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PHILADELPHIA (AP) — A Philadelphia man is suing in federal court saying the hit show "Empire" infringes on a show he created and copyrighted a decade ago. The Philadelphia Daily News reports (http://bit.ly/1Rnhl2k ) Clayton Tanksley, who once played a character on "The Cosby Show," says Lee Daniels stole the idea from him during a 2008 film event. Tanksley says he participated in a "Philly Pitch" event. After the event, Tanksley claims he privately pitched his idea to Daniels and gave him scripts of the show as well as several DVDs with episodes on them. The suit filed Friday names Daniels, co-creator Danny Strong, Twenty-First Century Fox, the Greater Philadelphia Film Office and the film office's director, Sharon Pinkenson. The newspaper is trying to contact the defendants for comment. ___ Information from: The Philadelphia Daily News, http://www.philly.com

Philadelphia man: Creator of hit show 'Empire' took my idea