We’ve had thanksgivings for centuries, but #Thanksgiving arguably became an annual national holiday in the US with Abraham Lincoln’s 1863 Thanksgiving Proclamation.
Twenty-three Thanksgiving stories written between then and 1928 appear in Thanksgiving Day in Modern Story, edited by Minnesota librarian Maud Van Buren and teacher Katharine I. Bemis. The book’s copyright is now older than the annual observance was when it was published. I’m thankful it ends in 39 days. #PublicDomainDayCountdown
In Sydney Fowler Wright’s Deluge, earthquakes and floods destroy most of civilization, but a small population in England survives. The post-apocalyptic novel is as much about criticizing present-day society as it is about the future society it depicts. A film adaptation came out in 1933.
The author’s estate, more interested in readers than royalties, already has posted a free online edition. The 1928 edition becomes public domain in the US in 40 days (and 40 nights). #PublicDomainDayCountdown
After Rose Sellars’ husband dies, she and Martin Boyne can finally appropriately act on their feelings for each other. But while en route to meet with his now-fiancée, Martin finds himself inappropriately attracted to someone else. The Children “is not Lolita”, as Ali Hope notes– it’s an Edith Wharton novel, so the characters struggle to reconcile what they desire, what they know makes them happy, and what they know to be right. It joins the public domain in 41 days. #PublicDomainDayCountdown
Curmudgeonly British writer Evelyn Waugh published his first novel, Decline and Fall, in 1928. Reviewing it in 2008, Alex Larman found it “surely one of the greatest debut comic novels of the last century”, and wondered why it had never been adapted for television. A few years later, the BBC adapted it into a generally well-received 3-part series. Decline and Fall joins the US public domain in 6 weeks. #PublicDomainDayCountdown
Mickey Mouse isn’t the only franchise character joining the public domain soon. In 1928, Singapore-born Leslie Charteris introduced the gentleman criminal Simon Templar, aka The Saint. Charteris published dozens of stories with the Robin Hood-like character. The Saint was also featured in radio, film, comic, and TV series, including a 1960s British TV series starring Roger Moore.
The Saint first appeared in Meet the Tiger, which joins the US public domain in 43 days. #PublicDomainDayCountdown
Disney celebrates Mickey Mouse’s birthday today, the 95th anniversary of the release of Steamboat Willie. Myles Burke writes how the success of the synchronized-sound cartoon saved the studio and paved the way for more ambitious animated films.
In 44 days, when the copyright expires for Steamboat Willie, we’ll also celebrate the long-awaited (and much-delayed) arrival of Mickey and Minnie Mouse in the public domain. Rebecca Tushnet explains what that means practically. #PublicDomainDayCountdown
Virginia Woolf’s Orlando depicts the title character’s transitions through multiple centuries and genders. Nearly a century after it was first published, it continues to have a vibrant and varied life. Joanna Scutts says it “laid the groundwork for today’s cultural landscape“, and recent adaptations include a play by Neil Bartlett and Paul B Precadio’s film Orlando: My Political Biography. In the US, Woolf’s novel makes the transition to the public domain in 45 days. #PublicDomainDayCountdown
Generations of readers have enjoyed Wanda Gág’s Millions of Cats, and kept it in print ever since its 1928 publication. The book is memorable both for its text (with the repeated cadence “Hundreds of cats, thousands of cats, Millions and billions and trillions of cats”) and for its book design, pioneering the use of illustrated two-page spreads. You can see samples in Emily Temple’s Literary Hub review. Millions of Cats will enter the public domain in 46 days. #PublicDomainDayCountdown
The 1928 musical Good Boy is nearly entirely forgotten now, but one of its songs was a breakout hit. Helen Kane performed “I Wanna Be Loved by You” in the show, and the song was later famously taken up by cartoon character Betty Boop (who was modeled after Kane), and a long list of later singers. One its more memorable later performances was by Marilyn Monroe in the movie Some Like It Hot.
Both the song and the musical it came from join the public domain in 47 days. #PublicDomainDayCountdown
“The history of the American musical theater,” wrote Miles Kreuger, “is divided quite simply into two eras: everything before Show Boat, and everything after Show Boat.”
We’ve featured Show Boat in our #PublicDomainDayCountdown before. The Edna Ferber novel the show was based on joined the public domain in 2022; many of its songs joined the public domain this year. The full script and score, published in 1928 a few months after the show’s December 1927 debut, becomes public domain in 48 days.
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