Facebook live desktop version12/28/2023 “The fact that there are works that are still recognizable and enduring after 95 years is is frankly remarkable,” Doctorow said. works to go public, and many properties with less pedigree than Winnie or Minnie can disappear or be forgotten with their copyrights murky. 1, 2024, has long been circled on the calendars of public domain watchers, but some say it serves to show how overlong it takes for U.S. “Now, the audience is going to set the terms,” said Cory Doctorow, an author and activist who advocates for broader public ownership of works. Young Mickey could get the same treatment. Milne's original “Winnie the Pooh” entered the public domain, resulting in some truly novel uses, including this year's horror film “Winnie The Pooh: Blood and Honey.” Pooh, probably the most celebrated prior character to become public property, took on that status two years ago when A.A. The copyright wasn’t renewed on the Keaton film and it’s been in the public domain since 1956.Īnother famous animal sidekick, Tigger, will join his friend Winnie the Pooh in the public domain as the book in which the bouncing tiger first appeared, “The House at Pooh Corner,” turns 96. In it, and in a clip from it used in the introduction to Disney animated films in recent years, Mickey whistles the 1910 tune “Steamboat Bill.” The song inspired the title of the Buster Keaton film “ Steamboat Bill Jr,” released just a few months before “Steamboat Willie,” which in turn may have inspired the title of the Disney short. It features a more menacing Mickey captaining a boat and making musical instruments out of other animals. “Steamboat Willie," directed by Walt Disney and his partner Ub Iwerks and among the first cartoons to have sound synced with its visuals, was actually the third cartoon featuring Mickey and Minnie the men made, but the first to be released. Anyone starting a film company or a theme park will not be free to make mouse ears their logo.ĭisney's statement said it "will work to safeguard against consumer confusion caused by unauthorized uses of Mickey and our other iconic characters.” “We will, of course, continue to protect our rights in the more modern versions of Mickey Mouse and other works that remain subject to copyright,” the company said.ĭisney still solidly and separately holds a trademark on Mickey as a corporate mascot and brand identifier, and the law forbids using the character deceptively to fool consumers into thinking a product is from the original creator. Not every feature or personality trait a character displays is necessarily copyrightable, however, and courts could be busy in the coming years determining what's inside and outside Disney's ownership. “More modern versions of Mickey will remain unaffected by the expiration of the Steamboat Willie copyright, and Mickey will continue to play a leading role as a global ambassador for the Walt Disney Company in our storytelling, theme park attractions, and merchandise,” Disney's statement said. It is only the more mischievous, rat-like, non-speaking boat captain in “Steamboat Willie” that has become public. "That will not change when the copyright in the Steamboat Willie film expires."Ĭurrent artists and creators will be able to make use of Mickey, but with major limits. “Ever since Mickey Mouse’s first appearance in the 1928 short film Steamboat Willie, people have associated the character with Disney’s stories, experiences, and authentic products," a Disney spokesperson said in a statement to The Associated Press. It was a whole group of copyright holders whose works were set to go into the public domain soon, who benefited greatly from the 20 years of extra protection.” ![]() “That’s oversimplified because it wasn’t just Disney that was pushing for term extension. “It’s sometimes derisively referred to as the Mickey Mouse Protection Act,” Jenkins said. law allows a copyright to be held for 95 years after Congress expanded it several times during Mickey's life. 1 column for “Public Domain Day.” ”I kind of feel like the pipe on the steamboat, like expelling smoke. This is exciting because it’s kind of symbolic," said Jennifer Jenkins, a professor of law and director of Duke’s Center for the Study of Public Domain, who writes an annual Jan. In a moment many close observers thought might never come, at least one version of the quintessential piece of intellectual property and perhaps the most iconic character in American pop culture will be free from Disney's copyright as his first screen release, the 1928 short “Steamboat Willie," featuring both Mickey and Minnie Mouse, becomes available for public use. With several asterisks, qualification and caveats, Mickey Mouse in his earliest form will be the leader of the band of characters, films and books that will become public domain as the year turns to 2024. LOS ANGELES - M-I-C-K-E-Y will soon belong to you and me.
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