Dead Rockers Shoe Ad

Courtney Love and Mickey Leigh, brother of the late RAMONES legend Joey Ramone, are furious at Dr. Martens for putting former NIRVANA frontman Kurt Cobain and Ramone in a shoe ad.

According to E! Online, the print ads, promoting the manufactuer's AirWair line and only approved for use in the United Kingdom, portrayed the NIRVANA star sitting in a cloudbank, clad all in white except for a pair of black boots. A tag line in corner reads: "Dr. Martens. Forever." Similar ads featured Ramone, the SEX PISTOLS' Sid Vicious, and THE CLASH's Joe Strummer. [The print ads in question can be viewed at this location.]

"Courtney never approved the use of these images [for commercial gain] nor would she ever approve it. She knew nothing about it," Love publicist Alan Nierob tells E! Online.

The rep said British law, unlike American, appears to allow companies to use the images of dead celebrities without explicit permission from their estates. Nierob said that Love was having her lawyers double check, but added that any suggestion she'd take legal action at this point was "premature."

Mickey Leigh, brother of the late Joey Ramone, said in a statement, "Obviously, we are in the same position as Courtney Love, as well as the estates of the others depicted (in the ad). We were never consulted about this ad. We were never asked for permission to use Joey's image, or paid for the use of it. As executor of my brother's estate I never would have approved this ad as Joey never wore these shoes. And, not that my brother was terribly religious, but the fact that he was Jewish, and this ad is not exactly kosher, makes it that much more inappropriate, inconsiderate and contemptible. Though we were about to formulate a statement to the above effect, Courtney certainly has a louder, more influential voice, and I am thrilled that she got through to the them."

Dr. Martens wasn't willing to push the issue. Facing a PR nightmare and backlash from the same fans the company was trying to court, the shoemaker said it was scuttling the campaign.

"Dr. Martens is very sorry for any offense that has been caused by the publication of images showing dead rock icons wearing Dr. Martens boots," the company said in a statement to E! Online. "Dr. Martens did not commission the work as it runs counter to our current marketing activities based on FREEDM, which is dedicated to nurturing grass roots creativity and supporting emerging talent.

"As a consequence, Dr. Martens has terminated its relationship with the responsible agency."

The "responsible agency," London-based Saatchi & Saatchi, defended the work, saying the photographs of Cobain and company were legally purchased from Corbis, one of the world's largest stock photo companies.

“We believe the ads are edgy but not offensive. There has been blog commentary both for and against the ads, but it is our belief that they are respectful of both the musicians and the Dr. Martens brand,” said Kate Stanners, the agency's executive creative director.