Protected
A Stranger in Town
1943 · Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) · Dir. Roy Rowland
In the small town of Crownport local attorney Bill Adams is trying to break up the ring of corrupt town officials by running for mayor. The cards seemed stacked against him when he gets help from a visiting hunter who, unknown to Adams and the rest of the town, is actually vacationing supreme court justice John Josephus Grant.
Confidence
95
— Legal Reasoning —
Why this status applies
The most prominent film by this title is the 1943 MGM production starring Frank Morgan and Richard Carlson. Under the search framework for 1928–1963 films, copyright must have been renewed within the 28th year of the initial registration to remain protected.
Searching the Stanford Copyright Renewal Database and the CCE reveals that this film was originally registered on January 19, 1943 (entry LP11846) and was validly renewed by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer on March 2, 1970 (entry R480112). These records indicate that the copyright was maintained throughout its first term and successfully extended into its second term. Under the 1976 Copyright Act and the Sonny Bono Copyright Term Extension Act, the film is protected for 95 years from its publication date. It is currently scheduled to enter the public domain on January 1, 2039.
Other films with similar titles include the 1967 Spaghetti Western (originally 'Un dollaro tra i denti'), which is a foreign production subject to URAA restoration, and the 1932 British film 'A Stranger in Town' (Wardour Films). Neither of these are the primary US identification for this title compared to the MGM studio production.
— Cited Sources —
Supporting facts
- Stanford Copyright Renewal Database (R480112)
- U. Penn Catalog of Copyright Entries (LP11846)
- Film Superlist: Motion Pictures in the U.S. Public Domain (1940-1949)
- IMDb - A Stranger in Town (1943)
Research summary based on cited sources, not legal advice. Always consult a qualified copyright attorney before commercial use.