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Mickey Mouse enters the Public Domain in 2024. Watch out, get a lawyer.

© Hutchinsphoto

Bob Iger, what’s up? Lawyers ask “You could have done this earlier. Why didn’t you?”  I don’t have the $ to compete with the latest twist. The extension of the public domain law proved unnecessary. Lost Mickey? Steamboat Willie, not Mickey Mouse as we know him, enters the public domain in 2024 finally. No Sonny or  pols to do your bidding? While this copyright may be up, Disney still holds the trademark on Mickey as a “corporate mascot and identifier.” What does that mean?

MINECRAFT AND THE PUBLIC DOMAIN

“The End Poem” the end of the game when and if you kill the dragon, was placed in the public domain by Julian Gough via twitter. Public domain is tricky .The placing of anything in the public domain requires the artist to place the work in the public domain As it turns out Julian had no contract with Microsoft or the game’s owner about the poem and contributed it to the public forever. Public Domain made this possible because of contracts Irene had to use an alias to record. You can hear Blake’s vocals in the background.

St. Louis raised Irene Scruggs’ amazing vocals come alive in ” Married Man Blues.”  Scruggs blends beautifully with the strumming of Blind Blake’s guitar in this 1930 recording that was never released on 78.  Known for her alluring voice and raunchy/sexy blues sensibilities, her voice tunes with the music in such a way that you just feel her passion. Scruggs is a definite female blues recording artist that time has proven worthy Enjoy 🙂

 

 

WHY I LOVE PUBLIC DOMAIN MUSIC

Jazz greats have to start somewhere, Louie Armstrong started here. Joseph Nathan Oliver, known as King Oliver, an excellent coronet player himself, gave Louis his 1st entertainment job in his creole band, took him under his wings, and taught him the music biz ropes. Tim Gracyk has made a sensational YouTube post of this song, and it includes some gr8 old images. I encourage you to expand your music horizons and give a listen.

I NEED HELP

This Earth Day will see the remix’s release,

Please help me!  I wrote this song in 1976. The recording I made got the attention of the record company guy (me at the time), who got my message. I want the message to get out to everyone.  I didn’t perform it because I thought it was an obvious sentiment. I’m now too old to want promote this song live or on social media, ergo I NEED YOUR HELP.

A BRIEF HISTORY:

I was walking through an exhibit of player pianos in 1975 and saw a one-man-band playing “Stars and Stripes Forever” by John Philip Sousa. It was so cool! I recorded it with Glen Kolotkin. I wrote a ditty incorporating a nursery rhyme about being kind to web-footed friends in my duck voice. I was helped by Jon Sargent of Purple Earthquake , who arranged the vocals and Tommy Dunbar, Rubinoos, who added electric guitar in the “Pete” tradition of working with Beserkley band members.

The song was released in 1976 to coincide with the America’s 200th birthday. I never toured, I was not an act.. After the recording paid for itself, I stopped working the song. I felt the premise of the song was so obvious and forgot about it until

IT GOT ERIC DIN’S ATTENTION.

THE SONG GOT ERIC DIN’S (another record company guy) ATTENTION.

Says Din: “We’re excited to get this timely remix out to the streaming services on Earth Day 2022. I was surprised to learn Pete did the “duck” vocals himself, and when I read the lyrics, this suddenly became more than a novelty song for me. It’s an unexpected environmental anthem, and we’re proud to release it on Berkeley Cat Records.

I made the original video with Calvin West, drawings by Trimla Rose, and I posted it on Youtube.

WINNIE THE POOH ENTERS THE PUBLIC DOMAIN IN 2021

Copyrighted creative works, whether they’re books, movies, or music, enter the public domain in the United States after 95 years, meaning they’re free for use by the American public.  Winnie The Pooh was first published  in 1924, becomes that old and is yours to use or modify! I admit it will be tough to see the pornagraphic uses of Winnie.

What will “Poo Bear” do?

Early Roots of Jazz

I owe my understanding of recorded music to record collectors. In today’s world, these collections need to be digitized (analog to digital) and posted somewhere. Like this one on YouTube.com. Jazz roots have been recorded, and are now in the public domain starting with the early recordings in the beginning of the 20th century. It was called Jazz when it got to Chicago at the turn of the century.