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Matched Legal Cases: ['Arts 1898', 'art 1', 'art 1', 'art 2', 'arts 3', 'art 5', 'art 5', 'art 5', 'art 6', 'arts 7', 'art 11', 'arts 12']

US Copyright Office: ar-1953 | United States Copyright Office | Copyright
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THE TITLE PAGE OF THIS ISSUE SHOULD READ FIFTY-SIXTH ANNUAL REPORT OF THE REGISTER OF COPYRIGHTS FOR THE FISCAL YEAR ENDING JUNE 30, 1953.
The L i b r a r y of Congress
LVASHINGTON :1914
SIR: The work of the Copyright Office for the fiscal year ending June 30, 1953, is summarized as follows:
United States Treasury as compared with $803,168.50 in fiscal 1952, an increase of 7.7 percent. The sources of these fees in 1953 are shown in a chart on page 5 and the amount derived from each source is given in a table, "Summary of Copyright Business," at the end of the report on this Office. In round numbers, 348,000 copies of works were deposited in the Office during 1953, of which 198,000 were transferred to the collections of the Library. This compares with 325,000 copies deposited during 1952, of which 202,000 were transferred to the Library's collections. The Office made reference searches and reports in response to 8,670 requests from the public in 1953 covering 29,922 titles, a decrease of 1.5 percent in the number of requests and an increase of 5 percent in titles covered as compared with the preceding fiscal year. The largest number of inquiries concerned music and the second largest books and pamphlets.
The number of copyright registrations for the year was the third highest in the history of the Office, being exceeded only in the years 1947 and 1948. Registrations of copyright claims rose to a total of 218,506 for fiscal 1953 as compared with 203,705 for fiscal 1952, an increase of 7.2 percent. This increase occurred in almost all classes. Musical compositions showed the highest increase-7,764, while books rose 2,944 and periodicals 2,862. In number of registrations, periodicals led the field with 59,371, closely followed by musical compositions with 59,302, and books came third with 52,347. Although this rise in volume was much greater than could have been anticipated, the Office nevertheless generally maintained its schedules for handling work on a substantially current basis without a corresponding increase in staff. On June 30, 1953, there were more than 5,000,000 copyright registrations in effect in the United States. The chart on page 2 shows the number (to the nearest 5,000) of copyright claims in each class that were registered or renewed during the past 28 years and were still in effect at the end of the fiscal year. The amount of fees earned during fiscal 1953 was the greatest in the history of the Copyright Office. A total of $865,302.50 in applied fees was turned over to the
Under the auspices of UNESCO, years 5 of preparatory work by copyright experts from a number of countries including the United States were brought to a fruitful conclusion with the completion of the Universal Copyright Convention at the Intergovernmental Conference on Copyright held in Geneva, Switzerland, from August 18 to September 6,1952. Delegations representing 50 nations and observers from 9 intergovernmental and 6 nongovernmental international organizations attended the Conference. The United States delegation was headed by Luther H. Evans, then Librarian of Congress, and included two
COPYRIGHT REGISTRATIONS IN EFFECT ON JUNE 30, 1953
GRAPHIC ARTS (Classes G , H, I, J, K), 375,000 RENEWALS (All Classes) 280,000 CONTRIBUTIONS TO PERIODICALS COMMERCIAL PRINTS AND LABELS DRAMAS MOTION PICTURES (Classes L, M) MAPS LECTURES
l2?BZZ
REPORT OF T H E REGISTER OF COPYRIGHTS, I953
before the United States can adhere to the Convention. On June 10, 1953, President Eisenhower submitted the Universal Copyright Convention to the Senate for its advice and consent to ratification, together with the report of the Secretary of State to the President (Executive My83d Congress, 1st Session). On July 29, 1953, revisions of the copyright law to conform with the standards prescribed by the Universal Convention were submitted bv the Secretary of State to Congress and were introduced in the House on July 29 and 30 as H. R. 6616 and H. R. 6670, and in the Senate on August 1 as S. 2559. The Universal Copyright Convention, upon its ratification, will represent a long SIGNATORIEST H E UNIVERSAL TO COPYRIOHT step forward in the international copyCONVENTION right relations of the United States. The Andorra Israel ' significance of the Convention is indicated Argentina ' Italy ' in the following excerpts from the report of Australia ' Japa? ' Austria ' the Secretarv of State to the President: Llberla Belgium ' Luxemburg ' "This convention would provide a more Brazil '. ' Mexico adequate basis than presently exists for Canada ' Monaco ' copyright protection abroad . of United Chile Netherlands ' States books and periodicals, music, art, Cuba Nicaragua ' Denmark ' Norway ' motion pictures and similar cultural and El Salvador ' Peru ' scientific creations. Although the United Portugal ' Finland ' States is a Dartv to certain multilateral , France ' San Marino agreements with Latin American countries, Spain ' German Federal it has been unable to join the major interSweden ' Republic ' Guatemala ' Switzerland ' national copyright convention of Berne, Haiti ' United Kingdom ' signed Sept. 9, 1886, because that conHoly See ' United States ' vention and its various revisions contain Uruguay ' Honduras ' concepts which have been considered forYugoslavia ' India ' Ireland ' eign to our concepts of copyright. We have therefore had to rely chiefly on a complex 'Member of the Berne Union. ' Member of a Convention of American States network of bilateral arrangements. to which the United States adheres. "Participation in the Universal Copyright Convention by the United States will In broad terms, the Convention is based not only significantly improve the protecon the principle of "national treatment," tion accorded to United States private inthat is, the works of nationals of any memterests abroad, but will make a substantial ber nation and works first published in any contribution to our general relations with member nation will be given the same proother countries of the free world." tection in each memher nation as that nation gives to works of its own nationals. The Convention prescribes certain miniOther International Developments mum standards of protection, and some revisions of the present copyright law with The treaty of peace with Japan, which respect to foreign works will be necessary was signed on September 8, 1951, and be-
Members of Congress, the Honorable Joseph H. Bryson and the Honorable Shepard J. Crumpacker; Roger C. Dixon, representing the Department of State; the Register of Copyrights; and four leading copyright attorneys (Arthur E. Farmer, Herman Finkelstein, Sidney M. Kaye, and John Schulman) ,who represent a diversity of private interests concerned with copyright. At the close of the Conference on September 6, 1952, the Universal Copyright Convention was signed by representatives of 36 countries including the United States, and since that date 4 other, countries have become signatories. A list of the 40 signatories follows.
REPORT O F T H E REGISTER O F COPYRIGHTS, I953
came effectiveApril 28,1952, provided that the United States would notify Japan, within one year of the effective date, which of their prewar bilateral treaties or conventions would be continued in force or revived, and that those not included in the notification to Japan would be regarded as abrogated. Among the prewar bilateral conventions involved was the copyright convention of 1905 between the United States and Japan. That convention was considered unsatisfactory by United States publishing interests generally because it provided no protection of translation rights, and it was abrogated by its omission from the notification that the Department of State gave Japan on April 22, 1953. (Also revoked in the same manner were the two conventions of 1908 between the United States and Japan regarding copyright protection in Korea and areas of China where jurisdiction was then exercised by Japan or the United States.) The Department of State, with the assistance of the Copyright Office, has been negotiating with the Japanese Government to establish bilateral copyright relations on a new basis affording national treatment. On September 24, 1952, copyright relations were established for the first time between the United States and the Principality of Monaco. On that date, following an exchange of notes, the President issued a proclamation and the Prince of Monaco promulgated a decree whereby each country accords protection to works of nationals of the other on the general basis of national treatment. The extensions of time given in the three proclamations issued by the President during the preceding year for compliance with the formalities of registration for works of nationals of Finland, Italy, and Denmark, came to an end on November 15,1952, December 12, 1952, and February 4, 1953, respectively. These extension proclamations were the last of the series issued after World War 11. Negotiations are in progress with India, Pakistan, and Burma to reconstitute, on
the basis of their changed political status, the copyright relations previously established through the United Kingdom. Ne,gotiations are also in progress with Cuba to obtain some relaxation by that country of certain procedural requirements for registration that have been troublesome and costly to United States authors and publishers and with Brazil and Mexico regarding the reciprocal protection of mechanical musical rights.
Special Studies.-During the fiscal year 1953 several major studies were begun with regard to some of the Office's administrative operations and certain problems of a legal nature concerning the scope of the copyright law. One of the principal functions of the Office is to compile and maintain public records and indexes of all copyright claims and related documents registered or recorded. The records and indexes kept in the Office are available for use by the public or, upon request and payment of a fee, the Office will search the records and render a report on any particular copyright claim. In addition, the Office prepares printed catalogs of copyright entries, which are furnished to the public on order. A comprehensive study of the present system of indexing and cataloging has been inaugurated to reappraise the objectives of the cataloging operations and to explore the possibilities of simplifying and expediting this important phase of the Office's work. There has been a steadily growing movement among the bar and trade groups concerned with c~pyright a complete revifor sion of the copyright law, Title 17 of the United States Code, in the light of presentday conditions. The existing law is basically that enacted in 1909, and the 44 years since then have brought such developments as radio, television, and new processes of reproduction, photography, sound recording, and transmission. Obviously a gen-
BREAKDOWN OF FEES APPLIED BY SOURCES Ccpyright Office--Fiscal Year 1953
ORIGINAL REGISTRATIONS*
RENEWAL REGISTRATIONS ASSIGNMENT RECORDATlONS REFERENCE SEARCHES NOTICE OF USE RECORDATIONS CERTIFICATION OF DOCUMENTS
34,202.00 30,118.50 11,302.00 4,485.00 2,101.00 $865,302.50
4.0 3.5 1.3
.2 100.0
'Includes 839,856.00 (4.6 percent of total fees applied) for original registrations resulting from compliance requests made by Copyright Office.
era1 revision is needed and the Copyright Office has begun to make plans for studying the manifold problems involved in a complete overhauling of the copyright law. Important problems relating to copyright protection of artistic works used in commercial products were studied in connection with a series of court cases to be summarized later in this report. The questions involved concern the respective areas of protection under the copyright and design patent laws with respect to artistic works embodied in articles of utility. Similar questions regarding the protection of applied art are currently under consideration by bar and trade groups concerned with commercial design. Studies of several other problems of Lesser scope but of fundamental significance to the administration of the copyright law should be mentioned. An intensive study has been completed regarding the subject matter of copyright in the important field of commercial prints and labels. Growing public interest in recent developments in the field of choreography has raised questions now under study regarding the area of copyright protection for works of that character. Also under consideration are the problems posed by professional photographers who are seeking practical methods of obtaining copyright protection for a large repertory of photographic works at a low cost per unit. Similarly, methods are being explored for copyrighting a collection of doctoral dissertations as a group. Internal Operations.-The considerable increase in the volume of business during fiscal 1953 emphasized the importance of keeping the work of the Office on a current basis. An average of almost 1,000 applications for registration are received in the Office on each business day, in addition to a mass of correspondence. During the past year, standard workloads and time schedules were established for the major operations performed in the Office, and weekly reports of the workload status of each process are assembled and reviewed so that any lag in the time schedule is re-
vealed and given special attention. By such methods it was possible to keep the Office's increased volume of work on a substantially current basis during the past year. The disposition by the Office of applications for registration during fiscal 1953 is indicated by the following figures: About 257,000 examinations of applications were made, with registration being completed in 85 percent of the cases and only 2.9 percent being rejected. Correspondence was necessary in about 31,000 or 12 percent of the cases examined to resolve questionable features, and 1,931 cases of this kind remained pending at the end of the year. Plans have been completed for beginning, in fiscal 1954, an experiment in recording assignments and similar documents filed in the Office on microfilm instead of in bulky record books as hcretofore. Also with the start of the fiscal year a new system of indexing registrations of periodicals will be inaugurated which will combine the functions of registration and indexing. The year contributed its share of oddities and gems to the endless variety of material flowing into the Office. Among them were a recipe for smelts, accompanied by overripe samples that pervaded the Office with an aroma reminiscent of their name; formulas for a baby H-bomb and for an "atomic fizz cocktail" containing uranium and said to be a cure-all; a new method of trisecting an angle; the slogan "Most Stolen State in the 48," submitted by a State commission with the explanation that pictures of the scenic splendors in its State were being used in advertisements of several other States; the first of the new "3-D" and wide-screen motion-picture films and the first tachistoscope films; the first book composed by the new photographic process known as Photon; and two previously unknown works of the composer Felix Mendelssohn, a sonata for violin and piano and a concerto for violin and string orchestra, recently discovered and edited for publication by Yehudi Menuhin.
Information abaut more than 76,000 motion pictures registered from 1894 through 1949 will soon be available for use in research. Work has been completed on two motion-picture catalogs to be published in the near future, one covering motion pictures registered during the decade 1940 through 1949 and the other covering works registered from 1894 to 1912 that were. identified as motion pictures by Howard L. Walls of the Motion Picture Academy of Arts and Sciences. These two volumes, together with Motion Pictures, 1912-1939, published in December 1951, will comprjse the most comprehensive list available to the public of motion pictures from the birth of the industry in 1894 through 1949. Motion picture registrations since 1949 are available in the semiannual issues of the current Catalog of Copyright Entries. The monthly catalog, Notice of Use of Music on Mechanical Instruments, which was discontinued in 1928, was revived during the fiscal year 1952 on an experimental basis because of the great upsurge in the importance of recorded music. I t proved to be of real interest to a number of subscribers and has been reinstituted as a regular publication. Bulletin No. 14, containing the text of the copyright law, Title 17 of the United States Code, together with an index and certain related material, has been reissued in a revised edition, bringing the law u p to date as of January 1, 1953. This is the most popular of the Office's publications, about 9,000 copies having been sold by the Superintendent of Documents and about 1,200 by the Copyright %ce during the fiscal year 1953. Also, the previous compilation of United States copyright statutes enacted from 1783 to 1906 has been brought up to date through 1952 and indexed in a new loose-leaf compilation. The most recent in the series of Bulletins containing decisions of the courts concerning copyright is nearing completion. This new volume, Bulletin No. 28, covers the
years 1951 and 1952 and is expected to be issued in the fall of 1953. Because there has been no periodical publication in the United States devoted primarily to copyright matters, during fiscal 1953 the Office began the publication of a bimonthly bibliographical bulletin of current material concerning copyright, such as legislation, court decisions, texts, and articles. Although primarily intended for the use of the staff, copies were made available, in a necessarily limited number, to lawyers active in the copyright field. The bulletin generated so much interest among thcm that they organized a society, the Copyright Society of the U. S. A., for the publication of a periodical containing the kind of bibliographical material that the Office's bulletin provided. The first issue of the Society's bimonthly bulletin, which is prepared with the cooperation of the Copyright Office and the New York University Law Center, came out in June 1953. In consequence, the Office has discontinued its bibliographical bulletin.
Legal Deuelopments
Amendment of Law.-January 1, 1953, marked the effective date of Public Law 575, 82d Congress, enacted on July 17, 1952, amending section 1(c) of the copyright law. T h e amendment closed a gap in the prior law by extending to nondramatic literary works, performing and recording rights similar in some respects to those already accorded to dramatic and musical works. A m e n d m e n t of Regulations.-An amendment of the Regulations of the Copyright Office, published in the Federal Register of June 17, 1953, and effective 60 days thereafter, liberalized the conditions under which attorneys may obtain copies of deposited works that are involved in actual or prospective litigation. T h e revised regulation was adopted after consultation with attorneys representing various copyright and trade interests. Proposed Legislation.-At the request of the Copyright Office, Congressman
REPORT OF T H E REGISTER O F COPYRIGHTS, I953
Chaunce~ Reed, Chairman of the House E. Committee on the Judiciary, introduced H. R. 2747 of the 83d Congress on February 6, 1953, providing that when the last day for depositing any material in the Copyright Office falls on Saturday, Sunday, or a holiday, such deposit may be made on the next business day. A similar bill in the 82d Congress had passed the House in the closing days of the session but had failed to receive Senate consideration before adjournment. H. R. 2747 was passed by the House on May 19, 1953, and was pending before the Senate Committee on the Judiciary at the close of the fiscal year. Two bills introduced in the first session of the 83d Congress, S. 1106 and S. 1444, concern the "juke box" exemption, which was the subject of controversy at lengthy hearings during the previous session of Congress. At issue is the provision enacted in 1909 excluding the playing of music on coin-operated machines from the right of the copyright owner to receive royalties for the public performance of his music for profit. S. 1444 would simply repeal this exemption. S. 1106 would limit the exemption to the owner of a single machine located in his own business establishment. Hearings on S. 1106 were held on July 15, 1953, before a subcommittee of the Senate Committee on the Judiciary and are expected to be resumed in the fall of the year. Other bills concerning copyright should be mentioned. Congressman Emanuel Celler reintroduced, as H. R. 397, his bill in the 82d Congress (H. R. 4059) to eliminate the requirement of manufacture in the United States for works of foreign authors. H. R. 2584 would amend the rcnewal provisions in section 24 of the copyright law to give the surviving spouse of a deceased author a prior right of renewal instead of sharing that right with the deceased author's children. H. J. Res. 176 proposes an amendment of the Constitution to provide for copyright in perpetuity instead of for a limited time. Two other bills relating to copyright were introduced after the end of the fiscal year. H. R. 6225, introduced July 10, 1953, would pro-
vide for a 3-year period of limitations on civil actions under the copyright law. H. R. 6608, introduced on July 29, 1953, would liberalize the requirements of the law as to the form and position of the copyright notice. Significant Court Decisions.-What is the copyright status of a work of art embodied in an article of utility? This fundamental question has been involved in a series of cases resulting in a conflict of opinion among the courts. The plaintiffs, who are the same in each of these cases, had registered claims of copyright in a number of statuettes of dancing figures, which they then used as bases for lamps manufactured and sold by them. The several defendants are lamp manufacturers who made and used copies of those statuettes as bases for their lamps. The first of the series of infringement suits brought by the plaintiff, Stein et al. v. Expert Lamp Company, 96 F. Supp. 97, was decided by the Federal District Court for the Northern District of Illinois in January 1951. The court, basing its decision on the premise that the plaintiffs had intended to use the statuettes as lamp bases, held that the lamps were the subject of the plaintiffs claim and as articles of utility could not be copyrighted. This decision was affirmed by the Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit in May 1951 ( 188 F. 2d, 611) , and certiorari was denied by the Supreme Court (342 U. S. 829). The next case on a similar set of facts, Stein et al. v. Rosenthal, 103 F. Supp. 227, was brought in the Southern District of California and decided in February 1952. The court held that the statuettes of themselves were appropriate subjects of copyright, regardless of the claimants' intention as to their use, and that their incorporation into lamps did not dissipate the copyright protection of the statuettes. The defendant appealed this decision to the Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. In the next of the series, Stein et al. v. Benederet, 109 F. Supp. 364, decided in December 1952, the District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan reviewed the
REPORT OF T H E REGISTER OF COPYRLIGHTS, I953
Expert Lamp Company and Rosenthal decisions and followed the former, holding that the plaintiffs' intention to use the statuettes as lamp bases determined that the statuettes were designs for lamps and as such were not copyrightable. Next, in February 1953, in Stein et al. v. Mazer et al., 111 F. Supp. 359, the District Court for the District of Maryland likewise held that the plaintiffs' intention was decisive and followed the Expert Lamp Company decision. The case was appealed to the Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit. The Copyright Office worked with the Department of Justice in preparing a brief amicus curiae, which was submitted to the Circuit Court. Testimony given by thc Register of Copyrights in a deposition, as well as the amicus brief, was considered by the Circuit Court. In May 1953 that Court reversed (204 F. 2d, 472) the Maryland District Court. The Circuit Court rcviewed all of the foregoing decisions and declared its preference for the reasoning of the California court in the Rosenthal case. The Circuit Court concludcd "that the copyrights of the statuettes granted to plaintiffs were valid, even though plaintiffs intended primarily to use these statuettes in the form of lamp bases and did so use them." In June 1953 the Circuit Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit rendered its decision on the appeal in the Rosenthal case (98 U . S. P. Q. 180), sustaining the lower court in holding the copyrights valid. The Circuit Court stated the principle "that the protection given by a copyright on a work of art is not lost by its double service of displaying its artistic quality while supplying a practical function of a utility article." Thus, we now have decisions by the Court of Appeals in three circuits, one denying copyright in the statuettes used as lamp bases and two sustaining copyright. Further litigation may be anticipated before the important question involved in
these cases is settled, perhaps ultimately by the Supreme Court. Another question of importance was decided by the Supreme Court in December 1952 in the case of F. W . Woolworth Co. v. Contemporary Arts, Inc., 343 U . S. 963. The. sole issue was the measure of damages allowable under section 101(b) of the copyright law, which provides that an infringer shall be liable for actual damage suffered by the copyright proprietor, as well as the profits made by the infringer, or, in lieu of actual damages and profits, such damages as appear just to the court within limits specified in the statute. The defendant, admitting its infringement of the plaintiffs copyright in sculptured figures of cocker spaniels, had shown the amount of its profits from its sales of the infringing copies, and there was no proof of actual damages; but the lower court had allowed a greater amount of damages under the "in lieu" provisions of the statute. The Supreme Court, with two justices dissenting, denied the defendant's contention that its established profits were the only amount recoverable and sustained the award of "in lieu" damages within the statutory limits. An apparent trend toward the recognition of common law property rights in ideas, which are not subject to copyright protection in themselves, is manifested in several recent court decisions. The latest of them is Belt v. Hamilton National Bank, 108 F . Supp. 689, decided in December 1952 by the United States District Court for the District of Columbia. The plaintiff had submitted an idea for a radio program to the defendant bank, indicating that he expected compensation if it were used, and the defendant subsequently sponsored a series of radio programs based on the plaintiff's idea. Citing three previous cases as precedents, the court held that if, as matters of fact, the idea was novel and was presented in concrete form, the plaintiff was entitled to compensation for its use by the bank.
Statement of Gross Cash Receipts, (Yearly Fees, Numbers of Registrations, etc., for 5 Fiscal Years
4,35759198
4,150,830.77
1,034,319
1. .................... I
Nurn ber of Articles Deposited During the Fiscal Years 1949-53
I1949 1950 1 9 5 1 1 9 5 2 11953
Books: 1 (a) Printed in the United States: Books proper.. ............. Pam~hlets, leaflets. etc.. ..... Coniributions to newspapers and periodlcak. .......... Total.
( 6 ) Printed abroad in a foreign lan-
3; 815
4: 437
3; 408
3; 320
Dramatic or dramatico-musical compositions ................................ Musical compositions. .................. Maps ................................. Works of art, models or designs. .......... Reproduction of works of art.. ........... Drawings or plastic works of a scientific or technical character. ................... Photographs. .......................... Prints, labels and pictorial illustrations. ... Motion-picture photoplays.. ............. Motion pictures not photoplays.. ......... Total..
................ guage ....................... (c) Engllsh books registered for ad interim copyright. ............ Total. .......................... Periodicals. ........................... Lectures, sermons, etc.. .................
REPORT O F T H E REGISTER O F COPYRIGHTS. I953
Registration by Subject Matter ClassesJor the Fiscal Years 1949-53
Books proper ............... 10, 254 Pamphlets, leaflets, etc ....... 33, 929 Contribiltions to newspapers and periodicals ........... 4, 140
11, 272 31, 199 3, 408
11, 623 29, 891 3. 320
} 43, 631
3. 288 46. 919 3, 875 1, 553
Total . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48, 323 (b) Printed abroad in a foreign language ....................... 2, 644 ( c ) English books registered for ad interim copyright . . . . . . . . . . . . . 595 B C D E F G Total ........................... Periodicals (numbers) ................... Lectures, sermons, addresses ............. Dramatic or dramatico-musical compositions .............................. Musical compositions ................... Maps ................................. Works of art. mode$ or designs ........... Reproductions of works of art ............ Drawings or plastic works of a scientific or technical character ................... Photographs ........................... Commercial prints and labels ............ Prints and ~ictorial illustrations Motion-picture photoplays ............... Motion pictures not photoplays ........... Renewals of all classes ..................
50. 144 3, 710 1, 040 45. 879 3, 536 1, 118 44, 834 3, 382 1, 187
51, 562 54, 163 1. 036 5, 48. 2. 3. 159 210 314 281 239 54, 894 55, 436 1, 007 4. 427 52.309 1. 638 4, 013 326 316 143 320 309 782 1 113 . 14. 531 1, 1. 13. 4. 50, 533 55, 129 693 3, 992 48.319 1. 992 3. 428 453 953 770 11, 981 3. 590 835 1. 314 16. 372 49, 403 56. 509 837 3, 51. 2. 3. 766 538 422 305 520 52, 347 59. 371 862 3, 59. 2. 3. 884 302 541 029 579
J KK K L M R
Total ............................. 201. 190 210. 564 200. 354 203. 705
218. 506
1. 063 1. 134 13. 233 4. 358 667 1. 096 13. 675
980 995 11. 770 2. 891 798 1 281 . 16. 690
958 1. 206 12. 025 3. 126 907 1 268 . 17. 101
of Copyright Business.
Fiscal Year 7953
BalanceonhandJulyl. 195 .................................................. Gross receipts July 1, 1952 to June 30, 1953 ...................................... Total to be accounted for ............................................... Refunded ................................................... Checksreturned unpaid ....................................... Deposited as earned fees ...................................... Balance carried over to July 1. 1953: Fees earned in June 1953 but not deposited until July 1953 ................................. $73.174 . 50 Unfinished business balance ................... 17.021.80 Deposit accounts balance ...................... 85.062.87
$38.098.33 736.00 867.720.50
175,259.17
Fees Applied 12. 025 a t 6.00 for prints and labels .............................. for published works ............................... 128. 888 at 4.00 for unpublished works ............................. 48. 848 at 4.00 for renewals ..................................... 17. 101 at 2.00
1 206. 862 Total number ofregistrations ............................ Feesfor registrations ......................................................... Fees for recording assignments ................................. 20,655.50 9, 463.00 Fees for indexing transfen of proprietorship ...................... 4,485 .00 Fees for notices of user recorded ................................ Fees for certified documents ................................... 2,101.00 Feesforsearchesmade ........................................ 11,302.00
Total fees earned ....................................................... Excludes 11.644 registrations made under Public Law 84 .
865.302.50
Respectfully submitted. ARTHUR FISHER Register of Copyrights WASHINGTON.. C . D August 15. 1953
CARD INDEXES AND CATALOGS USED IN REFERENCE SEARCHES
1 8 7 0 75
General Index 1870-97
Periodicals 1898-1937 Books 1898-1937 Music 1898-193'7 Graphic Arts 1898-1937
General Periodicals 1946-53 Index 1938-45 Copyright Office Card Catalog 1946-49 1950-53
Renewals 1909-37 Maps 1909-37
I I Also printed Cumulative Drama Catalog 1870-1916
Dramas and Lectures 1909-37
~ i s printed C u J d t i w Motion picture cataiogs 1894-1912, 1912-39, 1940-49 o
192240 11940-45
1909-27 Notice of Intention T o Use 1909-53
Assignments 1870-1941
Also printed Catalog. of Copyright Entries 1891-1953
~ 8 t i c e Use of
[Plus: Current Service Division Working Indcxes: Temporary Title Cards, Book-Author Cards, and Master Index (Rcmittcr) cards.]
REFERENCE SEARCH REQUESTS BY SUBJECT MATTER CLASSES, FISCAL YEAR 1953
0 Music Books and pamphlets Unclassified (preliminaries, addresses, etc.) Renewals Graphic arts* Lectures and dramas Publishers Periodicals Assignments Commercial prints and labels Motion pictures Claimants Lawyers Authors Manufacturers 5% 5% 12% 18% 28% 385 5
25 2,579 2,283
1,280 Total, 8,670
Unclassified inquiries
8 c3 %
intention t o use *Classes G H , I, 1, K
Publications of the Copyright Oflce
NOTE.-Orders for the following publications may be addressed to the Register of Copyrights, Library of Congress, Washington 25, D. C., accompanied by remittance (postage stamps not accepted-coin a t sender's risk). BULLETIN NO. 8. Cloth, 65c. Copyright in Congress, 1789-1904. A bibliography and chronological record of all proceedings in Congress in relation to copyright. 468 pp. 8'. 1905. BULLETIN NO. 14. Paper, 20c. Copyright Law of the United States of America. (Title 17 of the United States Code.) 1953. BULLETIN NO. 17. Cloth, 65c. Decisions of the United States courts involving copyright. 1909-1914. Second enlarged edition. vi, 279 pp. 8'. 1928. BULLETIN NO. 18. Cloth, $1. Decisions of the United States courts involving copyright. 1914-1917. ix, 605 pp. 8'. Keprinted 1938. BULLETIN NO. 19. Cloth, $1.75. Decisions of the United States courts involving copyright. 1918-1924. xi, 477 pp. 8'. Reprinted 1949. BULLETIN NO. 20. Cloth, $2.75. Decisions of the United States courts involving copyright. 1924-1935. xiii, 947 pp. 8'. Reprinted 1949. BULLETIN NO. 21. Cloth, 75c. Decisions of the United States courts involving copyright. 1935-1937. vii, 355 pp. 8'. 1938. BULLETIN NO. 22. Cloth, 75c. Decisions of the United States courts involving copyright. 1938-June 1939. vii, 327 pp. 8'. 1939. BULLETIN NO. 23. Cloth, $1. Decisions of the United States courts involving copyright. 1939-1940. vii, 391 pp. 8'. 1943. BULLETIN NO. 24. Cloth, $2. Decisions of the Unikd States courts involving copyright. 1941-1943. ix, 683 pp. 8'. 1944. BULLETIN NO. 25. Cloth, $1.50. Decisions of the United States courts involving copyright. 1944-1946. vii, 459 pp. 8'. 1947. BULLETIN NO. 26. Cloth, $1.75. Decisions of the United States courts involving copyright. 1947-1948. x, 488 pp. 8'. 1949. BULLETIN NO. 27. Cloth, $2.00. Decisions of the United States courts involving copyright. 1949-1950. x, 591 pp. 8'. 1952. BULLETIN NO. 28. Cloth. Decisions of the United States courts involving copyright. 1951-1952. In process. CATALOG O F COPYRIGHT ENTRIES, Third Series. Subscription may be placed to the complete annual set, consisting of the semiannual issues of all of the parts listed below, for $20. Copies of single issues may also be secured a t the price given following the title in the following list: Part 1A. Books and Selected Pamphlets, $1.50. Part 1B. Pamphlets, Serials, and Contributions to Periodicals, $1.50. NOTI?.--l3ooksand Pamphlelr includzng Serialaand Conlribulionslo Periodicnrs (I'nrt I ) . neginnlng with t l ~ c July-1)ecrm. bcr 1953 catalog Pnrts 1A and It) will t ~ e comhincd under one cover. 12.m. Part 2. Periodicals, $1. Parts 3-4. Dramas and Works Prepared for Oral Delivery, $1. Part 5A. Published Music, $1.50. Part 5B. Unpublished Music, $1.50. Part 5C. Renewal Registrations, Music, $1. Part 6. Maps and Atlases, $0.50. Parts 7-llA. Works of Art, Reproductions of Works of Art, Scientific and Technical Drawings, Photographic Works, Prints and Pictorial Illustrations, $1. Part 11B. Commercial Prints and Labels, $1. Parts 12-13. Motion Pictures and Filmstrips, $0.50.
DRAMATIC COMPOSITIONS COPYRIGHTED IN THE UNITED STATES, 1870-1916. Cloth, Over 60,000 titles, alphabetically arranged, with complete index to authors, proprietors, translaton, 1918. etc. 2 vols. v, 3,547 pp. 4'. MOTION PICTURES, 1894-1912, 1912-1 939, 1940-1949. (Catalog of Copyright Entries, Cumulative Series.) An unbroken record of motion-picture copyrights registered in this country between 1894 and 1949. Together, these three bibliographies list more than 75,000films, both theatrical and nontheatrical, which form an extensive history of the motion-picture industry. 92 p., $2.00;1,256 p., $18.00;599 p., $10.00,respectively. REGULATIONS O F THE COPYRIGHT OFFICE. Free. Code o Federal Regulations, Title 37, Chapter 11. 2 pp. f T H E COPYRIGHT OFFICE O F T H E UNITED STATES. (Brochure). Free. A general description of the organization and functiorls of the Copyright Office. 23 pp. 1952.
V. I. 6 3 V E R N M E N T P R I N T I N O O F F I C E : 1984
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