Social:2024 in public domain

Short description: Overview of works entering public domain

When a work's copyright expires, it enters the public domain. The following is a list of creators whose works enter the public domain in 2024. Since laws vary globally, the copyright status of some works are not uniform.

Countries with life + 70 years

With the exception of Belarus (Life + 50 years) and Spain (which has a copyright term of Life + 80 years for creators that died before 1987), a work enters the public domain in Europe 70 years after the creator's death, if it was published during the creator's lifetime. For previously unpublished material, those who publish it first will have the publication rights for 25 years.

Names	Country	Birth	Death	Occupation	Notable work
Hans Aanrud	Norway	1863	1953	Writer
Tamar Abakelia	Georgia	1905	1953	Sculptor
Abdullah Yusuf Ali	India	1872	1953	Translator	The Holy Qur'an: Text, Translation and Commentary
Dimitri Arakishvili	Georgia	1873	1953	Composer	The Legend of Shota Rustaveli
Walter Armitage	South Africa	1906	1953	Playwright
Vladimir Bakaleinikov	Russia	1885	1953	Composer, conductor
Rudolf Bauer	Germany	1889	1953	Painter
Arnold Bax	United Kingdom	1883	1953	Composer, writer	List of compositions by Arnold Bax
Harmsen van der Beek	The Netherlands	1897	1953	Illustrator, commercial artist	Noddy
Hilaire Belloc	United Kingdom	1870	1953	Writer	Hilaire Belloc bibliography
Róbert Berény	Hungary	1887	1953	Painter	Sleeping Lady with Black Vase
Henri Bernstein	France	1876	1953	Playwright	Samson, Mélo
Elsa Beskow	Sweden	1874	1953	Writer, illustrator
Ugo Betti	Italy	1892	1953	Playwright, judge	The Fugitive
Henrik Bull	Norway	1864	1953	Architect	National Theatre
Ivan Bunin	Russia	1892	1953	Writer	List of short stories by Ivan Bunin, List of poems by Ivan Bunin
John Horne Burns	United States	1916	1953	Writer	The Gallery
Rosario Candela	United States	1890	1953	Architect	740 Park Avenue
Harold Cazneaux	Australia	1878	1953	Photographer	Cazneaux Tree
Ahmed Ghulam Ali Chagla	Pakistan	1902	1953	Composer	"Qaumi Taranah"
Albert Coates	United Kingdom	1882	1953	Composer, conductor
Ruth Crawford Seeger	United States	1901	1953	Composer	String Quartet 1931
Peter DeRose	United States	1896	1953	Composer	"Deep Purple"
Raoul Dufy	France	1877	1953	Painter
Edmund Dulac	France	1882	1953	Illustrator
Jean Epstein	France	1897	1953	Film director	The Fall of the House of Usher
Georges Le Faure	France	1856	1953	Writer
Emil Filla	Czech Republic	1882	1953	Painter
Konstanty Ildefons Gałczyński	Poland	1905	1953	Poet	Skumbrie w tomacie
Albert Gleizes	France	1881	1953	Painter, writer	List of works by Albert Gleizes
Milt Gross	United States	1895	1953	Cartoonist
Guccio Gucci	Italy	1881	1953	Fashion designer
Sophia Hayden	United States	1868	1953	Architect	The Woman's Building
Mary Brewster Hazelton	United States	1868	1953	Painter
Cecil Hepworth	United Kingdom	1874	1953	Film director, producer	Alice in Wonderland (1903 film)
Tatsuo Hori	Japan	1904	1953	Writer	The Wind Has Risen
Curuppumullage Jinarajadasa	Sri Lanka	1875	1953	Writer	Art as a factor in the soul's evolution
Joseph Jongen	Belgium	1873	1953	Composer	Mass, Op. 130
Emmerich Kálmán	Hungary	1882	1953	Composer	Die Csárdásfürstin
Thiru. V. Kalyanasundaram	India	1883	1953	Writer
Fritz Kirchhoff	Germany	1901	1953	Film director	Attack on Baku
Moïse Kisling	France	1891	1953	Painter
Eduard Künneke	Germany	1885	1953	Composer	The Cousin from Nowhere
Jorge de Lima	Brazil	1893	1953	Politician, writer
Will Longstaff	Australia	1879	1953	Painter	Menin Gate at Midnight
Oskar Luts	Estonia	1887	1953	Writer, playwright
Kornel Makuszyński	Poland	1884	1953	Writer	Koziołek Matołek
Herman J. Mankiewicz	United States	1897	1953	Screenwriter	Citizen Kane
Emmanuel de Margerie	France	1862	1953	Geographer
John Marin	United States	1870	1953	Painter
Daniel Gregory Mason	United States	1873	1953	Composer, music critic
Erich Mendelsohn	Germany	1887	1953	Architect	List of works by Erich Mendelsohn
Moses Milner	Russia	1886	1953	Composer
Mime Misu	Romania	1886	1953	Dancer, film director	In Nacht und Eis, Das Mirakel
Vera Mukhina	Soviet Union	1889	1953	Sculptor, painter	Worker and Kolkhoz Woman
Sulaiman Nadvi	Pakistan	1884	1953	Writer	Khutbat-e-madras
Ibrahim Nagi	Egypt	1889	1953	Poet	"Al-Atlal"
Francesco Saverio Nitti	Italy	1868	1953	Politician
Hisato Ohzawa	Japan	1907	1953	Composer	Piano Concerto No. 3
Eugene O'Neill	United States	1888	1953	Playwright	Long Day's Journey into Night
Francis Picabia	France	1879	1953	Painter	List of works by Francis Picabia
Joseph Pinchon	France	1871	1953	Illustrator	Bécassine
Uroš Predić	Serbia	1857	1953	Painter	Happy Brothers
Alice Prin	France	1879	1953	Model, painter, writer	Kiki's Memoirs
Sergei Prokofiev	Russia	1891	1953	Composer, conductor	List of compositions by Sergei Prokofiev
Vsevolod Pudovkin	Russia	1893	1953	Film director, screenwriter
Roger Quilter	United Kingdom	1877	1953	Composer	Arnold Book of Old Songs
Rachilde	France	1860	1953	Writer	Monsieur Vénus
Graciliano Ramos	Brazil	1892	1953	Writer, translator	Vidas secas
Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings	United States	1896	1953	Author	The Yearling
Django Reinhardt	France	1910	1953	Composer, musician
Winold Reiss	United States	1886	1953	Painter	Winold Reiss industrial murals
Pasquale Rizzoli	Italy	1871	1953	Sculptor
Ludomir Różycki	Poland	1883	1953	Composer
Max Sainsaulieu	France	1870	1953	Architect	Carnegie Library of Reims
Rudolph Schindler	United States	1887	1953	Architect	Schindler House
Edward Shanks	United Kingdom	1892	1953	Writer	Fête Galante
Everett Shinn	United States	1876	1953	Painter
Joseph Stalin	Russia	1879	1953	Politician	Economic Problems of Socialism in the USSR
Vladimir Tatlin	Russia	1885	1953	Painter, architect	Tatlin's Tower
Neyzen Tevfik	Turkey	1879	1953	Poet, satirist
Jérôme Tharaud	France	1874	1953	Writer
Dylan Thomas	United Kingdom	1914	1953	Poet	List of works by Dylan Thomas
Totius	South Africa	1877	1953	Poet
Julian Tuwim	Poland	1894	1953	Poet	"Murzynek Bambo"
Jules Van Nuffel	Belgium	1883	1953	Composer	In convertendo Dominus
Bernard Carra de Vaux	France	1867	1953	Orientalist
Vydūnas	Lithuania	1868	1953	Poet
Erich Weinert	Germany	1890	1953	Writer	"Der heimliche Aufmarsch"
Ben Ames Williams	United States	1889	1953	Writer	The Unconquered
Hank Williams	United States	1923	1953	Musician	List of songs written by Hank Williams
Arthur Wimperis	United Kingdom	1874	1953	Lyricist, screenwriter	The Arcadians, Mrs. Miniver
Friedrich Wolf	Germany	1888	1953	Writer	Professor Mamlock
Xu Beihong	China	1895	1953	Painter
Vsevolod Zaderatsky	Russia	1891	1953	Composer
John Stepan Zamecnik	United States	1872	1953	Composer

Countries with life + 60 years

In Bangladesh, India, and Venezuela a work enters the public domain 60 years after the creator's death.

Names	Country	Birth	Death	Occupation	Notable work
Babu Gulabrai	India	1888	1963	Writer
Amar Nath Kak	India	1889	1963	Writer
Rajendra Prasad	India	1893	1963	Politician, writer
Acharya Shivpujan Sahay	India	1893	1963	Writer
Laxminarayan Sahu	India	1890	1963	Writer
Rahul Sankrityayan	India	1893	1963	Activist, writer
Anasuya Shankar	India	1928	1963	Writer
Hemendra Kumar Roy	India	1888	1963	Writer
Laudelino Mejías	Venezuela	August 1893	1963	Composer

Countries with life + 50 years

In most countries of Africa and Asia, as well as Belarus , Bolivia and New Zealand, a work enters the public domain 50 years after the creator's death.

Names	Country	Birth	Death	Occupation	Notable work
Zainal Abidin Ahmad	Malaysia	1895	1973	Writer, linguist
W. H. Auden	Great Britain	1907	1973	Poet
Charles Brasch	New Zealand	1909	1973	Poet, editor	Landfall
Bobby Darin	United States	1936	1973	Musician
Noël Coward	United Kingdom	1899	1973	Playwright	Noël Coward on stage and screen
John Ford	United States	1894	1973	Director	John Ford filmography
Anthony Gilbert	Great Britain	1899	1973	Writer	The Vanishing Corpse
Lyndon B. Johnson	United States	1908	1973	Politician
Bruce Lee	United States	1940	1973	Martial artist	Tao of Jeet Kune Do
Kathleen Lindsay	Great Britain	1903	1973	Writer
Nancy Mitford	Great Britain	1904	1973	Writer	The Pursuit of Love
Pablo Neruda	Chile	1904	1973	Poet	Canto General, Oda al Gato
Robert C. O'Brien	United States	1918	1973	Writer	Z for Zachariah
Gram Parsons	United States	1946	1973	Musician
Isabel Peacocke	New Zealand	1881	1973	Writer	Cathleen with a 'C'
Pablo Picasso	Spain	1881	1973	Painter	Guernica, Les Demoiselles d'Avignon
William Plomer	South Africa	1903	1973	Writer
Allan Sherman	United States	1924	1973	Comedian	"Hello Muddah, Hello Fadduh (A Letter from Camp)"
J. R. R. Tolkien	United Kingdom	1892	1973	Writer	J. R. R. Tolkien bibliography
Valentin Tomberg	Russian Empire	1900	1973	Mystic	Meditations on the Tarot
Alan Watts	United Kingdom	1915	1973	Philosopher	Alan Watts bibliography

Countries with life + 80 years

Spain has a copyright term of life + 80 years for creators that died before 1987. In Colombia and Equatorial Guinea a work enters the public domain 80 years after the creator's death.

Names	Country	Birth	Death	Occupation	Notable work
Carlos Arniches	Spain	1866	1943	Playwright
Carmen Karr	Spain	1865	1943	Activist, composer
Francisco Rodríguez Marín	Spain	1855	1943	Poet
José Jurado de la Parra	Spain	1856	1943	Poet, playwright
Guillermo Valencia	Colombia	1873	1943	Poet, translator

Australia and Canada

In 2004 copyright in Australia changed from a "plus 50" law to a "plus 70" law, in line with the United States and the European Union. But the change was not made retroactive (unlike the 1995 change in the European Union which brought some e.g. British authors back into copyright, especially those who died from 1925 to 1944). Hence the work of an author who died before 1955 is normally in the public domain in Australia; but the copyright of authors was extended to 70 years after death for those who died in 1955 or later, and no more Australian authors will come out of copyright until 1 January 2026 (those who died in 1955).

Similarly, Canada amended its Copyright Act in 2022 from a "plus 50" law to a "plus 70" law, coming into force on December 30, 2022, but not reviving expired copyright. No more new authors will come out of copyright in Canada until 1 January 2043 (those who died in 1972). Crown copyright was not changed, thus works published in 1973 entered the public domain in 2024.

United States

Sound recordings that were published in 1923 entered the public domain.

One of the most notable works which entered the public domain in 2024 is Steamboat Willie. The Walt Disney Company had previously lobbied for the extension of copyright length in the United States in order to prevent the short film and its characters—including Mickey Mouse—from entering the public domain. The result of that lobby effort was Copyright Term Extension Act of 1998.

Under the Copyright Term Extension Act, books published in 1928, films released in 1928, and other works published in 1928, entered the public domain in 2024. Unpublished works whose authors died in 1953 entered the public domain.

The earliest incarnation of Mickey Mouse as well as Minnie Mouse entered the public domain work in 2024 through Steamboat Willie and the silent versions of Plane Crazy and The Gallopin' Gaucho. The sound versions of the latter two shorts will enter the public domain in 2025. The House at Pooh Corner by A. A. Milne, including the character Tigger, entered the public domain in 2024. Notable films which entered the public domain in the United States include Abie's Irish Rose, Charlie Chaplin's The Circus, Buster Keaton's The Cameraman, In Old Arizona, The Man Who Laughs, Noah's Ark, The Passion of Joan of Arc, Lights of New York, The Singing Fool, and Harold Lloyd's final silent feature Speedy.

Additional notable works which entered the public domain in the United States include Lady Chatterley's Lover by D. H. Lawrence, Orlando: A Biography by Virginia Woolf, The Well of Loneliness by Radclyffe Hall, Millions of Cats by Wanda Gág, Decline and Fall by Evelyn Waugh, The Mystery of the Blue Train by Agatha Christie, Story of the Eye by Georges Bataille, The Threepenny Opera by Bertolt Brecht, and An American in Paris by George Gershwin.

See also

• 1953 in literature and 1973 in literature for deaths of writers
• Public Domain Day
• Creative Commons

External links

• "Authors by Year of Death – 1953". AuthorAndBookInfo.com. http://www.authorandbookinfo.com/abyod/1953.htm. 
• Popular Books of 1928 at Goodreads
• Public Domain Day 2024 at the Center for the Study of the Public Domain, Duke University School of Law