Public Domain
The Unwelcome Guest
1913 · Biograph Company · Dir. D.W. Griffith
Just before she dies, an elderly married woman stashes the horde of money she's secretly accumulated beneath the false bottom of an old shipping trunk. After her death, her husband, believing himself penniless, has to leave their old home and move in with his son's family, where he's treated with no respect or consideration. Also on the scene is a newly-hired kindly young housekeeper. She and the old gentleman become close friends and eventually run away together (taking the old shipping trunk with them).
Confidence
100
— Legal Reasoning —
Why this status applies
The Unwelcome Guest (1913) is a silent short film directed by D.W. Griffith for the Biograph Company, starring Mary Pickford. Under the United States copyright law current as of 2024, all works published or registered before January 1, 1929, have entered the public domain.
Since this film was released in 1913, its maximum 95-year term of copyright protection expired decades ago (specifically at the end of 2008). Therefore, it is definitively in the public domain in the United States regardless of whether the copyright was originally registered or renewed.
— Cited Sources —
Supporting facts
Research summary based on cited sources, not legal advice. Always consult a qualified copyright attorney before commercial use.