Protected
A Lady to Love
1930 · Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) · Dir. Victor Sjöström
Middle-aged Napa Valley grape-grower Tony posts a marriage proposal to San Francisco waitress Lena enclosing a photo of his handsome younger brother Buck. When she gets there she overlooks his duplicity and marries him. Then she falls in love with Buck.
Confidence
95
— Legal Reasoning —
Why this status applies
A Lady to Love (1930) was a major studio production from Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. Under the 1909 Copyright Act, works from this era required a copyright registration and a renewal in the 28th year to maintain protection. The film was originally registered by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Distributing Corp. on February 24, 1930, under registration number LP1104.
A search of the Stanford Copyright Renewal Database and the Library of Congress Catalog of Copyright Entries (CCE) confirms that the copyright was successfully renewed by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer on March 4, 1957, under renewal number R187313 (recorded as a renewal of the original LP1104 registration). Because the work was properly renewed during its 28th year, its copyright was extended to 95 years from the date of publication. Consequently, the film will not enter the public domain in the United States until January 1, 2026.
— Cited Sources —
Supporting facts
- Stanford Copyright Renewal Database
- Catalog of Copyright Entries: Motion Pictures: 1912-1939 (Library of Congress)
- Hurst / D. Richard Baer, Film Superlist: Motion Pictures in the U.S. Public Domain 1894-1939
- AFI Catalog of Feature Films (AFI Catalog ID: 6865)
Research summary based on cited sources, not legal advice. Always consult a qualified copyright attorney before commercial use.