Public Domain
One is Business; the Other Crime
1912 · Biograph Company · Dir. D.W. Griffith
Griffith intercuts between the lives of two couples married on the same day. One couple is rich, the other poor. Time passes, and in desperation over joblessness, the poor husband attempts to burgle a home, only to be captured at gunpoint by the mistress of the house. It is the home of the rich couple. While holding the poor intruder at gunpoint, the rich wife accidentally discovers evidence implicating her own husband in a bribery scheme.
Confidence
100
— Legal Reasoning —
Why this status applies
This short film was directed by D.W. Griffith and released on March 21, 1912. Under the US Copyright Act of 1909 and subsequent amendments (including the 1976 Act and the Copyright Term Extension Act of 1998), all works published or registered in the United States prior to January 1, 1928, have entered the public domain regardless of renewal status.
As a 1912 production, the maximum possible term of protection (95 years) expired at the end of 2007. The film was originally registered for copyright by the Biograph Company (Registration Number: LU286). It is currently held by several archives, including the Library of Congress and the Museum of Modern Art, and is freely available for viewing and distribution.
— Cited Sources —
Supporting facts
- https://catalog.loc.gov/vwebv/search?searchCode=LCCN&searchArg=89708688
- https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0002388/
- https://archive.org/details/OneIsBusinessTheOtherCrime
- Film Superlist: Motion Pictures in the U.S. Public Domain (1894-1939)
Research summary based on cited sources, not legal advice. Always consult a qualified copyright attorney before commercial use.