Thornton W. Burgess Public Domain Countdown

Thornton W. Burgess

Public Domain Countdown

What books and other writings by Thornton W. Burgess are now in the public domain, and when will his remaining books enter the public domain? Answers here.

DISCLAIMER: I AM NOT A LAWYER. THIS IS NOT LEGAL ADVICE. YOU SHOULD CONSULT A LAWYER BEFORE COPYING ANYTHING THAT MAY BE UNDER COPYRIGHT PROTECTION.

But first, some basic relevant principles of U.S. copyright law. This is just a simple overview; including all the details is beyond the scope of this blog post. For more information see a book like "The Public Domain" by Stephen Fishman:

• If published in the US before 1923, it's now in the public domain.
• If published in the US from 1923 - 1963:
• With a valid copyright notice:
• If properly renewed during the 28th year, it's protected for 95 years from publication date.
• If not properly renewed during the 28th year, it's now in the public domain.
• Without a valid copyright notice:
• It entered the public domain upon original publication (this rule is for works published before March 1st, 1989, after which copyright notice is not required for copyright protection).
• If published from 1964 - 1977, it's protected for 95 years from publication date.
• If unpublished, it's protected through 2035 (70 years after Burgess' 1965 death).
• In 1998, US copyright protection for works published 1923 - 1977 was extended from 75 to 95 years. So works published in 1923 enter the public domain in 2019 instead of 1999. Due to that 1998 extension, no work's copyright protection expires in the 20 year period from 1999 - 2018.
• However, this does not re-protect works that were already in the public domain when the law went into effect in 1998, or that ever went into the public domain for any other reason.
• US copyright protection never ends in the middle of a year. Protection always extends through December 31st of the last year a work is protected. When a work enters the public domain due to the expiration of protection, it always does so on the January 1st after the end of its protection.
• For example, if a work is published on July 1st of a year for which 95 years of protection are provided, that work gets 95 and 1/2 years of protection, then enters the public domain at the start of January 1st.
• Most of the copyright dates given below come from my own collection, but I also relied on the excellent "Thornton W. Burgess: A Descriptive Book Bibliography" (2nd edition) by Wayne W. Wright.

Main Thornton W. Burgess Fiction
Now in the Public Domain

(and when it entered the public domain)

• All 8 books in the Mother West Wind series
• Published 1910 - 1918, PD 1986 - 1994
• All 20 books in the Bedtime Stories series
• Published 1913 - 1919, PD 1989 - 1995
• Tommy and the Wishing Stone (both single title and series)
• Published 1915, PD 1991
• All 4 books in the Green Meadow series
• Published 1918 - 1920, PD 1994 - 1996
• Burgess Bird Book for Children
• Published 1919, PD 1995
• Burgess Animal Book for Children
• Published 1920, PD 1996
• Lightfoot the Deer
• Published 1921, PD 1997
• Blacky the Crow
• Published 1922, PD 1998
• Whitefoot the Wood Mouse
• Published 1922, PD 1998
• Serialized newspaper stories
• "Little Stories for Bedtime" (1912-1920), then "Burgess Bedtime Stories ("1920-1960"), and sometimes "Nature Stories".
• Printed 1912-1960, PD 1941-1989
• Why did these newspaper stories enter the public domain so soon? Why did they not get the 75 (for those published 1912-1922) or 95 (for those published 1923-1960) years of protection that was possible for works published those years? Because they were not renewed during their 28th year, at a time when that was required. For serial works, an additional 4 years may? be allowed, but they were not renewed in that time frame either. They were never renewed at all. 
• What if they had been properly renewed? In that case, the stories published 1912-1922 would have entered the public domain 1988-1998 (after 75 years), and the stories published 1923-1960 would have entered the public domain 2019-2056 (after 95 years).
• What about the books based on the newspaper stories, where the book is still protected? The book copyrights cannot extend the newspaper story copyrights. Where books were based on earlier copyrighted newspaper stories, the book copyrights protect only the creative differences. Sometimes Burgess rewrote whole sections (clearly a creative change); other times he simply omitted the daily recap of the previous day's story (probably not a creative change, but it would be up to a judge to decide).
• What about the copyrights on the newspapers themselves? A work cannot be protected by two different copyrights, and a copyright cannot protect something that the copyright owner does not own (or more precisely, does not have the right to copyright). Burgess newspaper stories were syndicated. With most syndicated authors, the syndicate had ownership and copyright. Burgess was unusual in that he retained copyright, aside from a handful of early stories for which he sold the rights (and that are now public domain). Since Burgess had ownership and copyright of the newspaper stories, the copyright on the newspaper itself did not protect the Burgess story in it.
• Does that mean someone could repackage the original newspaper stories that were behind a book that is still copyright protected, and sell them as the same title? For example, Burgess' book "Longlegs the Heron", published 1927, properly renewed, and copyright protected until 2033? 
• No. Book titles cannot be copyrighted, so there is no copyright infringement in naming a new book "Longlegs the Heron". However, other laws give the public the right not to be deliberately misled about the contents of a book. If a book is issued as "Longlegs the Heron" by Thornton W. Burgess, with text that differs substantially from the well-known book by that title and author, it must at the very least be clearly marked as such, but probably should have a different title that makes clear it's origin, such as "The Original Newspaper Stories That Became Longlegs the Heron". 

Main Thornton W. Burgess Fiction
Yet to Enter the Public Domain

(and when it will)

  

• Burgess Flower Book for Children
• Published 1923, PD 2019
• Buster Bear's Twins
• Published 1923, PD 2019
• Reprinted 1999 by Dover Publications, with no indication that it was used with permission. Copyright violation?
• Billy Mink
• Published 1924, PD 2020
• Reprinted 2012 by Dover Publications, with no indication that it was used with permission. Copyright violation?
• Little Joe Otter
• Published 1925, PD 2021
• Jerry Muskrat at Home
• Published 1926, PD 2022
• Longlegs the Heron
• Published 1927, PD 2023
• Burgess Seashore Book for Children
• Published 1929, PD 2025
• Reprinted 2005 by Dover Publications, with no indication that it was used with permission. Copyright violation?
• Color illustrations, including additional illustrations, all by Harrison Cady, in new editions of 8 of the Bedtime Stories series books, published by Little, Brown in 1941 and 1944. All included the original 6 illustrations, but now in color.
• Published 1941 with 10 color illustrations, PD 2037:
• Reddy Fox
• The additional illustrations show (a) Old Mistah Buzzard perched in a tree, (b) Reddy Fox crying, with Granny Fox, (c) Granny Fox walking, and (d) Unc' Billy Possum watching Farmer Brown's Boy.
• Peter Cottontail
• Buster Bear
• Jimmy Skunk
• Published 1944 with 8 color illustrations, PD 2040:
• Johnny Chuck
• The additional illustrations show (a) Johnny Chuck meeting Polly Chuck (also on the cover), and (b) Sammy Jay finding Johnny Chuck's family.
• Danny Meadow Mouse
• The color illustrations are shown at Project Gutenberg, in violation of copyright law:
• http://www.gutenberg.org/files/25301/25301-h/25301-h.htm
• Grandfather Frog
• The additional illustrations show (a) Grandfather Frog showing off his handsome clothes to Old Mr. Toad, and (b) Farmer Brown's Boy carrying Grandfather Frog.
• Bobby Coon
• The additional illustrations show (a) Farmer Brown's Boy waving goodbye to Bobby Coon, and (b) Buster Bear standing.
• If these color editions sound interesting and you're thinking of collecting them, note that they were poor quality. The paper and binding were very cheap, and the boards were thin. In the 1944 books, the reproductions of the illustrations range from bad to really awful (they are much better in the 1941 books). However, they are interesting for the additional illustrations, none of which were ever printed in any other editions, though in at least some cases they were redrawn for the later Grosset & Dunlap editions (see below).
• On the Green Meadows
• Published 1944, PD 2040
• At the Smiling Pool
• Published 1945, PD 2041
• The Crooked Little Path
• Published 1946, PD 2042
• The Dear Old Briar Patch
• Published 1947, PD 2043
• Along Laughing Brook
• Published 1949, PD 2045
• At Paddy the Beaver's Pond
• Published 1950, PD 2046
• New illustrations by Harrison Cady in all 20 books in the Bedtime Stories series (14 per book), published by Grosset & Dunlap. Some of these were new versions of the original illustrations, while others were completely new. All were line drawings designed for printing on cheap plain paper, rather than paintings intended for printing on art plates like the original 1910s illustrations:
• Published 1949 - 1957, PD 1949 - 1957
• Why did these new illustrations enter the public domain when they were published? Because they were published without proper copyright notice, back when that was required. Also, they were not renewed during their 28th year, so even if they had been published with proper copyright notice, they would have entered the public domain 1977 - 1985.
• If Grosset & Dunlap had immediately reprinted them with proper copyright notice, protection might have been preserved. But GD did nothing of the kind. To the contrary, they published 4 editions over almost 30 years, all with exactly the same copyright problem. First there were the jacketed hardcovers of 1949 - 57, then the pink hardcovers in 1962, then the pink hardcovers were reissued with ISBN numbers (a new thing then) around 1970, and finally the library editions (tan hardcovers, tough as nails, many of them faded to green by now), of 1977. In some cases it was arguably 5 editions; several of the earlier jacketed hardcovers were later reissued with different covers, endpapers, and bindings.
• Some of them were published with the 1941 or 1944 copyright date of the color editions, while some others were published with the 28th-year renewal dates (1941 - 1947) of their original copyrights. US copyright law allows backdating copyright protection when the year in the copyright notice is earlier than the actual publication year. But that is intended for when the date in the copyright notice is inadvertently earlier than the publication year, normally due to a delay in publication after printing. It's highly unlikely that it would be accepted when the earlier date given is clearly the copyright date for earlier material -- or worse, merely the renewal date of the copyright of an earlier edition. Even if it was accepted, US copyright law is clear that the earlier date becomes the legal publication date for copyright law purposes, so the requirement at the time for renewal on the 28th year would fall 28 years from the earlier date. Those renewals, on the 28th year after the dates given in the copyright notices, happened for only 5 of the titles. In those 5 titles, the color edition's earlier publication date was listed in the Grosset & Dunlap edition as the copyright date, and the 28th-year renewal was really for the 1940's color edition. But again, the publication date of one edition is highly unlikely to be accepted as a backdated copyright date for another edition.
• Titles where the 1941 or 1944 copyright date of the color edition is given:
• Peter Cottontail
• Published by G&D in 1950 with a 1941 copyright date. 1941 was when the color edition was published. The 28th-year renewal date of the original 1914 copyright was 1942.
• Danny Meadow Mouse
• Published by G&D in 1950 with a 1944 copyright date. 1944 was when the color edition was published. The 28th-year renewal date of the original 1915 copyright was 1943.
• Buster Bear
• Published by G&D in 1949 with a 1941 copyright date. 1941 was when the color edition was published. The 28th-year renewal date of the original 1916 copyright was 1944.
• Titles where the 28th-year renewal date of the original copyright date is given:
• Johnny Chuck
• Published by G&D in 1952 with a 1941 copyright date. 1941 was the 28th-year renewal date of the original 1913 copyright.
• Unc' Billy Possum
• Published by G&D in 1951 with a 1942 copyright date. 1942 was the 28th-year renewal date of the original 1914 copyright.
• Mr. Mocker
• Published by G&D in 1951 with a 1942 copyright date. 1942 was the 28th-year renewal date of the original 1914 copyright.
• Jerry Muskrat
• Published by G&D in 1951 with a 1942 copyright date. 1942 was the 28th-year renewal date of the original 1914 copyright.
• Grandfather Frog
• Published by G&D in 1952 with a 1943 copyright date. 1943 was the 28th-year renewal date of the original 1915 copyright.
• Chatterer the Red Squirrel
• Published by G&D in 1949 with a 1943 copyright date. 1943 was the 28th-year renewal date of the original 1915 copyright.
• Sammy Jay
• Published by G&D in 1949 with a 1943 copyright date. 1943 was the 28th-year renewal date of the original 1915 copyright.
• Old Mr. Toad
• Published by G&D in 1949 with a 1944 copyright date. 1944 was the 28th-year renewal date of the original 1916 copyright.
• Prickly Porky
• Published by G&D in 1949 with a 1944 copyright date. 1944 was the 28th-year renewal date of the original 1916 copyright.
• Old Man Coyote
• Published by G&D in 1952 with a 1944 copyright date. 1944 was the 28th-year renewal date of the original 1916 copyright.
• Paddy the Beaver
• Published by G&D in 1951 with a 1945 copyright date. 1945 was the 28th-year renewal date of the original 1917 copyright.
• Poor Mrs. Quack
• Published by G&D in 1953 with a 1945 copyright date. 1945 was the 28th-year renewal date of the original 1917 copyright.
• Bobby Coon
• Published by G&D in 1954 with a 1946 copyright date. 1946 was the 28th-year renewal date of the original 1918 copyright.
• Jimmy Skunk
• Published by G&D in 1955 with a 1946 copyright date. 1946 was the 28th-year renewal date of the original 1918 copyright.
• Old Mistah Buzzard
• Published by G&D in 1957 with a 1947 copyright date. 1947 was the 28th-year renewal date of the original 1919 copyright.
• Title where it is ambiguous whether the date given is the copyright date of the color edition, or the 28th-year renewal date of the original copyright date:
• Reddy Fox
• Published in 1949 with a 1941 copyright date. 1941 was when the color edition was published. 1941 was also the 28th-year renewal date of the original 1913 copyright.
• Title where only the original copyright date is given:
• Bob White
• Published by G&D in 1956 with only the original 1919 copyright date.
• The later Grosset & Dunlap editions of the Green Meadow Series, Green Forest Series, Smiling Pool Series, and the Wishing-Stone Series, all had new versions of the original illustrations, redrawn for printing on cheap plain paper rather than on art plates, and they all had the same copyright issue as G&D's Bedtime Stories series. However, the quality of the redrawings in these series is too poor to have been Cady's work, even though they have his signature and the cover and title pages say they are his. G&D must have gotten Cady's permission to have an anonymous artist make the new versions of his work for these series.

Riding a "Low Performing" King County Metro Bus

The bus I take to work is always standing-room only. This morning the aisle between the seats was packed like a sardine can and there wasn't room for me to move out of the yellow restricted zone by the driver and front door where theoretically no one is allowed to stand while the bus is moving. Soon even that restricted area was too packed for any more people to squeeze in. Then the driver found enough spare room just inside the back door, normally only used for exiting (because you pay at the front as you get on), to squeeze in a couple more riders.

Since the buses normally jerk around like a bucking bronco, I was a little worried about falling into the driver, but luckily he was driving slowly. He explained that he was being cautious because the extra weight was making the suspension bottom out. 

One advantage to riding up in that yellow restricted area is that it's easier to get out when the bus reaches my stop. Not so easy for those who got in at earlier stops along the route and have to squeeze by 20 other sardines.

This bus route -- route 240 in Bellevue, WA -- is one of many "low performing" King County Metro routes slated for reduction this Fall due to insufficient funding by voters. I'd like to see one of the "high performing" routes. Do those buses have handles on the outside, looking like century-old photos of trolley cars with as many people hanging on the outside as riding on the inside? Maybe seats on the roof would help too.

These reductions coming up are going to force a lot of bus riders into cars, further slowing down our already notoriously glacial commuter traffic (the 3rd-worst in America, after LA and Miami) for everyone. Maybe I'll be one of them.