Public Domain
The Worldly Madonna
1922 · Equity Pictures Corporation · Dir. Harry Garson
Ms. Young portrays two roles. As Janet, a convent novitiate, she agrees to exchange places with her sister, Lucy, a cabaret dancer, who believes she has killed a man.
Confidence
100
— Legal Reasoning —
Why this status applies
The Worldly Madonna was released in the United States on May 14, 1922, starring Clara Kimball Young. Under current U.S. copyright law, all works published or registered in the U.S. before January 1, 1929, have entered the public domain regardless of renewal status.
The film's copyright was originally registered by Equity Pictures Corp. on May 24, 1922 (LP17924). Even if it had been renewed, the maximum possible term of 95 years would have expired at the end of 2017. As of January 1, 2019, all films from 1923 and earlier are definitively in the public domain in the United States.
Note: generated without live web grounding (the grounded research engine was unavailable). Verify the cited sources independently before relying on this determination.
— Cited Sources —
Supporting facts
- Library of Congress Catalog of Copyright Entries (CCE), Motion Pictures 1912–1939
- AFI Catalog of Feature Films (The Worldly Madonna, 1922)
- Hurst, Film Superlist: Motion Pictures in the U.S. Public Domain 1894-1939
- 17 U.S.C. § 304 (Copyright Act of 1976 and Sonny Bono Copyright Term Extension Act)
Research summary based on cited sources, not legal advice. Always consult a qualified copyright attorney before commercial use.