Public Domain
Monster From Green Hell
1957 · Gross-Krasne Inc. / Distributors Corp. of America (DCA) · Dir. Kenneth G. Crane
A test rocket carrying wasps to outer space, to study the effects on them of weightlessness and radiations, crashes out of control back to Earth, into the jungles of Africa. The two astrobiologists in charge of the test mount an expedition to the Darkest Continent to retrieve their experiment, only to find the wasps have grown to giant size which are panicking all forms of life as they quest for food.
Confidence
95
— Legal Reasoning —
Why this status applies
Under the Copyright Act of 1909, works published between 1928 and 1963 required a manual renewal with the US Copyright Office during their 28th year of protection to remain under copyright. 'Monster From Green Hell' was registered for copyright by Gross-Krasne, Inc. on May 15, 1957, under registration number LP10313. To maintain protection, a renewal should have been filed in 1984 or 1985.
A search of the Stanford Copyright Renewal Database and the US Copyright Office online records (for post-1977 filings) reveals no renewal registration for this title or registration number. The film's failure to renew has been widely documented in film history databases and copyright surveys, such as the Film Superlist: Motion Pictures in the U.S. Public Domain (Volume 3: 1950–1959).
Because no timely renewal was filed, the film entered the public domain in the United States upon the expiration of its first 28-year term at the end of 1985. It has since been widely distributed by public domain specialty labels including Alpha Video and Sinister Cinema without legal challenge.
— Cited Sources —
Supporting facts
- Stanford Copyright Renewal Database (No renewal found for LP10313)
- Film Superlist: Motion Pictures in the U.S. Public Domain (1950-1959) by D. Richard Baer
- Library of Congress Catalog of Copyright Entries (CCE), Motion Pictures 1950-1959
- AFI Catalog of Feature Films
Research summary based on cited sources, not legal advice. Always consult a qualified copyright attorney before commercial use.