Stuff that Could Have Been Public Domain (But Isn't)

Johannes Gutenberg, inventor
of the printing press

The Center for the Study of the Public Domain at Duke University published an interesting article at the end of 2011 detailing works that would have entered the public domain but, due to changes in the U.S. Copyright Act, won't be.

Highlights include:

• Return of the King by JRR Tolkien
• The Magician's Nephew by CS Lewis
• Lady and the Tramp (Disney film)
• To Catch a Thief (Hitchcock film)
• James Dean films "Rebel Without a Cause" and "East of Eden"

Copyright is an interesting topic... it makes sense to protect the work initially so that the artist can collect income from its distribution, but how many years is it really necessary to keep strict control over distribution of a book, film or piece of music?

The above works they should be hitting the public domain sometime in 2051, barring any further copyright extensions.