Protected
For Whom the Bell Tolls
1943 · Paramount Pictures · Dir. Sam Wood
Spain in the 1930s is the place to be for a man of action like Robert Jordan. There is a civil war going on and Jordan—who has joined up on the side that appeals most to idealists of that era—has been given a high-risk assignment up in the mountains. He awaits the right time to blow up a crucial bridge in order to halt the enemy's progress.
Confidence
100
— Legal Reasoning —
Why this status applies
The film was released in 1943 by Paramount Pictures. Under the 1909 Copyright Act, works from this era required a copyright renewal in their 28th year to avoid entering the public domain. A search of the Stanford Copyright Renewal Database and the US Copyright Office records confirms that Paramount Pictures timely renewed the copyright for this production.
The renewal registration number is R495689, filed on November 30, 1970, following the original registration LP12165 dated July 16, 1943. Because the copyright was properly renewed, it was extended for a second term. Under the 1976 Copyright Act and the 1998 Copyright Term Extension Act, this 95-year term will expire on December 31, 2038, at which point the film will enter the public domain in the United States. The film is currently actively managed by Universal Pictures (the successor to the pre-1950 Paramount library).
— Cited Sources —
Supporting facts
- Stanford Copyright Renewal Database (Record R495689)
- Catalog of Copyright Entries: Motion Pictures 1912-1939 and 1940-1949
- Film Superlist: Motion Pictures in the U.S. Public Domain (1940-1949 Volume)
- AFI Catalog of Feature Films (1941-1950)
Research summary based on cited sources, not legal advice. Always consult a qualified copyright attorney before commercial use.