1 00:00:02,279 --> 00:00:04,800 Speaker 1: I guess what will what's that? So this week I 2 00:00:04,800 --> 00:00:08,639 Speaker 1: started looking up Harry Potter knockoffs and they are so terrible. 3 00:00:08,680 --> 00:00:12,479 Speaker 1: I love them so much. So there's this one book 4 00:00:12,520 --> 00:00:16,159 Speaker 1: in Spanish called Harry perez Uh and he's got his 5 00:00:16,200 --> 00:00:20,840 Speaker 1: friends Ron and Harmonia and they take on this evil 6 00:00:20,880 --> 00:00:24,320 Speaker 1: character named Condomort. I love how they change everyone's name 7 00:00:24,360 --> 00:00:28,440 Speaker 1: except Ron's, like there's no alternative name for Ron. There's 8 00:00:28,440 --> 00:00:30,560 Speaker 1: also one from Russia where he's kind of more a 9 00:00:30,680 --> 00:00:33,159 Speaker 1: rock star and he rides a double bass instead of 10 00:00:33,200 --> 00:00:36,720 Speaker 1: a broom. But my favorite one is from China where 11 00:00:36,760 --> 00:00:41,720 Speaker 1: Harry has to chase down Baltimore's protege Dmort, who apparently 12 00:00:41,800 --> 00:00:44,360 Speaker 1: used to work for the circus under the name Naughty Bubble. 13 00:00:44,720 --> 00:00:47,560 Speaker 1: And there's also kind of into this check this out 14 00:00:47,680 --> 00:00:50,040 Speaker 1: for some reason. There's also a character named Big Spinach 15 00:00:50,080 --> 00:00:52,640 Speaker 1: in it, but none of it makes any sense. And 16 00:00:52,840 --> 00:00:55,000 Speaker 1: can you imagine, like how bummed you'd be if you 17 00:00:55,040 --> 00:00:57,040 Speaker 1: ask for a Harry Potter book from your parents and 18 00:00:57,080 --> 00:00:59,520 Speaker 1: instead they brought you one of these knock on I'm 19 00:00:59,560 --> 00:01:02,840 Speaker 1: kind of these, but you know, seeing all these crazy titles, 20 00:01:02,840 --> 00:01:06,280 Speaker 1: maybe wonder how does copyright work? Like why can you 21 00:01:06,360 --> 00:01:09,160 Speaker 1: remix of Sherlock Home Story, but not use Felix the 22 00:01:09,200 --> 00:01:12,080 Speaker 1: Cat to advertise your work, Like, why are people so 23 00:01:12,120 --> 00:01:15,640 Speaker 1: excited about two thou nineteens public domain day? We're gonna 24 00:01:15,680 --> 00:01:40,000 Speaker 1: get into all of this. Let's dig in either podcast listeners, 25 00:01:40,000 --> 00:01:42,160 Speaker 1: Welcome to Part Time Genius. I'm Will Pearson and as 26 00:01:42,160 --> 00:01:44,040 Speaker 1: always I'm joined by my good friend Man Guesh how 27 00:01:44,080 --> 00:01:46,360 Speaker 1: Ticketer and on the other side of the soundproof class 28 00:01:46,360 --> 00:01:49,440 Speaker 1: celebrating the demise of copyright by eating or those those 29 00:01:49,520 --> 00:01:52,920 Speaker 1: Charleston June they are and dancing the Charleston that's our 30 00:01:52,960 --> 00:01:56,040 Speaker 1: friend and producer Tristan McNeil. All right, so just explain 31 00:01:56,080 --> 00:01:57,760 Speaker 1: a little bit. I have to point out that part 32 00:01:57,760 --> 00:01:59,880 Speaker 1: of the reason Tristan is doing this is because he's 33 00:02:00,080 --> 00:02:02,680 Speaker 1: laring the Charleston song. It took me a minute to 34 00:02:02,800 --> 00:02:05,440 Speaker 1: uh figure this out. You could probably hear this in 35 00:02:05,480 --> 00:02:08,440 Speaker 1: the background now. The song itself was written to accompany 36 00:02:08,480 --> 00:02:11,160 Speaker 1: the dance back when it debuted back in nineteen three, 37 00:02:11,520 --> 00:02:15,760 Speaker 1: and it kicked off this national craze. What's notable about 38 00:02:15,800 --> 00:02:18,760 Speaker 1: this is that two thousand nineteen actually marks the end 39 00:02:18,919 --> 00:02:22,200 Speaker 1: of the Charleston's Songs copyright protection. I don't know if 40 00:02:22,200 --> 00:02:24,320 Speaker 1: you knew this, if you've been following this, but that 41 00:02:24,480 --> 00:02:26,840 Speaker 1: is the case. So now anyone can make a new 42 00:02:26,880 --> 00:02:29,639 Speaker 1: recording of the song or play a nineteen twenty three 43 00:02:29,680 --> 00:02:32,799 Speaker 1: performance of it on a podcast, all without having to 44 00:02:32,840 --> 00:02:35,560 Speaker 1: pay a dime or worry about getting sued, at least 45 00:02:35,600 --> 00:02:38,680 Speaker 1: I hope that, which is obviously great news for any 46 00:02:38,680 --> 00:02:41,519 Speaker 1: listeners who are into the Charleston or at least as 47 00:02:41,520 --> 00:02:44,519 Speaker 1: into it as Tristan is. Apparently I guess so. But 48 00:02:44,639 --> 00:02:46,400 Speaker 1: you know, it turns out there's a lot of reasons 49 00:02:46,400 --> 00:02:48,799 Speaker 1: the party like it's nineteen twenty three this month, even 50 00:02:48,880 --> 00:02:51,480 Speaker 1: if you're not a Charleston fan, and that's because the 51 00:02:51,560 --> 00:02:53,920 Speaker 1: slew of works from this year have just entered the 52 00:02:53,919 --> 00:02:56,840 Speaker 1: public domain for the very first time, I believe it 53 00:02:56,880 --> 00:02:59,680 Speaker 1: or not. This is actually the first mass influx of 54 00:02:59,720 --> 00:03:03,160 Speaker 1: public domain material in the US in twenty years, I think. 55 00:03:03,520 --> 00:03:06,200 Speaker 1: So we'll get exactly why this is and how it 56 00:03:06,240 --> 00:03:09,120 Speaker 1: involves Mickey Mouse a little bit later, but the main 57 00:03:09,240 --> 00:03:12,960 Speaker 1: takeaway is that thousands of classic books and movies and 58 00:03:13,080 --> 00:03:15,800 Speaker 1: songs and other works of art they are now free 59 00:03:15,800 --> 00:03:20,520 Speaker 1: to use, remix, sell all without any legal restriction around them, 60 00:03:20,680 --> 00:03:23,040 Speaker 1: which is why we're marking the occasion with an episode 61 00:03:23,080 --> 00:03:25,120 Speaker 1: all about the ins and outs of copyright. So we'll 62 00:03:25,120 --> 00:03:27,079 Speaker 1: talk a little bit about the history of copyright law, 63 00:03:27,160 --> 00:03:29,880 Speaker 1: including why the terms have been extended in the US, 64 00:03:29,960 --> 00:03:32,840 Speaker 1: and also what makes this year so different from others. 65 00:03:32,840 --> 00:03:34,720 Speaker 1: Plus we'll take a closer look at the public domain 66 00:03:34,760 --> 00:03:37,480 Speaker 1: class of two nineteen to see exactly what sort of 67 00:03:37,560 --> 00:03:40,400 Speaker 1: hidden treasures just fell into our laps. But you know, well, 68 00:03:40,440 --> 00:03:42,720 Speaker 1: where do you want to start off here? Alright? Well, 69 00:03:42,760 --> 00:03:44,640 Speaker 1: I thought we should give our listeners a little bit 70 00:03:44,680 --> 00:03:47,920 Speaker 1: of context to all of this. So for starters, January 71 00:03:47,960 --> 00:03:51,680 Speaker 1: one is recognized all around the world is Public Domain Day, 72 00:03:51,760 --> 00:03:53,920 Speaker 1: and actually didn't know that until we were doing our 73 00:03:53,920 --> 00:03:56,320 Speaker 1: research for this episode. But the way that it works 74 00:03:56,360 --> 00:03:58,560 Speaker 1: is that at the stroke of midnight on New Year's Eve, 75 00:03:59,040 --> 00:04:02,600 Speaker 1: older works automatically enter the public domain as they age 76 00:04:02,640 --> 00:04:05,640 Speaker 1: out of their copyright terms. But this is where things 77 00:04:05,640 --> 00:04:08,360 Speaker 1: get a little bit tricky. So different countries have their 78 00:04:08,360 --> 00:04:11,800 Speaker 1: own rules for how long a work can remain under copyright, 79 00:04:12,280 --> 00:04:15,320 Speaker 1: So most countries will provide copyright protection for the life 80 00:04:15,400 --> 00:04:18,720 Speaker 1: of their author, plus a certain set number of years 81 00:04:18,760 --> 00:04:22,360 Speaker 1: beyond that, like the author's life plus fifty or seventy 82 00:04:22,520 --> 00:04:25,120 Speaker 1: or whatever it may be. But in the US things 83 00:04:25,120 --> 00:04:29,000 Speaker 1: have traditionally worked a little bit differently. So here copyrights 84 00:04:29,000 --> 00:04:32,240 Speaker 1: made prior to night have nothing to do with the 85 00:04:32,279 --> 00:04:36,320 Speaker 1: lifespan of the works author. Instead, these copyright materials are 86 00:04:36,320 --> 00:04:40,520 Speaker 1: protected for a flat ninety five years after their first publication. 87 00:04:40,760 --> 00:04:42,440 Speaker 1: It always makes you wonder, like where they come up 88 00:04:42,480 --> 00:04:46,080 Speaker 1: with the number. But so, just as an example, the 89 00:04:46,120 --> 00:04:48,559 Speaker 1: Grapes of Wrath won't enter the U S public domain 90 00:04:48,640 --> 00:04:52,560 Speaker 1: until January of two thousand thirty five, because that will 91 00:04:52,600 --> 00:04:56,120 Speaker 1: be ninety five years after it was first published. Now, 92 00:04:56,120 --> 00:04:58,599 Speaker 1: on the other hand, readers in places like Canada and 93 00:04:58,640 --> 00:05:01,920 Speaker 1: New Zealand can ead and rework the text for free 94 00:05:01,960 --> 00:05:05,279 Speaker 1: starting this year, and that's because two thousand nineteen is 95 00:05:05,360 --> 00:05:08,920 Speaker 1: fifty years after the death of the book's author, John Steinbeck. 96 00:05:09,080 --> 00:05:11,239 Speaker 1: Isn't that weird? Like something about that like feels so 97 00:05:11,400 --> 00:05:14,560 Speaker 1: off to me. I mean, it's this like quintessential American 98 00:05:14,600 --> 00:05:16,800 Speaker 1: novel and people in other countries actually get to do 99 00:05:16,839 --> 00:05:19,320 Speaker 1: whatever they want with it first, I know, three decades 100 00:05:19,320 --> 00:05:22,360 Speaker 1: before Americans get to It's super weird that it actually 101 00:05:22,360 --> 00:05:24,279 Speaker 1: reminds you. I was reading about the rights to the 102 00:05:24,320 --> 00:05:26,479 Speaker 1: song this Land Is Your Land, which, of course you 103 00:05:26,520 --> 00:05:28,240 Speaker 1: know what he got through wrote the lyrics too, and 104 00:05:28,440 --> 00:05:31,240 Speaker 1: that's a piece of music that just feels inseparable from 105 00:05:31,240 --> 00:05:33,840 Speaker 1: the American identity, and it's kind of become this great 106 00:05:33,920 --> 00:05:36,599 Speaker 1: American almost like an anthem. Ever since it was published 107 00:05:36,600 --> 00:05:40,760 Speaker 1: back in but again for Canada and other countries with 108 00:05:40,839 --> 00:05:44,000 Speaker 1: copyright terms of life plus fifty years, that song ended 109 00:05:44,000 --> 00:05:46,719 Speaker 1: in the public domain last year, whereas in the US 110 00:05:46,960 --> 00:05:49,240 Speaker 1: you'll actually have to wait till one to be able 111 00:05:49,279 --> 00:05:51,880 Speaker 1: to use it. And that's when you're planning to put 112 00:05:51,880 --> 00:05:55,680 Speaker 1: out a dub step reminder. That's right, absolutely, But before 113 00:05:55,720 --> 00:05:57,640 Speaker 1: we move on, I do want to mention that this 114 00:05:57,760 --> 00:06:00,040 Speaker 1: Land is Your Land is kind of a fun a 115 00:06:00,240 --> 00:06:02,400 Speaker 1: case to look at. So the lyrics plain that the 116 00:06:02,480 --> 00:06:05,279 Speaker 1: land belongs to you and me, and that was actually 117 00:06:05,400 --> 00:06:09,640 Speaker 1: got Three's intention for the song to in He published 118 00:06:09,680 --> 00:06:12,720 Speaker 1: the song with a copyright notice that read quote, this 119 00:06:12,760 --> 00:06:15,279 Speaker 1: song is copyrighted in the US for a period of 120 00:06:15,320 --> 00:06:18,800 Speaker 1: twenty eight years, and anybody caught singing it without our 121 00:06:18,800 --> 00:06:21,760 Speaker 1: permission will be mighty good friends of our because we 122 00:06:21,800 --> 00:06:24,599 Speaker 1: don't give it, durn publish it, write it, sing it, 123 00:06:24,760 --> 00:06:27,240 Speaker 1: swing to it. Yodel it. We wrote it, that's all 124 00:06:27,279 --> 00:06:30,160 Speaker 1: we wanted to do. That's hilarious. I'm curious that, like, 125 00:06:30,160 --> 00:06:32,720 Speaker 1: why didn't the song under the public domain in the seventies, 126 00:06:32,839 --> 00:06:35,320 Speaker 1: you know, like what he wanted it to. Well, apparently 127 00:06:35,360 --> 00:06:38,360 Speaker 1: the publisher renewed the copyright at some point without gut 128 00:06:38,360 --> 00:06:41,120 Speaker 1: Thrie's input, So the song's copyright status wound up being 129 00:06:41,160 --> 00:06:43,760 Speaker 1: extended and now it's covered by the current ninety five 130 00:06:43,800 --> 00:06:46,280 Speaker 1: year term we have in the U. S Alright, well 131 00:06:46,279 --> 00:06:48,000 Speaker 1: in that case, I mean, now seems like a good 132 00:06:48,040 --> 00:06:50,680 Speaker 1: time to break down the key changes to the copyright 133 00:06:50,760 --> 00:06:52,680 Speaker 1: law that have taken place here in the US over 134 00:06:52,800 --> 00:06:55,839 Speaker 1: you know, over several decades. But don't worry about your 135 00:06:55,839 --> 00:06:57,600 Speaker 1: eyes glazing over because I'm going to try to keep 136 00:06:57,640 --> 00:07:01,160 Speaker 1: this short and sweet good. So they basically American copyright 137 00:07:01,240 --> 00:07:04,520 Speaker 1: law began with the Constitution with grants Congress the power 138 00:07:04,600 --> 00:07:07,280 Speaker 1: to bestow exclusive rights to the author of a work 139 00:07:07,360 --> 00:07:11,280 Speaker 1: for quote limited times. So at first that limited time 140 00:07:11,320 --> 00:07:14,520 Speaker 1: meant fourteen years, with the option to renew for another 141 00:07:14,560 --> 00:07:18,880 Speaker 1: fourteen years, making the max possible twenty eight years. Those 142 00:07:18,960 --> 00:07:21,080 Speaker 1: rules were mended over time that went by nineteen o nine, 143 00:07:21,080 --> 00:07:24,000 Speaker 1: both copyright terms had doubled to twenty eight years or 144 00:07:24,360 --> 00:07:27,360 Speaker 1: fifty six total, I guess, got it. So that's where 145 00:07:27,360 --> 00:07:29,680 Speaker 1: would you would have gotten that twenty eight year term 146 00:07:29,720 --> 00:07:32,720 Speaker 1: he claimed, you know, for the copyright he was talking about. 147 00:07:32,880 --> 00:07:35,040 Speaker 1: But you know, I'm sure he never intended to renew 148 00:07:35,040 --> 00:07:38,000 Speaker 1: the song for that second twenty eight year period, that's right. 149 00:07:38,080 --> 00:07:40,680 Speaker 1: So then you fast forward to nineteen seventy six and 150 00:07:40,680 --> 00:07:43,880 Speaker 1: the extension started getting kind of out of hand. So 151 00:07:43,920 --> 00:07:45,920 Speaker 1: the fifty six year period was bumped up to a 152 00:07:45,960 --> 00:07:49,640 Speaker 1: full seventy five years, meaning that any work produced through 153 00:07:49,720 --> 00:07:54,800 Speaker 1: nineteen twenty two would be copyright protected until nineteen. Then, 154 00:07:54,960 --> 00:07:58,160 Speaker 1: in just as the nineteen twenty three copyrights were about 155 00:07:58,200 --> 00:08:01,000 Speaker 1: to expire for the next year, a new piece of 156 00:08:01,080 --> 00:08:03,240 Speaker 1: legislation was passed. It makes you wonder why people were 157 00:08:03,280 --> 00:08:06,720 Speaker 1: so interested in changing the legislation, But the new law 158 00:08:06,720 --> 00:08:09,680 Speaker 1: attacked on another twenty years for the copyright of any 159 00:08:09,720 --> 00:08:13,760 Speaker 1: work made between nineteen twenty three and nineteen seventy seven. 160 00:08:14,000 --> 00:08:16,440 Speaker 1: And that's actually why there's this big twenty year gap 161 00:08:16,480 --> 00:08:18,760 Speaker 1: that we're just coming out of right now. That is 162 00:08:18,800 --> 00:08:22,000 Speaker 1: exactly right. So those extra two decades added in, you know, 163 00:08:23,280 --> 00:08:25,320 Speaker 1: was when this happened, it basically put a freeze on 164 00:08:25,320 --> 00:08:28,440 Speaker 1: the public domain editions. So the works that were scheduled 165 00:08:28,440 --> 00:08:31,520 Speaker 1: inner the public domain were suddenly off the table for 166 00:08:31,560 --> 00:08:34,720 Speaker 1: another twenty years. And so that's what made New Years 167 00:08:34,760 --> 00:08:37,760 Speaker 1: of nineteen such a big deal. I mean, the drought 168 00:08:37,920 --> 00:08:42,720 Speaker 1: is finally and I'm guessing that's for the foreseevil future 169 00:08:42,720 --> 00:08:44,719 Speaker 1: to right, like, like like a whole year's worth of work 170 00:08:44,760 --> 00:08:48,640 Speaker 1: should end of the public domain every year now, ongoing, right, right, 171 00:08:48,679 --> 00:08:51,120 Speaker 1: And this really just the beginning of like four decades 172 00:08:51,200 --> 00:08:54,120 Speaker 1: worth of annual time capsules, you know, so you know, 173 00:08:54,200 --> 00:08:57,679 Speaker 1: long as corporations don't succeed in extending the copyright terms 174 00:08:57,760 --> 00:09:00,680 Speaker 1: even further. Although if we're being fair, it's not like 175 00:09:00,720 --> 00:09:03,280 Speaker 1: the last twenty years haven't brought any new additions to 176 00:09:03,320 --> 00:09:06,520 Speaker 1: the public domain from this era, because plenty of works 177 00:09:06,520 --> 00:09:09,840 Speaker 1: from the nineteen twenties through the nineteen seventies have already 178 00:09:09,920 --> 00:09:13,000 Speaker 1: entered the public domain because their copyrights were never renewed 179 00:09:13,040 --> 00:09:15,800 Speaker 1: for one reason or another. And in fact, one study 180 00:09:15,840 --> 00:09:18,520 Speaker 1: from two thousand eleven suggested that as many as nine 181 00:09:19,160 --> 00:09:22,840 Speaker 1: of works published in the nineteen twenties were never renewed 182 00:09:22,880 --> 00:09:25,680 Speaker 1: at all, and the same is true for roughly sixty 183 00:09:26,080 --> 00:09:28,240 Speaker 1: of the works from the nineteen forties, so there were 184 00:09:28,240 --> 00:09:30,640 Speaker 1: a ton of them that were out there. So basically 185 00:09:30,720 --> 00:09:34,040 Speaker 1: that extension in nine only applied to the works whose 186 00:09:34,080 --> 00:09:37,360 Speaker 1: copyrights were still active at that time, and so anything 187 00:09:37,400 --> 00:09:40,520 Speaker 1: that hadn't been previously renewed was already fair game for 188 00:09:40,640 --> 00:09:43,680 Speaker 1: public use. Of course, the tricky part has been determining 189 00:09:43,679 --> 00:09:47,240 Speaker 1: whether an old copyright has lapsed or not. Yeah, I'm 190 00:09:47,280 --> 00:09:49,600 Speaker 1: guessing that's a pretty murky business trying to figure all 191 00:09:49,640 --> 00:09:51,240 Speaker 1: that out, it is, And you know, so in the 192 00:09:51,280 --> 00:09:53,320 Speaker 1: past that's been safer to air on the side of 193 00:09:53,320 --> 00:09:55,600 Speaker 1: caution and just kind of steer clear of any work 194 00:09:55,640 --> 00:09:59,160 Speaker 1: whose status was in question, of course, to avoid getting sued. 195 00:09:59,559 --> 00:10:01,840 Speaker 1: But now the concerns are out the window, at least 196 00:10:01,880 --> 00:10:05,120 Speaker 1: as far as works from three go, and now that 197 00:10:05,160 --> 00:10:07,800 Speaker 1: they passed the year mark, we know for certain that 198 00:10:07,840 --> 00:10:10,920 Speaker 1: they're in the public domain. So I know there's probably 199 00:10:10,960 --> 00:10:13,400 Speaker 1: some folks listening or thinking, okay, but who cares about 200 00:10:13,400 --> 00:10:15,920 Speaker 1: all this old timey stuff anyway. You know, it's not 201 00:10:15,920 --> 00:10:17,920 Speaker 1: like I'm gonna start listening to chart toppers from the 202 00:10:17,960 --> 00:10:21,760 Speaker 1: nineteen twenties or whatever. But you know, that's totally fair. 203 00:10:22,240 --> 00:10:24,200 Speaker 1: But here's the thing that Gabe was pointing out to me. 204 00:10:24,360 --> 00:10:26,760 Speaker 1: Most of us honestly don't know what we've been missing 205 00:10:26,760 --> 00:10:29,480 Speaker 1: out on. Like the public domain provides this great chance 206 00:10:29,520 --> 00:10:31,920 Speaker 1: for overlooked works to find a second lease on life. 207 00:10:31,920 --> 00:10:34,040 Speaker 1: And if you look at what happened to It's a 208 00:10:34,040 --> 00:10:36,760 Speaker 1: Wonderful Life. You know, that movie actually flopped when it 209 00:10:36,760 --> 00:10:39,760 Speaker 1: was first released, but once it entered the public domain, 210 00:10:40,080 --> 00:10:42,959 Speaker 1: it slowly became a holiday classic. And that success only 211 00:10:42,960 --> 00:10:45,280 Speaker 1: happened because TV networks were actually able to play the 212 00:10:45,280 --> 00:10:48,880 Speaker 1: movie for free year after year. So in this weird way, 213 00:10:48,960 --> 00:10:52,040 Speaker 1: it's like cultural worth is actually greater today than it 214 00:10:52,080 --> 00:10:55,000 Speaker 1: would have been had it remained under a copyright. You 215 00:10:55,000 --> 00:10:57,320 Speaker 1: know this this author Glenn Fleishman, and he had this 216 00:10:57,400 --> 00:10:59,600 Speaker 1: great quote in this article for The Atlantic, and and 217 00:10:59,640 --> 00:11:03,079 Speaker 1: he said, quote, only so much that's created has room 218 00:11:03,160 --> 00:11:06,360 Speaker 1: to persist in memory, culture and scholarship. Some works may 219 00:11:06,360 --> 00:11:09,360 Speaker 1: have been forgotten because they were simply terrible or perishable, 220 00:11:09,760 --> 00:11:11,800 Speaker 1: but it's also the case that a lack of access 221 00:11:11,840 --> 00:11:14,880 Speaker 1: to these works and digital forms limits whether they get 222 00:11:14,880 --> 00:11:17,240 Speaker 1: considered at all. I mean, it's a good point and 223 00:11:17,440 --> 00:11:19,760 Speaker 1: actually reminds me of something I came across this week 224 00:11:19,840 --> 00:11:22,680 Speaker 1: from the American novelist Willi Cather, And you know, she 225 00:11:22,800 --> 00:11:26,200 Speaker 1: once called nineteen twenty two the year the world broke 226 00:11:26,280 --> 00:11:28,439 Speaker 1: in two, and that was because of all the big 227 00:11:28,480 --> 00:11:31,440 Speaker 1: literary and cultural shakeups that took place that year. It 228 00:11:31,480 --> 00:11:34,520 Speaker 1: was the start of the Harlem Renaissance, plus the publication 229 00:11:34,559 --> 00:11:37,760 Speaker 1: of works like Ulysses by James Joyce and The Waste 230 00:11:37,840 --> 00:11:40,880 Speaker 1: Land by T. S. Eliott. So to her, nineteen twenty 231 00:11:40,960 --> 00:11:43,280 Speaker 1: two was this turning point, like there was a world 232 00:11:43,320 --> 00:11:46,120 Speaker 1: before that year, and then there was a world after it. 233 00:11:46,880 --> 00:11:49,240 Speaker 1: And it, strangely enough, that's also how things broke down 234 00:11:49,240 --> 00:11:52,559 Speaker 1: in terms of US copyright law. So everything up through 235 00:11:52,640 --> 00:11:56,719 Speaker 1: nine is now part of the public domain, but it's 236 00:11:56,760 --> 00:11:59,600 Speaker 1: a different story for works from nineteen twenty three and 237 00:11:59,679 --> 00:12:03,040 Speaker 1: beyond on. So hundreds of thousands of songs and movies 238 00:12:03,040 --> 00:12:06,480 Speaker 1: and books and newspapers, magazines, like so many different things 239 00:12:06,480 --> 00:12:09,680 Speaker 1: of that era had been held back for decades, longer 240 00:12:09,720 --> 00:12:12,120 Speaker 1: than they should have been. And so as a result, 241 00:12:12,160 --> 00:12:13,720 Speaker 1: you figure there have to be a lot of blind 242 00:12:13,760 --> 00:12:17,160 Speaker 1: spots in our understanding of that period in American history. Yeah, 243 00:12:17,240 --> 00:12:19,359 Speaker 1: like even things we know about like the Harlem Renaissance, 244 00:12:19,480 --> 00:12:22,040 Speaker 1: the Great Depression, or World War Two. Like, we should 245 00:12:22,120 --> 00:12:24,440 Speaker 1: get like a fuller picture once we get access to 246 00:12:24,440 --> 00:12:27,040 Speaker 1: these materials. And also it'll be so fun to see 247 00:12:27,040 --> 00:12:29,880 Speaker 1: them show up in memes and music and things. All right, well, 248 00:12:29,880 --> 00:12:31,640 Speaker 1: I'm excited to hear what you think should make the 249 00:12:31,720 --> 00:12:34,000 Speaker 1: cut this year. But before we share our favorites, let's 250 00:12:34,000 --> 00:12:49,680 Speaker 1: take a quick break. You're listening to Part Time Genius, 251 00:12:49,679 --> 00:12:52,360 Speaker 1: so we're talking about the giant wave of classic art 252 00:12:52,360 --> 00:12:55,320 Speaker 1: that just entered the public domain this month. All right, Megan, 253 00:12:55,360 --> 00:12:57,760 Speaker 1: So I'm curious which works are you most excited to 254 00:12:57,760 --> 00:13:00,520 Speaker 1: have free of their copyrights this year. So I'm just 255 00:13:00,559 --> 00:13:02,360 Speaker 1: gonna go ahead and get the literature picks out of 256 00:13:02,360 --> 00:13:04,480 Speaker 1: the way first, because that's where you find a lot 257 00:13:04,520 --> 00:13:06,760 Speaker 1: of the heavy hitters, and honestly, it's too many to 258 00:13:06,800 --> 00:13:09,360 Speaker 1: go through. So for fiction, we've got stories from authors 259 00:13:09,440 --> 00:13:13,960 Speaker 1: like Virginia Wolfe, Altice Huxley, Jane Austin Hemingway, and and 260 00:13:13,960 --> 00:13:16,360 Speaker 1: then in terms of poetry, there's work from E. Cummings, 261 00:13:16,960 --> 00:13:22,120 Speaker 1: William Carlos, Williams, Wallace Stevens, Pablo Neruda, Robert Frost, including 262 00:13:22,120 --> 00:13:24,400 Speaker 1: one of his most famous poems, Stopping by Woods on 263 00:13:24,440 --> 00:13:27,200 Speaker 1: a snowy evening like, which is just cool that these 264 00:13:27,200 --> 00:13:29,280 Speaker 1: texts are out there and easier to explore and play 265 00:13:29,320 --> 00:13:31,640 Speaker 1: with them before. But but what about you, Like, are 266 00:13:31,720 --> 00:13:33,040 Speaker 1: are there any books you're happy to see in the 267 00:13:33,080 --> 00:13:35,560 Speaker 1: public domain that was amazing to hear? Like all those 268 00:13:35,559 --> 00:13:38,360 Speaker 1: heavy hitters? Yeah? Here, But I always like it when 269 00:13:38,400 --> 00:13:41,240 Speaker 1: famous literary characters make their way into the public domain 270 00:13:41,280 --> 00:13:43,720 Speaker 1: because you get a whole bunch of new takes on them, 271 00:13:44,080 --> 00:13:46,800 Speaker 1: like that's what happened with Robin Hood or Sherlock Holmes. 272 00:13:47,120 --> 00:13:49,200 Speaker 1: You know, I didn't think of that. So so what 273 00:13:49,280 --> 00:13:52,080 Speaker 1: new characters are we getting to play with now? Alright? Well, 274 00:13:52,080 --> 00:13:54,760 Speaker 1: two thousand nineteen is giving us access to new Tarzan 275 00:13:54,880 --> 00:13:58,360 Speaker 1: stories from Edgar Rice Burrows, but also two of Agatha 276 00:13:58,440 --> 00:14:03,439 Speaker 1: Christie's mystery novels star Belgian detective Hercule Paro, The Murder 277 00:14:03,480 --> 00:14:07,160 Speaker 1: of Roger Ackroyd and The Murder on the Links. Wait, 278 00:14:07,280 --> 00:14:10,400 Speaker 1: wasn't Tarzan already in the public domain? Though? Yeah, that's right, 279 00:14:10,600 --> 00:14:12,640 Speaker 1: there's a story from nineteen ten that's been in the 280 00:14:12,720 --> 00:14:16,240 Speaker 1: public domain. And actually there's one earlier poor Oh novel 281 00:14:16,440 --> 00:14:19,720 Speaker 1: that's already there too. So how do the laws work 282 00:14:19,760 --> 00:14:21,960 Speaker 1: with characters like that. I mean, can people just write 283 00:14:21,960 --> 00:14:24,920 Speaker 1: their own new Tarzan stories or can they only publish 284 00:14:25,000 --> 00:14:28,000 Speaker 1: and rework the existing books? Like is the copyright on 285 00:14:28,040 --> 00:14:30,960 Speaker 1: the character or just the stories he appears in. Well, 286 00:14:31,000 --> 00:14:34,360 Speaker 1: you can't actually copyright a name or a phrase or 287 00:14:34,400 --> 00:14:36,320 Speaker 1: anything like that. But what you can do is get 288 00:14:36,400 --> 00:14:40,040 Speaker 1: your character trademarked while it's still under copyright. So if 289 00:14:40,040 --> 00:14:42,880 Speaker 1: you take the case of Tarzan, that's what the author's 290 00:14:42,920 --> 00:14:46,280 Speaker 1: airs did. So even though the original Tarzan stories can 291 00:14:46,320 --> 00:14:49,400 Speaker 1: be freely published and adapted for movies or comics or 292 00:14:49,440 --> 00:14:53,000 Speaker 1: whatever else, you still can't publish your own original Tarzan 293 00:14:53,080 --> 00:14:55,880 Speaker 1: books without receiving permission. And of course to do that 294 00:14:55,960 --> 00:14:58,720 Speaker 1: you have to pay a fee to the Boroughs Estate. 295 00:14:58,760 --> 00:15:00,520 Speaker 1: And so things are a little more I see when 296 00:15:00,520 --> 00:15:04,720 Speaker 1: it comes to Poor Oh, and well, not all copyrighted 297 00:15:04,800 --> 00:15:08,760 Speaker 1: characters qualify for trademark protection, and and some people you know, 298 00:15:08,880 --> 00:15:12,120 Speaker 1: maintain that poor O does not qualify. So for reasons 299 00:15:12,120 --> 00:15:14,720 Speaker 1: that they're they're a little too complicated to get into here. 300 00:15:15,200 --> 00:15:17,720 Speaker 1: But until someone is willing to gamble, you know, a 301 00:15:17,720 --> 00:15:21,960 Speaker 1: potential lawsuit to publish their own unauthorized story, the character's 302 00:15:22,080 --> 00:15:25,320 Speaker 1: legal status is kind of in limb. So the new 303 00:15:25,360 --> 00:15:28,480 Speaker 1: public domain additions for those characters are mostly exciting because 304 00:15:28,560 --> 00:15:31,440 Speaker 1: it means there are new Tarzan stories or poor Oh 305 00:15:31,600 --> 00:15:35,080 Speaker 1: mysteries that can be safely adapted are altered by anyone, 306 00:15:35,440 --> 00:15:38,840 Speaker 1: even if the characters themselves are still otherwise off limits. 307 00:15:38,840 --> 00:15:40,640 Speaker 1: So I am a little worried about what that might 308 00:15:40,680 --> 00:15:42,520 Speaker 1: mean for my next pick here, because even though two 309 00:15:42,720 --> 00:15:44,600 Speaker 1: nine frees up the rights to a bunch of classic 310 00:15:44,600 --> 00:15:48,560 Speaker 1: silent films from people like Buster Keaton, Charlie Chaplain, Laurel, 311 00:15:48,640 --> 00:15:51,120 Speaker 1: and Hardy, which is awesome, by the way, because like 312 00:15:51,160 --> 00:15:53,240 Speaker 1: it would be so amazing to start seeing these movies 313 00:15:53,280 --> 00:15:56,080 Speaker 1: on late night TV. But you know, the one I 314 00:15:56,240 --> 00:15:59,680 Speaker 1: was most personally excited about was the Felix the Cat cartoons, 315 00:15:59,720 --> 00:16:02,360 Speaker 1: which just hit the public domain, and I was kind 316 00:16:02,400 --> 00:16:04,600 Speaker 1: of hoping we could add it to the PTG logo 317 00:16:04,720 --> 00:16:07,080 Speaker 1: or just make him like the official show mascot or something, 318 00:16:07,120 --> 00:16:10,640 Speaker 1: but I'm guessing that's not the case if he's still trademark, right, 319 00:16:11,000 --> 00:16:13,120 Speaker 1: you know, Felix was the one that stood out to 320 00:16:13,160 --> 00:16:15,040 Speaker 1: me too, So I actually did a little bit of 321 00:16:15,040 --> 00:16:17,320 Speaker 1: digging on this, and it turns out that even though 322 00:16:17,320 --> 00:16:21,320 Speaker 1: the character is still technically trademarked by DreamWorks. They only 323 00:16:21,360 --> 00:16:24,560 Speaker 1: control his use in certain instances, and and you know, 324 00:16:24,600 --> 00:16:28,160 Speaker 1: of course that's really around advertising, So how does that 325 00:16:28,200 --> 00:16:31,560 Speaker 1: work exactly? So you could actually publish your own Felix 326 00:16:31,560 --> 00:16:34,240 Speaker 1: the cat comic strips and even adapt those new stories 327 00:16:34,280 --> 00:16:38,160 Speaker 1: into animated shorts, but weirdly, you just can't include Felix 328 00:16:38,240 --> 00:16:43,240 Speaker 1: himself and any of the advertising for that. Apparently DreamWorks 329 00:16:43,280 --> 00:16:47,240 Speaker 1: also owns the Felix trademark for quote life saving instruments, 330 00:16:47,240 --> 00:16:49,880 Speaker 1: so I guess a line of Felix branded fire extinguishers 331 00:16:49,960 --> 00:16:53,440 Speaker 1: is totally off. I feel like that's exactly where I 332 00:16:53,480 --> 00:16:56,680 Speaker 1: was going with us, like Felix EpiPens and detectors. But 333 00:16:57,320 --> 00:16:59,200 Speaker 1: you know, if cartoons aren't your thing, we've also got 334 00:16:59,200 --> 00:17:01,600 Speaker 1: plenty of new public domain songs to keep us busy. 335 00:17:01,640 --> 00:17:05,119 Speaker 1: And there's some real chestnuts here, uh tunes like Dizzy 336 00:17:05,160 --> 00:17:08,280 Speaker 1: Fingers Horsey keep your tail up, I know that's a favorite, 337 00:17:08,680 --> 00:17:12,679 Speaker 1: the Pierson household raft and that timeless romantic valid o 338 00:17:12,920 --> 00:17:15,760 Speaker 1: g Oh gosh, oh golly, I'm in love. I think 339 00:17:15,800 --> 00:17:19,240 Speaker 1: these are probably in that collection of that old amberola, 340 00:17:19,400 --> 00:17:23,680 Speaker 1: like the house that's all those wax cylinders. That's pretty 341 00:17:23,680 --> 00:17:26,159 Speaker 1: cool to listen to, but you know it truly was 342 00:17:26,400 --> 00:17:28,480 Speaker 1: a different time. I was actually listening to a few 343 00:17:28,520 --> 00:17:30,960 Speaker 1: songs from our list this week, and I was struck 344 00:17:31,000 --> 00:17:33,280 Speaker 1: by how many of them were just kind of wide eyed, 345 00:17:33,560 --> 00:17:36,800 Speaker 1: upbeat nonsense. Like there was this one that was basically 346 00:17:36,800 --> 00:17:39,320 Speaker 1: about how strange it is that the earth rotates and 347 00:17:39,359 --> 00:17:41,040 Speaker 1: that it can be daytime in one part of the 348 00:17:41,119 --> 00:17:44,600 Speaker 1: world at nighttime, and another was riveting song, but and 349 00:17:44,680 --> 00:17:46,160 Speaker 1: I guess for fun, they just throw in a bunch 350 00:17:46,200 --> 00:17:49,320 Speaker 1: of gibbers that doesn't rhyme or fit the meter or anything. 351 00:17:49,359 --> 00:17:52,320 Speaker 1: So there's this one line that goes, when it's nighttime 352 00:17:52,359 --> 00:17:55,320 Speaker 1: in Italy, it's Wednesday over here, when it's fish day 353 00:17:55,320 --> 00:17:59,600 Speaker 1: in Germany, you can't get shaved in Massachusetts. And the 354 00:17:59,600 --> 00:18:03,080 Speaker 1: whole thing is just so bizarre, and I'm really hoping 355 00:18:03,080 --> 00:18:06,560 Speaker 1: this catches on again. That is amazing and in the 356 00:18:06,600 --> 00:18:09,560 Speaker 1: same vein if that old timy nonsense songs, I'm pretty 357 00:18:09,600 --> 00:18:13,000 Speaker 1: pumped at the copyright finally expired on Yes we Have 358 00:18:13,080 --> 00:18:16,320 Speaker 1: No Bananas Today, which is actually one of the songs 359 00:18:16,320 --> 00:18:18,320 Speaker 1: I know. I would definitely leave it to you to 360 00:18:18,440 --> 00:18:21,000 Speaker 1: zero in on the banana song. And a bunch of these. 361 00:18:21,080 --> 00:18:24,560 Speaker 1: But weirdly, it turns out there's actually a sequel song 362 00:18:24,800 --> 00:18:27,800 Speaker 1: called the um. It's called I've Got the Yes, we 363 00:18:27,840 --> 00:18:31,959 Speaker 1: Have No Banana Blues and uh. Since it was released 364 00:18:31,960 --> 00:18:33,480 Speaker 1: the same year as the originally, it's now in the 365 00:18:33,480 --> 00:18:35,720 Speaker 1: public domain as well. So why did they do a 366 00:18:35,720 --> 00:18:38,439 Speaker 1: follow up song? Was just that popular? It's basically a 367 00:18:38,480 --> 00:18:41,000 Speaker 1: response to how popular the first song was and how 368 00:18:41,040 --> 00:18:43,680 Speaker 1: sick everyone was of hearing it all the time. And 369 00:18:43,760 --> 00:18:46,400 Speaker 1: so one of the line says, quote, it hasn't got 370 00:18:46,400 --> 00:18:48,640 Speaker 1: a bit of sense, and I go wild when they 371 00:18:48,680 --> 00:18:52,000 Speaker 1: commenced bananas bananas. I wish I could break up a 372 00:18:52,040 --> 00:18:56,439 Speaker 1: million pianos. I get it. I kind of love that 373 00:18:56,480 --> 00:18:59,240 Speaker 1: this song is going to start annoying everyone all over 374 00:18:59,320 --> 00:19:01,880 Speaker 1: again with back out there, And I was I guess 375 00:19:01,920 --> 00:19:05,160 Speaker 1: that's kind of the scenario that these annual copyright expirations 376 00:19:05,240 --> 00:19:07,480 Speaker 1: allow for. So it's nice to have them back in 377 00:19:07,520 --> 00:19:09,600 Speaker 1: the mix. Yeah, I guess that's true. But you know, 378 00:19:09,720 --> 00:19:11,879 Speaker 1: we can probably make a more compelling case for them 379 00:19:11,920 --> 00:19:14,520 Speaker 1: than that, I'm guessing. I mean, the public domain is 380 00:19:14,560 --> 00:19:17,240 Speaker 1: good for lots of stuff beyond just annoying your friends 381 00:19:17,280 --> 00:19:19,400 Speaker 1: with weird old songs, No, no question, it's just fun 382 00:19:19,440 --> 00:19:21,879 Speaker 1: to read all those lyrics and everything. But all right, well, 383 00:19:21,880 --> 00:19:23,520 Speaker 1: now that we've checked out some of the most notable 384 00:19:23,560 --> 00:19:25,800 Speaker 1: inductees for this year, I do think we should take 385 00:19:25,840 --> 00:19:28,200 Speaker 1: a closer look at the benefits that come from having 386 00:19:28,200 --> 00:19:31,760 Speaker 1: the growing catalog of public domain works. Yeah, it sounds great, 387 00:19:31,800 --> 00:19:45,240 Speaker 1: but before we get into that, let's take another quick break. 388 00:19:47,760 --> 00:19:49,280 Speaker 1: All right, So we spent a lot of time to 389 00:19:49,320 --> 00:19:52,160 Speaker 1: day singing the praises of the public domain and kind 390 00:19:52,200 --> 00:19:54,959 Speaker 1: of lamenting all the extensions that certain copyrights have been 391 00:19:55,000 --> 00:19:57,480 Speaker 1: granted over the years. And honestly, at this point, I'm 392 00:19:57,480 --> 00:19:59,680 Speaker 1: a little bit worried that people might get the impression 393 00:19:59,720 --> 00:20:03,040 Speaker 1: that we are anti copyright. Well, I mean, I do 394 00:20:03,200 --> 00:20:06,000 Speaker 1: think we could survive that sort of scandal, But let's 395 00:20:06,000 --> 00:20:08,000 Speaker 1: go ahead and make the case for copyrights anyway, just 396 00:20:08,040 --> 00:20:10,960 Speaker 1: to be safe. It's actually something we're doing because even 397 00:20:11,000 --> 00:20:14,560 Speaker 1: though copyrights can feel annoying or restrictive, the core idea 398 00:20:14,600 --> 00:20:16,920 Speaker 1: makes a lot of sense granting creators the right to 399 00:20:16,960 --> 00:20:20,359 Speaker 1: control how their work is used, and in its purest form, 400 00:20:20,480 --> 00:20:23,920 Speaker 1: copyright protections benefit not just creators but society as a whole. 401 00:20:24,240 --> 00:20:27,119 Speaker 1: So the idea is like, that's how copyrights were framed 402 00:20:27,119 --> 00:20:28,840 Speaker 1: in the U S Constitution. It was kind of this 403 00:20:28,880 --> 00:20:31,920 Speaker 1: way to promote the progress of science and useful arts, 404 00:20:32,320 --> 00:20:34,639 Speaker 1: and again in the first copyright law of sev. Nine, 405 00:20:34,920 --> 00:20:36,480 Speaker 1: it was thought of as a way to further the 406 00:20:36,560 --> 00:20:39,800 Speaker 1: encouragement of learning. I mean, it's interesting, was you almost 407 00:20:39,840 --> 00:20:42,680 Speaker 1: guess that we're talking about the public domain again and 408 00:20:42,880 --> 00:20:46,080 Speaker 1: not copyrights? I mean, how does restricting access to a 409 00:20:46,160 --> 00:20:50,119 Speaker 1: work encourage learning or promote science and art? So the 410 00:20:50,200 --> 00:20:52,840 Speaker 1: idea is that it isn't like a short term fix it, 411 00:20:52,840 --> 00:20:55,200 Speaker 1: it's one for the long run. So the basic idea 412 00:20:55,240 --> 00:20:57,800 Speaker 1: is that copyright protection offers an incentive for people to 413 00:20:57,840 --> 00:21:00,600 Speaker 1: create new works. I mean, why go to the trouble 414 00:21:00,640 --> 00:21:02,480 Speaker 1: of writing a book or making a movie if anyone 415 00:21:02,520 --> 00:21:05,720 Speaker 1: can just copy it right after it's made public? Right. So, 416 00:21:05,920 --> 00:21:08,480 Speaker 1: one way I've seen it described is that copyright is 417 00:21:08,480 --> 00:21:12,360 Speaker 1: basically a contract between creators and society. They continue making 418 00:21:12,400 --> 00:21:14,560 Speaker 1: new stuff and in return, we promised not to rip 419 00:21:14,560 --> 00:21:16,600 Speaker 1: it off for muck with it for about twenty eight 420 00:21:16,640 --> 00:21:19,320 Speaker 1: years or however long, at which point the work belongs 421 00:21:19,359 --> 00:21:22,760 Speaker 1: to everyone. I mean, I get that the premises sound, 422 00:21:22,760 --> 00:21:25,359 Speaker 1: but it does it feels like these copyright terms have 423 00:21:25,480 --> 00:21:27,679 Speaker 1: kind of balloons so much that we've we've kind of 424 00:21:27,680 --> 00:21:30,960 Speaker 1: lost sight of their original purpose. Yeah, I mean, the 425 00:21:31,000 --> 00:21:33,280 Speaker 1: trouble is that there's always someone arguing that the length 426 00:21:33,280 --> 00:21:35,320 Speaker 1: of the copyright is too short to make a profit. 427 00:21:35,640 --> 00:21:38,000 Speaker 1: And back in the days of fourteen and twenty eight 428 00:21:38,080 --> 00:21:40,800 Speaker 1: year terms, content creators may have had a point. But 429 00:21:41,320 --> 00:21:43,359 Speaker 1: you know, now that we're up to ninety five years 430 00:21:43,440 --> 00:21:46,640 Speaker 1: or a lifetime plus seventy years, the terms they really 431 00:21:46,640 --> 00:21:49,760 Speaker 1: start to seem excessive. So the contract we start with 432 00:21:49,840 --> 00:21:52,560 Speaker 1: has gotten a lot more one sided over the last century, 433 00:21:52,880 --> 00:21:54,960 Speaker 1: which is of course an intentional move on the part 434 00:21:55,000 --> 00:21:58,440 Speaker 1: of copyright holders, or more specifically, the part of companies 435 00:21:58,480 --> 00:22:02,040 Speaker 1: that hold those copyrights, because the ones making money on 436 00:22:02,119 --> 00:22:05,760 Speaker 1: the ninety five year copyrights or lifetime plus copyrights aren't 437 00:22:05,760 --> 00:22:09,680 Speaker 1: the authors or really even their families in most cases. Instead, 438 00:22:09,720 --> 00:22:12,800 Speaker 1: it's the companies that control the rights. Once the creator 439 00:22:13,000 --> 00:22:15,159 Speaker 1: is gone, like the what he got three example you 440 00:22:15,200 --> 00:22:18,480 Speaker 1: gave earlier, his descendants aren't cashing in from licensing deals. 441 00:22:18,480 --> 00:22:20,520 Speaker 1: It's the publisher that is sure. I mean that that's 442 00:22:20,520 --> 00:22:23,160 Speaker 1: a great point, and and corporations definitely played a huge 443 00:22:23,280 --> 00:22:26,560 Speaker 1: role in the twentieth century extensions to copyright terms. I mean, 444 00:22:26,680 --> 00:22:31,080 Speaker 1: the most famous example is probably the extension we mentioned earlier, 445 00:22:31,280 --> 00:22:34,280 Speaker 1: the one that raised the term for older US copyrights 446 00:22:34,280 --> 00:22:36,840 Speaker 1: from seventy five to ninety five years. And the law 447 00:22:36,960 --> 00:22:41,159 Speaker 1: was called the Sonny Bono Copyright Term Extension Act, and 448 00:22:41,200 --> 00:22:44,359 Speaker 1: the Disney Corporation was actually his biggest and most vocal champion, 449 00:22:44,440 --> 00:22:46,200 Speaker 1: and that's because they wanted to keep the first Mickey 450 00:22:46,200 --> 00:22:49,480 Speaker 1: Mouse cartoon ever released, which is Steamboat Willie, from entering 451 00:22:49,480 --> 00:22:52,240 Speaker 1: the public domain in two thousand three. So what did 452 00:22:52,280 --> 00:22:54,560 Speaker 1: Sonny Bono have to do with this? Like, shouldn't have 453 00:22:54,600 --> 00:22:57,440 Speaker 1: been called the Mickey Mouse Act? Yeah, I mean, that 454 00:22:57,520 --> 00:23:00,199 Speaker 1: might have been more accurate. And actually Disney lobbied so 455 00:23:00,280 --> 00:23:02,639 Speaker 1: hard for the legislation that some people actually do refer 456 00:23:02,680 --> 00:23:05,920 Speaker 1: to it as the Mickey Mouse Protection Act. But in reality, 457 00:23:06,080 --> 00:23:07,960 Speaker 1: the nine Bill was named as a way to honor 458 00:23:08,040 --> 00:23:10,520 Speaker 1: Sonny Bono, who had passed away in January of that year. 459 00:23:11,080 --> 00:23:13,719 Speaker 1: And if that sounds kind of random, it isn't just 460 00:23:13,760 --> 00:23:15,480 Speaker 1: that he was an entertainer. It's also that he was 461 00:23:15,520 --> 00:23:18,679 Speaker 1: a congressman in California, and during his tenure, Bono had 462 00:23:18,720 --> 00:23:22,000 Speaker 1: actually pushed hard for better copyright protection, So the gesture 463 00:23:22,080 --> 00:23:23,920 Speaker 1: kind of made a lot of sense if you, you know, 464 00:23:24,119 --> 00:23:26,119 Speaker 1: knew all that. Yeah, But I mean, you know, what 465 00:23:26,119 --> 00:23:27,960 Speaker 1: it still strikes me about this whole thing is how 466 00:23:28,000 --> 00:23:31,000 Speaker 1: ironic it is that a company build on adaptations of 467 00:23:31,040 --> 00:23:34,119 Speaker 1: public domain fairy tales. They're the ones that wound up 468 00:23:34,160 --> 00:23:38,360 Speaker 1: fighting to keep all those adaptations under wraps. Yeah, and 469 00:23:38,480 --> 00:23:41,280 Speaker 1: the ironies don't end there either, because disney Steamboat Willie 470 00:23:41,280 --> 00:23:44,760 Speaker 1: cartoon was itself a parody of Buster Keaton's short called 471 00:23:45,040 --> 00:23:50,000 Speaker 1: Steamboat Bill Jr. It actually premiered the same year. So yeah, 472 00:23:50,840 --> 00:23:53,200 Speaker 1: and so while the Keaton shore entered the public domain 473 00:23:53,320 --> 00:23:56,920 Speaker 1: years ago, the cartoon inspired is still under lock and 474 00:23:57,000 --> 00:23:59,080 Speaker 1: Key it's kind of his ar but you know, just 475 00:23:59,119 --> 00:24:01,480 Speaker 1: like with Felix the Cat, Mickey Mouice his trademark. So 476 00:24:01,600 --> 00:24:04,840 Speaker 1: when the copyright on his debut cartoon expires, the short 477 00:24:04,880 --> 00:24:07,639 Speaker 1: itself can be bought or sold or given away or 478 00:24:07,680 --> 00:24:10,680 Speaker 1: remixed by anyone, but the Mickey character will still belong 479 00:24:10,720 --> 00:24:12,680 Speaker 1: to the Disney Company for as long as it continues 480 00:24:12,720 --> 00:24:16,520 Speaker 1: to you know, use his likeness and continuity. And so 481 00:24:16,560 --> 00:24:18,680 Speaker 1: one of the things you hope doesn't happen is that 482 00:24:18,720 --> 00:24:23,120 Speaker 1: someone makes an adult version of Steamboat Willie. Actually, one 483 00:24:23,160 --> 00:24:26,359 Speaker 1: of the main arguments you hear from staunch copyright defenders 484 00:24:26,440 --> 00:24:29,479 Speaker 1: like the ideas that when work slip into the public domain, 485 00:24:29,640 --> 00:24:32,760 Speaker 1: they will be abused their tarning in some way. So 486 00:24:32,840 --> 00:24:35,320 Speaker 1: for instance, the book could be published with errors, or 487 00:24:35,440 --> 00:24:38,240 Speaker 1: film could be released in low quality. Yeah, or someone 488 00:24:38,240 --> 00:24:41,320 Speaker 1: could replace every other line in your poem with Beyonce lyrics, 489 00:24:41,320 --> 00:24:44,080 Speaker 1: which might be an improvement depending on how bad the 490 00:24:44,080 --> 00:24:46,040 Speaker 1: poetry is. But I mean, you get the point. The 491 00:24:46,080 --> 00:24:48,560 Speaker 1: worry is that a public domain work will be over 492 00:24:48,680 --> 00:24:52,040 Speaker 1: exploited and that it's cultural or artistic worth, you know, 493 00:24:52,080 --> 00:24:54,600 Speaker 1: by because of that, it will be diminished in the process. 494 00:24:55,119 --> 00:24:57,720 Speaker 1: I mean that sounds like a legit concern doesn't have 495 00:24:57,920 --> 00:24:59,880 Speaker 1: But you know, like I love the idea of Pride, 496 00:25:00,000 --> 00:25:03,520 Speaker 1: Prejudice and zombies. You know, like Jane Austin might not 497 00:25:03,680 --> 00:25:06,000 Speaker 1: have wanted that when she wrote it, but it's a 498 00:25:06,000 --> 00:25:08,479 Speaker 1: pretty great thing for all of us, and probably more 499 00:25:08,560 --> 00:25:11,040 Speaker 1: people went back and actually read Pride and Prejudice when 500 00:25:11,080 --> 00:25:13,720 Speaker 1: that Yeah, that's true. And for the most part, I'm 501 00:25:13,720 --> 00:25:16,840 Speaker 1: not sure the argument holds that much water, you know, because, 502 00:25:16,840 --> 00:25:18,800 Speaker 1: for instance, There was a study back in two thousand 503 00:25:18,880 --> 00:25:22,320 Speaker 1: twelve where researchers took a bunch of different audio books, 504 00:25:22,560 --> 00:25:25,479 Speaker 1: some of the public domains, some under copyright, and they 505 00:25:25,480 --> 00:25:28,680 Speaker 1: had listeners provide feedback on the quality of each one 506 00:25:28,720 --> 00:25:31,320 Speaker 1: and just actually, I'll just read here what they found. 507 00:25:31,760 --> 00:25:34,480 Speaker 1: So our data provided almost no support for the arguments 508 00:25:34,480 --> 00:25:38,040 Speaker 1: made by proponents of copyright term extension that once works 509 00:25:38,080 --> 00:25:40,560 Speaker 1: fall into the public domain, they will be produced in 510 00:25:40,600 --> 00:25:44,800 Speaker 1: poor quality versions that will undermine their cultural or economic value. 511 00:25:45,320 --> 00:25:49,480 Speaker 1: Our data indicate no statistically significant difference, for example, between 512 00:25:49,480 --> 00:25:52,760 Speaker 1: the listeners judgments of the quality of the professional audiobook 513 00:25:52,800 --> 00:25:56,960 Speaker 1: readers or copyrighted and public domain texts. So it sounds 514 00:25:56,960 --> 00:25:59,320 Speaker 1: like we're saying, even though there could be downsides to 515 00:25:59,359 --> 00:26:02,159 Speaker 1: a work entering the public domain, those drawbacks tend to 516 00:26:02,200 --> 00:26:04,920 Speaker 1: be heavily outweighed by the benefits of open access. I mean, 517 00:26:05,160 --> 00:26:08,000 Speaker 1: teachers can make photo copies without breaking the law, artists 518 00:26:08,040 --> 00:26:10,199 Speaker 1: can pay tribute to and and even build off the 519 00:26:10,200 --> 00:26:12,080 Speaker 1: worst that inspire them, and the rest of us can 520 00:26:12,160 --> 00:26:14,600 Speaker 1: kick back and listen to Yes, we have no Bananas 521 00:26:14,640 --> 00:26:18,760 Speaker 1: on loop completely free of charge. I was I was 522 00:26:18,800 --> 00:26:20,919 Speaker 1: there with you until that last part but I do 523 00:26:21,040 --> 00:26:23,480 Speaker 1: agree the public domain is a win for society and 524 00:26:23,480 --> 00:26:25,600 Speaker 1: it's exciting to see how it, you know, it can 525 00:26:25,640 --> 00:26:29,520 Speaker 1: grow substantially again after a twenty year hiatus. But before 526 00:26:29,560 --> 00:26:32,760 Speaker 1: we go exploring into that treasure trove once again, I 527 00:26:32,800 --> 00:26:34,879 Speaker 1: know we still have a bunch of weird copyright facts 528 00:26:34,920 --> 00:26:46,959 Speaker 1: to share, So let's get into the fact off all. Well, 529 00:26:47,000 --> 00:26:49,480 Speaker 1: here's something I think is pretty cool. There's this little 530 00:26:49,560 --> 00:26:53,560 Speaker 1: village in England called Wookie Hole. That's already cool. Yeah, 531 00:26:53,760 --> 00:26:57,120 Speaker 1: And there are over three eggs painted with clown faces 532 00:26:57,160 --> 00:27:00,680 Speaker 1: on them. And this collection is known as the Clown Register. 533 00:27:01,119 --> 00:27:03,760 Speaker 1: And while it started as a hobby where one individual 534 00:27:03,840 --> 00:27:07,240 Speaker 1: was cataloging these clowns just for fun, the collection grew 535 00:27:07,320 --> 00:27:11,199 Speaker 1: into a way for professional clowns to basically copyright the 536 00:27:11,240 --> 00:27:13,679 Speaker 1: way they make up their faces, you know, to protect 537 00:27:13,760 --> 00:27:18,040 Speaker 1: from imitators. And so the tradition actually continues today. If 538 00:27:18,040 --> 00:27:21,400 Speaker 1: you register with the Clowns International, they will have your 539 00:27:21,400 --> 00:27:25,639 Speaker 1: makeup painted on a ceramic. That's crazy. There's one thing 540 00:27:25,680 --> 00:27:28,480 Speaker 1: I learned this week that you can't copyright, and that's 541 00:27:28,520 --> 00:27:31,920 Speaker 1: a chicken sandwich. And I know this because a man 542 00:27:32,000 --> 00:27:36,119 Speaker 1: named Nolberto Cologne Lorenzana tried to do this in the 543 00:27:36,200 --> 00:27:40,280 Speaker 1: nineteen eighties. Apparently, Norberto added a simple chicken sandwich to 544 00:27:40,280 --> 00:27:43,040 Speaker 1: the menu at Church's Chicken in Puerto Rico, and the 545 00:27:43,080 --> 00:27:45,880 Speaker 1: company made millions of it. They even used the name 546 00:27:45,920 --> 00:27:48,560 Speaker 1: he gave it, the Paytree Sandwich. But when he tried 547 00:27:48,600 --> 00:27:52,560 Speaker 1: to sue for intellectual property theft, the judge sternly rebuked 548 00:27:52,600 --> 00:27:55,560 Speaker 1: and letting him know that while films, books, music, and 549 00:27:55,640 --> 00:27:59,560 Speaker 1: architecture and even some art are all protected, culinary inventions 550 00:27:59,600 --> 00:28:03,680 Speaker 1: are kind of a gray area, especially chicken sandwiches are well. 551 00:28:03,680 --> 00:28:06,960 Speaker 1: Speaking of architecture, it is interesting to note that Hershey's 552 00:28:07,000 --> 00:28:10,640 Speaker 1: has a trademark for the structural design of their chocolate bar, 553 00:28:11,160 --> 00:28:14,439 Speaker 1: and apparently it took a ton of work to get that. Basically, 554 00:28:14,480 --> 00:28:16,600 Speaker 1: they were trying to protect the fact that you can 555 00:28:16,680 --> 00:28:20,040 Speaker 1: snap those little rectangles off to fit perfectly on a smorn. 556 00:28:20,119 --> 00:28:24,480 Speaker 1: If you think about like, everyone can imagine those exact rectangles. 557 00:28:24,480 --> 00:28:28,439 Speaker 1: But as Smithsonian notes, functionality is not a qualifying feature 558 00:28:28,480 --> 00:28:32,000 Speaker 1: when registering a product design for trademark, so to win 559 00:28:32,080 --> 00:28:34,920 Speaker 1: the case, they basically had to show that the ridges 560 00:28:34,960 --> 00:28:38,800 Speaker 1: were more than just utility. The architectural design was something 561 00:28:38,840 --> 00:28:42,120 Speaker 1: that people associated with Hershey Bars, even when the brand 562 00:28:42,200 --> 00:28:44,760 Speaker 1: name was absent from the chocolate, and I would completely 563 00:28:44,800 --> 00:28:47,400 Speaker 1: agree with Yeah, that's really interesting. Well, here's a funny 564 00:28:47,400 --> 00:28:50,160 Speaker 1: one for mental class. Apparently the nineteen three Beach Boys 565 00:28:50,240 --> 00:28:53,000 Speaker 1: hit Surf in USA is a complete knockoff of a 566 00:28:53,120 --> 00:28:56,960 Speaker 1: Chuck Berry song called Sweet Little sixteen. I had never 567 00:28:57,000 --> 00:29:00,000 Speaker 1: heard of that. When very accused Brian Wilson of steel 568 00:29:00,000 --> 00:29:03,240 Speaker 1: in the song without telling anyone, Wilson's dad, who also 569 00:29:03,320 --> 00:29:06,360 Speaker 1: happened to be the band's manager, gave Barry the copyright 570 00:29:06,400 --> 00:29:08,960 Speaker 1: to the tune, but he didn't tell anyone in the band, 571 00:29:08,960 --> 00:29:10,880 Speaker 1: so the band actually only learned that they weren't getting 572 00:29:10,920 --> 00:29:14,680 Speaker 1: royalties from the song twenty five years after it was released, Like, 573 00:29:14,680 --> 00:29:18,800 Speaker 1: why are we not getting any money on this song? Well, 574 00:29:18,800 --> 00:29:22,160 Speaker 1: speaking of wild, did you know that animals can't own 575 00:29:22,280 --> 00:29:25,200 Speaker 1: copyrights manga? I don't even know how that could be 576 00:29:25,240 --> 00:29:28,800 Speaker 1: an issue. Well, in two thousand eleven, this photographer named 577 00:29:28,880 --> 00:29:32,560 Speaker 1: David Slater went to Indonesia and he had this brilliant idea, 578 00:29:33,040 --> 00:29:35,400 Speaker 1: like what if he set up a tripod and tried 579 00:29:35,440 --> 00:29:39,360 Speaker 1: to get the monkeys to take selfies of themselves and 580 00:29:39,440 --> 00:29:44,080 Speaker 1: somehow this one female macaque named Naruto went crazy, and 581 00:29:44,120 --> 00:29:47,520 Speaker 1: of course the photos went viral. The Wikipedia put them 582 00:29:47,560 --> 00:29:50,920 Speaker 1: up claiming no one could own the copyright, and David 583 00:29:51,000 --> 00:29:53,920 Speaker 1: Slater assumed that he owned the rights. It was his 584 00:29:54,000 --> 00:29:57,280 Speaker 1: camera and idea after all. But Peter and their ethical 585 00:29:57,280 --> 00:30:01,240 Speaker 1: treatment of all animals decided to sue on a monkey's behalf, 586 00:30:01,840 --> 00:30:06,040 Speaker 1: claiming that this female should get the royalties on the photos. 587 00:30:06,080 --> 00:30:08,280 Speaker 1: So far, the U S Copyright Office has taken a 588 00:30:08,400 --> 00:30:11,720 Speaker 1: firm line that quote, the office will not register works 589 00:30:11,760 --> 00:30:15,400 Speaker 1: produced by nature, animals or plants, and it's put the 590 00:30:15,400 --> 00:30:18,719 Speaker 1: photos in the public domain. But PETA is still fighting 591 00:30:18,760 --> 00:30:21,959 Speaker 1: for its social media star client. That's pretty crazy. I mean, 592 00:30:22,000 --> 00:30:24,360 Speaker 1: I think monkeys are a great way to end the show. 593 00:30:24,600 --> 00:30:28,240 Speaker 1: Clown eggs, monkey selfies. I do think you deserve today's 594 00:30:28,240 --> 00:30:30,440 Speaker 1: trophy and to celebrate your victory at Tristan, will you 595 00:30:30,480 --> 00:30:33,400 Speaker 1: please queue up. Yes, we have no more bananas. That 596 00:30:33,600 --> 00:30:35,320 Speaker 1: is it for today's show. I do want to give 597 00:30:35,320 --> 00:30:37,360 Speaker 1: a special shout out to our listener Savantha, who tipped 598 00:30:37,400 --> 00:30:40,320 Speaker 1: us off on some Brady Bunch spinoffs from our last 599 00:30:40,400 --> 00:30:42,200 Speaker 1: nine things that we did, our our favorite of which 600 00:30:42,240 --> 00:30:45,160 Speaker 1: is the Brady Brides where Marcia and Jen have a 601 00:30:45,160 --> 00:30:47,160 Speaker 1: double wedding to their boyfriends and then have to live 602 00:30:47,160 --> 00:30:50,800 Speaker 1: in the same house because they can't afford to move out. Unfortunately, 603 00:30:50,840 --> 00:30:54,040 Speaker 1: the Hijinks only lasted six episodes, which sounds great and 604 00:30:54,320 --> 00:30:57,320 Speaker 1: terrible but yeah, but thank you so much for that, Sabantha. 605 00:30:57,440 --> 00:30:59,160 Speaker 1: But that's it for today's show. If you want to 606 00:30:59,160 --> 00:31:01,000 Speaker 1: send us facts where part time genius at House start 607 00:31:01,080 --> 00:31:04,360 Speaker 1: works dot com and from Gabe, Tristan Will and me. 608 00:31:04,640 --> 00:31:18,720 Speaker 1: Thank you so much for listening. M M.