Public Domain
Back Fire
1922 · Sunset Productions · Dir. Alan James
Two cowboys drift into town. Both are broke, and one of them jokingly suggests they rob the local express office. A citizen overhears them, and when the office is robbed soon afterwards, the cowboys are blamed for it.
Confidence
100
— Legal Reasoning —
Why this status applies
The film 'Back Fire' (also known as 'Backfire'), a Western starring Jack Hoxie, was released in the United States in 1922 and directed by Alvin J. Neitz. According to the US Copyright Act of 1976 and subsequent extensions like the Sonny Bono Copyright Term Extension Act, all works published or registered with the US Copyright Office before January 1, 1928, have entered the public domain.
While this film was originally registered for copyright (LP17781) by Sunset Productions on April 22, 1922, the 95-year maximum term for works from this era has expired. As of January 1, 1998, works from 1922 began entering the public domain in the United States. Consequently, this film and all other American films from 1922 are now legally in the public domain regardless of whether their copyrights were renewed.
— Cited Sources —
Supporting facts
- Library of Congress Catalog of Copyright Entries: Motion Pictures 1912-1939
- AFI Catalog of Feature Films (The American Film Institute)
- Hurst, Film Superlist: Motion Pictures in the U.S. Public Domain 1894-1939
- 17 U.S.C. § 304 (Copyright Act of 1976)
Research summary based on cited sources, not legal advice. Always consult a qualified copyright attorney before commercial use.