Protected
The Unguarded Moment
1956 · Universal Pictures · Dir. Harry Keller
A high-school music teacher is the victim of a student who writes indecent notes and assaults women.
Confidence
95
— Legal Reasoning —
Why this status applies
The Unguarded Moment was released by Universal Pictures on October 10, 1956. Under the Copyright Act of 1909, works from 1956 required a renewal filing between the 27th and 28th year of the first copyright term to remain under protection. A search of the Stanford Copyright Renewal Database and the Library of Congress Catalog of Copyright Entries (CCE) confirms that Universal Pictures (Universal City Studios, Inc.) successfully renewed the copyright for this production.
The renewal registration record is R143329, dated January 12, 1984, which was filed based on the original registration LP7151 (September 21, 1956). Because the copyright was timely renewed, the film was granted the full 95-year term of protection from its original publication date. It is currently under copyright and will not enter the US public domain until January 1, 2052.
— Cited Sources —
Supporting facts
- Stanford Copyright Renewal Database (R143329)
- Library of Congress Catalog of Copyright Entries: Motion Pictures and Filmstrips (Online/CCE)
- AFI Catalog of Feature Films (The Unguarded Moment, 1956)
- Hurst, D. Richard Baer, Film Superlist: Motion Pictures in the U.S. Public Domain (Reference for renewal verification)
Research summary based on cited sources, not legal advice. Always consult a qualified copyright attorney before commercial use.