Commons:Character copyrights
Per COM:CHARACTER, all appearances of a character are covered by copyright so long as the character's first appearance is still protected by copyright, even if those appearances are in otherwise public domain works. Future appearances will give rise to their own copyrights. This page gives copyright information for various popular characters.
Wikimedia Commons and its servers are located in the United States and follow American copyright length, as well as the country of origin. If a work is public domain in both countries, it may be uploaded.
In the United States, older works had to have their copyrights renewed to stay copyrighted, see Copyright renewal in the United States, this requirement was removed with the Copyright Renewal Act of 1992. Many older works are in public domain due to lack of copyright renewal.
Green background colors indicates that a character is in public domain while flaxen colors indicates either a special case or that the copyright status is unclear for us (as of 2025).
To prevent the list from being too long, we won't list characters that are too old and therefore obviously in public domain, or characters that are too new and won't enter public domain in a long time, or characters that aren't notable enough. Generally speaking, characters enter public domain either a number of years after publication or a number of years after the author's death, depending on country, see List of copyright duration by country. Furthermore, if a character's first appearance is public domain, then the character is public domain.
Multiple Media and vague/general
| Character | First appearance | Source country | Expiration | Notes | Original author/copyright owner | Renewal (if applicable) | Mediums of origin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Peter Pan | Peter Pan, Or The Boy Who Won't Grow Up (1904 Play, but was not published until 1928) Peter Pan And Wendy (1911 novel) Peter and Wendy (1911) | United Kingdom | 2007 (United Kingdom) 1967 (United States) (for the Novel) 2007 (United Kingdom, but Is complicated due to a special case.) And 2024 (United States) (For the play as despite being performed in 1904 it was not published until 1928) | Peter Pan and the novel are still public domain in the United Kingdom, but a special CDPA request allows the GOSH to request royalities for the play as long as they require. | J.M Barrie (d. 1937) | Stage (debut, but copyright was effectively based on the novel as it was not published until 1928) Literature (later debut | |
| King Kong | King Kong (1933) novelisation (1932) | United States | 1932 | Has often had issues with trademarks in the past. See for example Universal City Studios, Inc. v. Nintendo Co., Ltd. While the films are still copyrighted, the character is in public domain. | Merian C. Cooper (d. 1973) | Novelisation was released prior to the film without a copyright notice and was declared "Public Domain" in 1977 due to a ruling from the Universal City Studios, Inc. v. RKO General lawsuit. | Literature (debut) Live action/stop-motion hybrid (intended debut) |
| Dumbo | Dumbo, The Flying Elephant (1939) (Unpublished and partially preserved) Dumbo (1941, public appearance) | United States | 1967 (Book) 2037 (Film) | Often mistaken as an original character from Disney. The original book from 1939[1] is partially lost and unpublished, and it was once believed the character copyright is effectively based on the 1941 film. However the book was registered for copyright under the registration number AA296948,[2] and its text and some elements survive as galley proofs. [3] Unpublished works pre-1964 required registration to gain a 95+ term or else it would be 70 years after author's death or 120 years if the author is not known. This registration was not renewed in 1967 and this could make the character's copyright likely effectively based on the book despite the film being his first "public" appearance. Since the book is registered, it could legally count as the character's debut in a reverse situation similar to Casper. In theory, one could create a new work based on the book as long as they do not use elements from the 1941 film. But Disney still owns trademarks on Dumbo's name and some images, so caution is recommended when planning on adapting the book. Timothy was originally a robin in the book named Red. Dumbo also did not sport his feathered hat in the original story according to some surviving sketches and drawings. | Helen Aberson-Mayer (d. 1999)
Harold Pearl (d. 1975) |
R442538 for the 1941 film | Literature (debut) Hand-drawn animation (intended debut) |
| The Numberjacks, Shape Japer, Spooky Spoon, Numbertaker, Problem Blob, and The Puzzler | Various episodes of Numberjacks released between 2006 and 2007 | United Kingdom | 2024 | Not public domain with no restrictions, but entire series was released under a Creative Commons license permitting commercial use with attribution by the copyright holder Banijay on the YouTube channel ZeeKay British Cartoons. | Chris Ellis (unknown, likely living) Alison Stewart (unknown, likely living) | Live action-CGI animation hybrid (all major characters animated except the Numbertaker) | |
| Many background and inconsequential characters | All works | See copyright protection for fictional characters on Wikipedia and The Moodsters on IPKitten. In American law, there exists a rather low but still existent bar for what makes a character eligible for copyright, with characters who don't serve a particularly notable role in a story or possess "distinct conceptual attributes" not being eligible for copyright even if their source material remains under copyright. However, always practice extreme caution if using such characters due to the ambiguity of this law and the remaining copyright of the wider work's content, including images of any ineligible characters. Some minor characters may have been iterated later down the line into a developed character that can be retroactively copyrighted (a notable example is Fred the Fish from SpongeBob SquarePants, who was gradually changed from an indistinct bystander into a developed character with the distinct trait of frequently getting his leg injured). | General |
Literature Origin
| Character | First appearance | Source country | Expiration | Notes | Original author/copyright owner | Renewal (if applicable) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sweeney Todd and Mrs. Lovett | The String of Pearls (1846-1847) | United Kingdom | 1889 (United Kingdom), the story was never registered in the United States. | The musical iterations featuring a more anti-heroic Sweeney Todd is still under copyright. The author of the original story is Unknown and often debatable. | Unknown | |
| Pinocchio | Giornale per i bambini (1881-1882), The Adventures of Pinocchio (1883) | Italy | 1920 | The original character was never copyrighted in the United States. The Disney version is copyrighted until 2035 (while the film had its premiere in 1940, a comic adaptation appeared in newspapers beginning in December 1939, as well as a radio adaptation the same month on Lux Radio Theatre). | Carlo Collodi (d. 1890) | |
| Mowgli and other characters | The Jungle Book (1894) | United Kingdom | 1984 (United States), 2007 (United Kingdom) | "Rudyard Kipling" (d. 1936) | The Disney iterations are still under copyright. | |
| Dorothy Gale, Toto, The Scarecrow, Cowardly Lion, Tin Woodman and various other characters | The Wonderful Wizard of Oz (1900) | United States | 1956 | All of L. Frank Baum's Oz books including a majority of posthumous ones published pre-1930 alongside a few non-renewed ones post-1930 are in the public domain as of 2025. | L. Frank Baum (d. 1919) | The 1939 film is still protected by copyright until 2035. |
| Cthulhu | "The Call of Cthulhu" (1928) | United States | 1957 | According to court testimony from a 1973 lawsuit, "The forty-six Lovecraft stories [published in Weird Tales] were not renewed by the assignees nor could they do so under the copyright law. Thus all of the stories are now in the public domain."[4][5] Some elements of the Cthulhu Mythos belong to other writers that Lovecraft collaborated with, such as Clark Ashton Smith (d. 1961), August Derleth (d. 1971), Robert Bloch (d. 1994), etc. These elements may still be protected by copyright. | H. P. Lovecraft (d. 1937) | |
| Conan the Barbarian | Weird Tales (1932) | United States | Conan appeared in "The Phoenix on the Sword" in 1932, he also appeared earlier the same year in "People of the Dark", neither story had their copyrights renewed.
All of Robert E. Howard's Conan stories published during his lifetime are in public domain. Stories by Howard and other authors published later on are still copyrighted. |
Robert E. Howard (d. 1936) | ||
| The Sneetches | Redbook (1953) | United States | 1978 | "Dr. Seuss" (d. 1991) | ||
| The Zaks | Redbook (1954) | United States | 1979 | "Dr. Seuss" (d. 1991) | ||
| Tarzan | Tarzan of the Apes (1912) | United States | 1966 | "Edgar Rice Burroughs" (d. 1950) | ||
| John Carter of Mars | A Princess Of Mars (1912) | United States | 1966 | "Edgar Rice Burroughs" (d. 1950) | ||
| Zorro | The Curse of Capistrano (1919) | United States | 1975 | Has often had issues with trademarks in the past. See for example Sony Pictures Entertainment v. Fireworks Entertainment Group (2001). In said case the court ruled that because "the copyrights in "The Curse of Capistrano" and "The Mark of Zorro" lapsed in 1995 or before, the character Zorro has been in the public domain." The first few books and films with Zorro are in public domain. | ||
| Sherlock Holmes | A Study in Scarlet (1887) | United Kingdom | 2001 (UK) | In the US, the character was never copyrighted, but the final Arthur Conan Doyle story entered the public domain in 2023.
Doyle's estate tried to sue the makers of the film Enola Holmes for copyright infringement (see Conan Doyle Estate Ltd. v. Springer), as Holmes was depicted as warmer and more emotional, something they argued he only displayed in the then-still copyrighted stories. However, the Supreme Court ruled that personality traits cannot be copyrighted, thus creating a precedent for other characters.[6][7] |
Arthur Conan Doyle (d. 1930) | None |
| Peter Rabbit | The Tale of Peter Rabbit (1902) | United Kingdom | 1958 (US) / 2014 (UK) | Beatrix Potter (d. 1943) | ||
| Archy and Mehitabel | The Evening Sun (1916) | United States | 1972 | Weren't depicted in illustrations until 1922 and 1926. It's currently debated if the 1970 adaptation of the musical the Shinbone Alley is public domain as while it did have a notice, it didn't have the company's name on the notice which would make it invalid but it's unknown for now. The musical from 1957 however is still under copyright. | Don Marquis (d. 1937) | |
| Bambi | Bambi, a Life in the Woods (1923) | Austria | 2022 (US) / 2015 (Austria) | A famous and mostly controversial lawsuit aka Twin Books v. Disney ruled that the book wasn't registered until 1926 in the US and most websites stated the book became public domain in the US in 2022. However, the lawsuit was heavily criticized with some people believing the book became public domain in 2019 and not 2022. The Disney iteration is still under copyright. Thumper was based on "Friend Hare" from the book. | Felix Salten (d. 1945) | |
| Winnie-the-Pooh and related characters | Winnie-the-Pooh (1926) | United Kingdom/United States | 2027 (UK for the text) 2047 (UK for the illustrations) / 2022 (US) |
Some Pooh works were simultaneously published in the United States so they're public domain for our purposes. Disney's character designs as well as the character of Gopher are still under copyright until the 2060s. |
A. A. Milne (d. 1956) and E.H. Shepherd (d. 1976) | Winnie the Pooh and the Honey Tree (1966) RE0000636587
Winnie the Pooh and the Blustery Day (1968) RE0000718378 |
| Sam Spade | The Black Mask (1929) | United States | 2025 |
The Maltese Falcon was initially serialized in The Black Mask [a][b] Later printed in full as The Maltese Falcon (1930) In Warner Bros. Pictures v. Columbia Broadcasting System the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals determined that the character of Sam Spade was ineligible for copyright because "if the character is only the chessman in the game of telling the story he is not within the area of the protection afforded by the copyright" and that Sam Spade and other "characters were vehicles for the story told". |
Dashiell Hammett (d. 1961) | R179950-R179952 and R202664-202665 for the serial
R205663 for 1930 novel |
| Nancy Drew | The Secret of the Old Clock (1930) | United States | 2026 | Later re-written in 1959; which has its own copyright | Mildred Benson (d. 2002) under pseudonym Carolyn Keene
Russell H. Tandy (d. 1963) for illustrations |
R197875 |
| Tsathoggua | Weird Tales (1931) | United States | 2027 | Part of the Hyperborean cycle and the Cthulhu Mythos.
Originally created by Clark Ashton Smith for the story "The Tale of Satampra Zeiros", but appeared in stories by his friends Robert E. Howard and H. P. Lovecraft before his story was published ("The Children of the Night" and "The Whisperer in Darkness" respectively) |
Clark Ashton Smith (d. 1961) | R230427 for the issue of Weird Tales with "The Tale of Satampra Zeiros" |
| Babar the Elephant | The Story of Babar (1931) | France | 2027 (US)/2008 (France) | The first Babar book was published in France in 1931, and in the United States in 1933. | Jean de Brunhoff (d. 1937)
Be careful not to use illustrations by his son, Laurent de Brunhoff, who took over his father's series and died in 2024. |
R265890 for The Story of Babar, the Little Elephant |
| Doc Savage | Doc Savage Magazine #1 (March 1933) | United States | 2029 | Henry W. Ralston (d. 1968)
John L. Nanovic (d. 2001) Lester Dent (d. 1959) |
R254774 | |
| Scarlett O'Hara and Rhett Butler | Gone with the Wind (1936) | United States | 2032 |
The film from 1939 will be public domain in 2035 |
Margaret Mitchell (d. 1949) | R318689-318690 for the 1936 novel
R399224 for the 1939 film |
| The Thing (from another world) | Who Goes There? (1938) | United States | 2034 | First published in Astounding Science Fiction in the August 1938 edition | John W. Campbell (d. 1971) | R365826 for the August 1938 edition |
| Madam Mim | The Sword in the Stone (1938) | United Kingdom | 2035 (UK/US) | First published in the United States in 1939 | T. H. White (d. 1964) | R377500 |
| Madeline | Madeline (1939) | United States | 2035 | Ludwig Bemelmans (d. 1962) | R397292 | |
| Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer | Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer (1939) | United States | 2035 | Often mistaken for being public domain. The 1964 television special is in the public domain due to an improper copyright notice. However the special is restricted as a derivative work of the original character, song, and other copyrighted elements present.
Sound recordings of the 1949 song will not enter the public domain until 2060 while the composition could enter earlier. |
Robert L. May (d. 1976) | R404750 for the 1939 book
R639542 for the 1949 song |
| Horton the Elephant | Horton Hatches the Egg (1940) | United States | 2036 | An early prototype depicted as a female named Matilda The Elephant is already public domain due to a lack of a renewal for an issue from Punch Magazine. | "Dr. Seuss" (d. 1991) | R428772 |
| Mike Hammer | I, the Jury (1947) | United States | 2043 | Mickey Spillane (d. 2006) | R608341 | |
| Bilbo Baggins | The Hobbit (1937) | United Kingdom | 2033 (US) / 2044 (UK) | Houghton Mifflin published the first American edition of The Hobbit in spring of 1938 | J. R. R. Tolkien (d. 1973) | Copyright was lost in USA, and then restored under Uruguay Round Agreements Act |
| Winston Smith and Big Brother | Nineteen Eighty-Four (1949) | United Kingdom | 2045 (US) / 2021 (UK) | George Orwell (d. 1950) | R641953 | |
| Noddy | Noddy Goes to Toyland (1949) | United Kingdom | 2045 (US) / 2039 (UK) | Enid Blyton (d. 1968) | ||
| Aslan | The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe (1950) | United Kingdom | 2046 (US) / 2034 (UK) | C. S. Lewis (d. 1963) | Copyright restored under the URAA | |
| Hercule Poirot | The Mysterious Affair at Styles (1920) | United Kingdom | 2047 (UK) / 1976 (US) | Agatha Christie (d. 1976) | ||
| Miss Marple | The Royal Magazine (1927) | United Kingdom | 2047 (UK) / 2023 (US) | First novel was The Murder at the Vicarage (1930) | Agatha Christie (d. 1976) | R209544 for 1930 book |
| Mary Poppins | Mary Poppins (1934) | New Zealand; United Kingdom/United States | for the 1926 iteration, 2022 (US), 2047 (NZ). For the novel, 2030 (US)/2067 (UK) | The first Poppins book was published simultaneously in the United States
The Mary Poppins character, in a much less defined way, first appeared in a 1926 short story Mary Poppins And the Match-Man that was published in New Zealand's The Sun. This early 1926 iteration is already public domain in the United States as of 2022. |
P. L. Travers (d. 1996) | R292340 for the first book |
| Curious George | Cecily G. and the Nine Monkeys (1939) | France | 2035 (US) 2048 (France) | Was originally named Fifi. | H.A. Rey (d. 1977) | |
| Guy Montag | Fahrenheit 451 (1953) | United States | 2049 | Ray Bradbury (d. 2012) | RE0000105689 | |
| James Bond | Casino Royale (1953) | United Kingdom | 2049 (US) / 2035 (UK) | Simultatenously published in the US and UK
Later film rights under separate copyrights |
Ian Fleming (d. 1964) | RE0000108490 for the 1953 book |
| Simon Ark | "Village of the Dead" in Famous Detective Stories, December 1955 | United States | 2051 | Edward D. Hoch (d. 2008) | RE0000157371 for "Village of the Dead" and "The Hoofs of Satan" | |
| The Grinch | How the Grinch Stole Christmas! (1957) | United States | 2053 | The animated TV special by Chuck Jones, where the Grinch was first portrayed as green as opposed to white, is protected until 2062 | "Dr. Seuss" (d. 1991) | RE0000238319 for the 1957 book
RE0000621446 for the 1966 TV special |
| The Cat in the Hat | The Cat in the Hat (1957) | United States | 2053 | "Dr. Seuss" (d. 1991) | RE0000240391 | |
| Basil of Baker Street | Basil of Baker Street (1958) | United States | 2054 | Parody of Sherlock Holmes. Sometimes mistaken for a Disney original creation. | Eve Titus (d. 2002) | RE0000294923 |
| Norman Bates | Psycho (1959) | United States | 2055 | The Hitchcock film is separately copyrighted until 2056 | Robert Bloch (d. 1994) | RE0000319609 for the book
RE0000400889 for the 1960 film |
| The Saint (Simon Templar) | Meet the Tiger (1928) | United Kingdom | 2024 (US) 2064 (UK) | Leslie Charteris (d. 1993) | ||
| Thomas the Tank Engine | Thomas the Tank Engine (1946) | United Kingdom | 2042 (US) / 2068 (UK) | Wilbert Awdry (d. 1997) |
Live Action Origin
| Character | First appearance | Source country | Expiration | Notes | Original author/copyright owner | Renewal (if applicable) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kool-Aid Man | Pitcher Man commercial (1954) | United States | 1954 | Was originally called Pitcher Man and lacked any arms and legs. Later iterations in printed advertisements featured arms and legs which lacked a copyright notice. The more iconic 1974 iteration from a possibly now lost commercial could still be copyrighted unless there is no notice for that either, but be cautious of trademarks. | Michael Craig Sr. (Not much is known about him as of now) | Commercial released without copyright notice. |
| Ronald McDonald | Washington D.C. McDonald's commercial (1963) | United States | 1963 | Be cautious of trademarks, as this is an active advertising character. Also, the public-domain version of Ronald McDonald, which has scraggly hair, a cup as a nose, and a meal over his head, was an early prototype of the mascot and thus looks quite different from the modern version which is more refined. | Willard Scott (d. 2021) | Commercial released without copyright notice. |
| Fred the Baker | Fred The Baker commercial (1981) | United States | 1981 | First commercial had no notice and wasn't registered after 5 years before March 1st 1989, but be cautious of trademarks. | Michael Vale (d. 2005) | Commercial released without copyright notice. |
| Keystone Cops | Hoffmeyer's Legacy (1912) | United States | 1968 | Hank Mann (d. 1971) Mack Sennet (d. 1960) | ||
| The Marx Brothers | Humor Risk (1921) | United States | 1997 | |||
| The Tramp | Kid Auto Races at Venice (1914) | United States | 1971 | Charlie Chaplin (d. 1977) | ||
| Laurel and Hardy | The Second Hundred Years (1927) | United States | 2023 | Hal Roach (d. 1992) | ||
| Kermit the Frog | Unidentified first episode (Sam and Friends; 1955) | United States | 1955, 1961 (at maximum) or if unpublished, 2061 | It is debated whether Sam & Friends was pre-recorded (in which case it would be public domain due to a lack of copyright notice) or a live show (which would legally not count it as "published"), in the latter situation, there is further debate as to whether Kermit's first pre-recorded appearances after Sam & Friends (commercials for Eskay Meats, which also lack copyright notices) would count as his "debut". Was originally a lizard-like Muppet and his more iconic frog appearance didn't debut until 1969 and is still copyrighted. | Jim Henson (d. 1990) | |
| Ro-Man | Robot Monster (1953) | United States | 2049 | The copyright to the film was renewed, but the company that claimed the copyright illegally renewed copyright for several films.[8] | Phil Tucker (d. 1985) Wyott Ordung (d. 2005) | |
| The Three Stooges | Soup to Nuts (1930) | United States | 2026 | Moses Horwitz' character, Moe, was initially named "Harry Howard". Curly as a character will be protected until 2030 when "Woman Haters" becomes public domain. And Curly Joe will follow much later. However likeness rights do exist so be careful even when the earliest shorts enter the public domain. | Benjamin Stoloff (d. 1960) Rube Goldberg (d. 1970) | R201139 |
| Charles Foster Kane | Citizen Kane (1941) | United States | 2037 | Orson Welles (d. 1985) Herman J. Mankiewicz (d. 1953) | R435615 | |
| Gill-man | Creature from the Black Lagoon (1954) | United States | 2050 | Milicent Patrick (d. 1998) Harry Essex (d. 1997) Arthur A. Ross (d. 2008) Maurice Zimm (d. 2005) | RE0000131137 | |
| Godzilla | Godzilla (1954) | Japan | 2050 (US) 2068 maximum (Japan) | Tomoyuki Tanaka (d. 1997) Eiji Tsuburaya (d. 1970) Ishirō Honda (d. 1993) Shigeru Kayama (d. 1975) | ||
| Ralph and Alice Kramden | "TV or Not TV" (The Honeymooners, 1955) | United States | 2051 | Inspiration for Fred and Wilma Flintstone. | Jackie Gleason (d. 1987) | RE0000160100 |
| "Beaver" and the Cleaver family | "It's a Small World" (Leave it to Beaver, 1957) | United States | 2053 | Joe Connelly (d. 2003) Bob Mosher (d. 1972) | RE0000247042 | |
| Sooty | Episode 1 (Sooty, 1955) | United Kingdom | 2050 (US) 2060 (UK) | Soo becomes public domain in the US in 2060, but will enter with Sooty and Sweep in the UK. | Harry Corbett (d. 1989) | |
| Wilkins & Wontkins | "Cannon" (Wilkins Coffee commercial, 1957) | United States | 2053 | Often mistaken for being public domain, as very few commercials featuring them had copyright notices, however, "Cannon" was one of the few to have a notice | Jim Henson (d. 1990) |
needs to be checked |
| Rowlf the Dog | Purina dog food commercials (1962) | Created in the United States First shown in Canada | 2058 (US) 2061 (Canada) | Jim Henson (d. 1990) |
Animation Origin
| Character | First appearance | Source country | Expiration | Notes | Original author/copyright owner | Renewal (if applicable) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Peg Leg Pete | Alice Solves the Puzzle (1925) | United States | 1954 | Originally depicted as a bear, the more well-known feline incarnation became public domain in 2024. | Walt Disney (d. 1966) Ub Iwerks (d. 1971) | Short was not renewed |
| Sam the Snowman, Hermey the Elf, Yukon Cornelius, Bumble, and the Misfit Toys | Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer (1964) | United States | 1964 | Released with a mispelled copyright notice. Rudolph and certain other elements such as music that predate the film remain under copyright. | Romeo Muller (d. 1992) Larry Roemer (d. 1995) | |
| Bosko | Bosko, the Talk-Ink Kid (1929), Sinkin' in the Bathtub (1930) | United States | 1958 | Bosko was the first Looney Tunes character. Bosko first appeared in Bosko, the Talk-Ink Kid, a test film which wasn't released in theaters. He first formally appeared, along with his girlfriend Honey, in Sinkin' in the Bathtub.
In 1933, Harman and Ising left Warner Bros., taking the rights to the Bosko characters with them, making more cartoons through MGM. However, Warner Bros. retained the rights to the cartoons. None of the copyrights to any of Bosko's works made through the 1930's for Warner Bros. were renewed. Later appearances, in MGM cartoons and the TV series Tiny Toon Adventures, are still copyrighted. Note that Bosko's character design was very heavily based on blackface minstrel shows, it is advised to practice caution if you intend to revive the character. |
Hugh Harman (d. 1982)
Rudolf Ising (d. 1992) |
|
| Tweety | A Tale of Two Kitties (1942) | United States | 1970 | Known as "Orson" in his first appearance, and first named Tweety in his second appearance, Birdy and the Beast.
Later character design first used in Tweetie Pie is still copyrighted. |
Bob Clampett (d. 1984) | No known renewal for the first short. |
| Dan Backslide, the Dover Boys, and Dora Standpipe | The Dover Boys at Pimento University (1942) | United States | 1970 | Chuck Jones (d. 2002) | ||
| Casper the Friendly Ghost | The Friendly Ghost (1945) | United States | The character was originally created for a children's book that went unpublished. The short film he was introduced in did not have its copyright renewed. Later appearances and supporting characters are still copyrighted. | Seymour Reit (d. 2001)
Joe Oriolo (d. 1985) |
||
| Colonel Montgomery J. Klaxon and Calvin T. Burnside | "The Television Job" (Calvin and the Colonel; 1961) | United States | 1990 | An animated remake of Amos 'n' Andy | None | |
| Felix the Cat | Feline Follies (1919) | United States | 1975 | Not only are all the theatrical short films with Felix in public domain, due either to expired copyright or lack of copyright renewal, the first and 26th episodes of the 1958 TV series also never renewed.[9] In a similar way to Popeye, this makes the Magic Bag as well as later characters such as Poindexter and The Professor public domain. The Master Cylinder is still copyrighted as his episode was renewed properly. | Pat Sullivan (d. 1933) Otto Messmer (d. 1983) | |
| Oswald the Lucky Rabbit | Trolley Troubles (1927) | United States | 1955 | Later redesigns by Manuel Moreno may still be copyrighted.
Original copyright for Trolley Troubles ended in 1955 when the copyright was not renewed. |
Walt Disney (d. 1966)
Ub Iwerks (d. 1971) |
|
| Mickey Mouse and Minnie Mouse | Steamboat Willie (1928) | United States | 2024 | Later redesigns are still copyrighted, see here and here for lists of designs by year. Note however that the lists are only comprised of animation and comic strip art, not posters or anything else where a design would have been shown first. | Walt Disney (d. 1966)
Ub Iwerks (d. 1971) |
|
| The Noid | Domino's Pizza commercial (1986) | United States | 1986, 2082 at maximum | Debut commercial released without a copyright notice and was never registered. However, a copyright notice may have been printed on the film provided to broadcasters. | Tom Masters (identity unknown) Will Vinton (d. 2018) | |
| Doug Funnie | Florida Grapefruit Juice commercial (1988) | United States | 1988, 2084 at maximum | See the Noid. Originally an adult and not a child. Later characters such as Patty Mayonnaise and Porkchop are still copyrighted for years to come. | Jim Jinkins (currently living) | |
| Betty Boop | Dizzy Dishes (1930) | United States | 2026 | Some later shorts not renewed. Originally a anthropomorphic Poodle and not a human. Character copyright owned by Paramount Pictures. | R198400 | |
| Pluto | The Chain Gang (1930) | United States | 2027 |
First named as Rover in The Picnic (1930) First named as Pluto in The Moose Hunt (1931) |
Walt Disney (d. 1966)
Norm Ferguson (d. 1957) |
R204524 for The Chain Gang
R204528 for The Picnic R225455 for The Moose Hunt |
| Donald Duck | The Wise Little Hen (1934) | United States | 2030 |
A prototype of Donald Duck appeared in The Adventures of Mickey Mouse (1931) which will become public domain in 2027.[10] |
Walt Disney (d. 1966)
Dick Lundy (d. 1990) |
R27781 for The Wise Little Hen
R225437 for The Adventures of Mickey Mouse |
| Goofy | Orphan's Benefit (1934) | United States | 2030 |
First appeared as Dippy Dawg in Mickey's Revue (1932) |
Walt Disney (d. 1966)
Pinto Colvig (d. 1967) |
R281004 for Orphans' Benefit
R237770 for Mickey's Revue |
| Porky Pig | I Haven't Got a Hat (1935) | United States | 2031 | Some later shorts not renewed | Friz Freleng (d. 1995) | R311533 |
| Daffy Duck | Porky's Duck Hunt (1937) | United States | 2033 | Some later shorts not renewed | Tex Avery (d. 1980)
Bob Clampett (d. 1984) |
R363524 |
| Elmer Fudd | Little Red Walking Hood (1937) | United States | 2033 | Originally a hero, and without a name and looking more like the prototype Egghead who debuted earlier the same year. He would gain his familiar appearance in 1940's Elmer's Candid Camera | Tex Avery (d. 1980) Chuck Jones (d. 2002) | R369889 for Little Red Walking Hood
R428511 for Elmer's Candid Camera |
| Doc, Grumpy, Sleepy, Happy, Bashful, Sneezy, and Dopey | Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937) | United States | 2033 | The concept of the Seven Dwarves in the context of the Snow White story is public domain, but the individual dwarf personalities, designs, and names were a Disney invention. | Complex, many story writers and sequence directors of equal importance. | R354235 |
| Bugs Bunny | A Wild Hare (1940) | United States | 2036 | Appeared in three earlier prototype versions.
Several cartoons failed to have their copyrights renewed. |
Complex, had several fathers | R434265 |
| Tom Cat and Jerry Mouse | Puss Gets the Boot (1940) | United States | 2036 | The cat was named Jasper and the mouse was unnamed at first, they would not be called Tom and Jerry until the second short The Midnight Snack (1941) | William Hanna (d. 2001)
Joseph Barbera (d. 2006) |
R404444 for Puss Gets the Boot
R439708 for The Midnight Snack |
| Woody Woodpecker | Knock Knock (1940) | United States | 2036 | Walter Lantz (d. 1994)
Ben Hardaway (d. 1957) |
R423773 | |
| Daisy Duck | Mr. Duck Steps Out (1940) | United States | 2033 | A prototype version called Donna Duck appeared in 1937 in the film Don Donald | Carl Barks (d. 2000) | R329715 for Don Donald
R411801 for Mr. Duck Steps Out |
| Mighty Mouse | Mouse of Tomorrow (1942) | United States | 2038 | Paul Terry (d. 1971)
Isadore Klein (d. 1986) |
R471862 | |
| Heckle and Jeckle | The Talking Magpies (1946) (prototypes), The Uninvited Pests (1946) | United States | 2042 | Often mistaken to be public domain | Paul Terry (d. 1971) |
R591492 for The Talking Magpies, R572112 for The Uninvited Pests |
| Droopy, Red, and Wolfie | Dumb-Hounded for Droopy and Wolfie, Red Hot Riding Hood for Red (both 1943) | United States | 2039 | An earlier incarnation of Wolfie as a caricature of Adolf Hitler was featured in Blitz Wolf a year prior. | Tex Avery (d. 1980) | R480799 |
| Spike the Bulldog | The Bodyguard (1944) | United States | 2040 | Prototypical incarnation as an unnamed bulldog debuted 2 years earlier. | William Hanna (d. 2001) Joseph Barbera (d. 2006) | R509318 |
| Sylvester the Cat | Life with Feathers (1945) | United States | 2041 | Friz Freleng (d. 1995) | R538956 | |
| Yosemite Sam | Hare Trigger (1945) | United States | 2041 | Friz Freleng (d. 1995) | R539829 | |
| Goofy Gophers | The Goofy Gophers (1947) | United States | 2042 (see notes) | Although the short premiered in 1947 its copyright was initially registered in 1946, thus governing its copyright status by that date | Bob Clampett (d. 1984) | Under R566632 |
| Wile E. Coyote and the Road Runner | Fast and Furry-ous (1949) | United States | 2045 | Chuck Jones (d. 2002)
Michael Maltese (d. 1981) |
R627299 | |
| Yogi Bear, Boo Boo Bear, and Ranger Smith | "Huckleberry Hound Meets Wee Willie / Cousin Tex / Yogi Bear's Big Break" (The Huckleberry Hound Show, 1958) | United States | 2054 | William Hanna (d. 2001) Joseph Barbera (d. 2006) | RE0000290460 and RE0000540024 | |
| Huckleberry Hound | "Huckleberry Hound Meets Wee Willie / Cousin Tex / Yogi Bear's Big Break" (The Huckleberry Hound Show, 1958) | United States | 2054 | William Hanna (d. 2001) Joseph Barbera (d. 2006) | RE0000290460 and RE0000540024 | |
| Rocky the Flying Squirrel, Bullwinkle J. Moose, Mr. Peabody & Sherman, Dudley Do-Right & associated characters | "Jet Fuel Formula" (Rocky and His Friends; 1959) | United States | 2055 | Jay Ward (d. 1989) Alex Anderson (d. 2010) Bill Scott (d. 1985) | RE0000337837 | |
| Fred Flintstone, Wilma Flintstone, Barney Rubble, Betty Rubble, and Dino | "The Flintstone Flyer" (The Flintstones; 1960) | United States | 2056 | Pebbles Flintstone and Bamm-Bamm Rubble were first introduced in episodes from seasons two and three during 1963 and will enter the public domain in 2059. | William Hanna (d. 2001)
Joseph Barbera (d. 2006) |
RE0000396998 for The Flintstone Flyer (1960)
RE0000555065 for The Blessed Event (1963) RE0000547359 for Little Bamm-Bamm (1963) |
Comic Origin
| Character | First appearance | Source country | Expiration | Notes | Original author/copyright owner | Renewal (if applicable) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jor-L, Lora | Superman comic strip (January 16, 1939) | United States | While Superman is copyrighted, his Kryptonian parents Jor-L and Lora (later spelled Jor-El and Lara), as well as the planet Krypton and its inhabitants, are in public domain, since the earliest comic strips with Superman did not have their copyrights properly placed (as revealed in the court case National v. Fawcett) and weren't renewed. | Jerry Siegel (d. 1996)
Joe Shuster (d. 1992) |
||
| Captain Atom | Space Adventures #33 (1960) | United States | Later editions and usages from DC still subject to copyright | Joe Gill (d. 2006)
Steve Ditko (d. 2018) |
None[11][12] | |
| Peacemaker | Fightin' 5 #40 (1966) | United States | Charlton Comics Group never filed a single copyright registration for any of their publications in 1966 or 1967. The book that Peacemaker debuted in did not have a valid copyright notice.[12][13] | Joe Gill (d. 2006)
Pat Boyette (d. 2000) |
||
| The Question | Blue Beetle (vol. 4) #1 (1967) | United States | Charlton failed to put a proper copyright notice in the book.[12][13] | Steve Ditko (d. 2018) | ||
| Blue Beetle | Mystery Men Comics #1 (1939) | United States | 1967 | Dan Garret (later spelled Dan Garrett) and Ted Kord, the first two characters to be called Blue Beetle, are in public domain.[11][12] Jaime Reyes is still copyrighted. | Charles Wojtkoski (d. 1985) | No renewal |
| Captain Marvel (Fawcett Comics), Shazam, Doctor Sivana | Whiz Comics #2 (1940) | United States | 1968 | Several issues from Fawcett didn't have their copyrights renewed. Many other characters like Captain Marvel Jr., Mary Marvel, Captain Nazi and Mister Mind are in public domain as well.
Later depictions of the characters, as published by Fawcett and DC, have separate copyrights |
Bill Parker (d. 1963)
C. C. Beck (d. 1989) |
None[11] |
| Plastic Man | Police Comics #1 (1941) | United States | 1969 | Jack Cole (d. 1958) | None[11] | |
| Blackhawk | Military Comics #1 (1941) | United States | 1969 | Chuck Cuidera (d. 2001)
Bob Powell (d. 1967) Will Eisner (d. 2005) |
None[11] | |
| Archie Andrews, Jughead Jones, Betty Cooper | Pep Comics #22 (1941) | United States | 1969 | Issues #1-71 of Pep Comics didn't have their copyrights renewed making Archie and other characters depicted in the comics public domain (including Veronica Lodge and Hiram Lodge). Archie was inspired by Andy Hardy, who first appeared in the play Skidding (1928), a work that is also now in public domain. | John L. Goldwater (d. 1999)
Bob Montana (d. 1975) Vic Bloom (d. 1983) |
|
| Pogo | Animal Comics #1 (1941) | United States | 1969 | Supporting characters introduced in the newspaper comic strip and the solo comic book are still copyrighted. | Walt Kelly (d. 1973) | |
| Gnorm Gnat | Gnorm Gnat (1973) | United States | 1973 | Notable among comics and Garfield fans for being a failure that led to the massive success of the latter franchise. The original Gnorm Gnat strips were published in the Pendleton Times from 1973 to 1975. Neither the strips nor the newspaper in which they were published included any copyright notices. | Jim Davis (currently living) | |
| Garfield and Jon Arbuckle | Jon (1976) | United States | 1976 | The original Jon and Garfield strips were published in the Pendleton Times from 1976 to 1978. Neither the strips nor the newspaper in which they were published included any copyright notices. The Garfield comic strip began including copyright notices only once picked up for syndication in 1978.
The appearance of Garfield in Jon and in the 1977–78 strips differs from his appearance in more recent strips. Odie is known as Spot and Pookie is known as Huggy. New material from the later series is separately copyrighted. |
Jim Davis (currently living) | |
| Krazy Kat and Ignatz Mouse | The Dingbat Family (1910) | United States | 1966 | Krazy in particular is notable as an early example of a genderfluid cartoon character. | George Herriman (d. 1944) | |
| Walt Wallet | Gasoline Alley (1918) | United States | 1974 | Frank King (d. 1969) | ||
| Harold Hamgravy and Olive Oyl | Thimble Theatre (1919) | United States | 1975 | Original strip protagonists and love interests, following the introduction and subsequent popularity of Popeye, Harold was abandoned; and Olive was relegated to Popeye's love interest instead. | E.C. Segar (d. 1938) | |
| Rupert Bear | The Little Lost Bear (1920) | United Kingdom | 2019 (UK) / 1976 (US) | Later characters such as Tiger Lily and possibly Ottoline Otter are still copyrighted in the US until those expire. | Mary Tourtel (d. 1948) | |
| Little Orphan Annie and Daddy Warbucks | Little Orphan Annie (1924) | United States | 2020 | Based loosely on the poem Little Orphant Annie, which had already become public domain by 1924. | Harold Gray (d. 1968) | |
| Buck Rogers | Buck Rogers comic strip (1929) | United States | 2025 | Buck Rogers is based on Anthony Rogers from Armageddon 2419 A.D. (1928), a work that was not renewed. | Philip Francis Nowlan (d. 1940) | |
| Popeye | Thimble Theatre (1929) | United States | 2025 | Although Popeye first used spinach to gain powers in 1931, the comic in which that trait is introduced's copyright was not renewed, so the character trait is included as part of Popeye's public domain entry.[14][15][16][17] Not only that, but many of Popeye's later characters debuting between late 1930 and 1936 are also in the public domain due to a lack of renewal on each of them, making Popeye's 2025 entry a lot bigger than excepted. Such characters include Bluto, Wimpy (see those two examples below), Alice the Goon, Swee'Pea[18][19] Eugene The Jeep, and Poopdeck Pappy[20][21] as well as likely others such as King Blozo. Properly renewed characters, such as Popeye's nephews, will still be copyrighted until those expire. | E. C. Segar (d. 1938) | |
| J. Wellington Wimpy | Thimble Theatre/Popeye (1931) | United States | 1960? | No renewals has been found for Wimpy[22][23] and other Thimble Theatre comics between 1959-1964. He wasn't called Wimpy until a later comic, taking place after the boxing match, which also hasn't been renewed. However, while these characters are in the public domain, be careful of trademarks owned by King Features Syndicate. The animated iterations are still protected until 2029. | E. C. Segar (d. 1938) | |
| Bluto | Thimble Theatre/Popeye (1932) | United States | 1961? | No renewal has been found for Bluto's debut comic.[24][25] Brutus, an alternate version of Bluto himself born out of copyright confusion and sometimes portrayed as his brother, is also in the public domain as "Junior" as "Barbeque for Two", the pilot for the 1960s Popeye TV series, was not renewed. Bluto was originally a one-off villain before he was made more famous in the animated cartoons. He also originally wasn't a romantic rival to Popeye until the shorts. | E. C. Segar (d. 1938) | |
| Clarabelle Cow | Mickey Mouse comic strip (1930) | United States | 1957 | The Mickey Mouse comic strips beyond some renewed ones from January did not renew their copyrights in 1957.[26] Clarabelle's debut in the April 2nd strip predates her animated debut by a couple months until July's The Shindig. Originally appeared as a prototypical unnamed cow in early shorts. | Walt Disney (d. 1966) | |
| Dick Tracy | Dick Tracy comic strip (1931) | United States | 1958-1960? | No renewal was found for the first strip nor the original character art registration.[27][28] | Chester Gould (d. 1985) | |
| Flash Gordon | Flash Gordon comic strip (1934) | United States | 1960-1961? | No renewal was found for the first strips other than a children's book published the same year.[29][30][31][32] | Alex Raymond (d. 1956) | |
| The Phantom | The Phantom comic strip (1936) | United States | 1964? | Distributed by King Features Syndicate, who would send out their comics to publishing partners in distribution books called "King Features Illustrated Weekly" or "King Features Weekly" compiling their comics,[33][34][35][36] sometimes they would register copyrights for their comics by these books rather than the names of the individual comics.[37]
No copyright renewal has been found for the first strips of The Phantom by searching by the name of the distribution books or by the name of the strip itself.[38] However, later versions are still copyrighted. |
Lee Falk (d. 1999) | |
| Prince Valiant | Prince Valiant comic (1937) | United States | 1965? | No renewal has been found for the first comic[39] | Hal Foster (d. 1982) | |
| Beetle Bailey | Beetle Bailey (1950) | United States | 1977 | No copyright renewal was found for the first strip from 1950.[40] Originally a college student, the character also first went into the military in 1951, which that comic also hasn't renewed. | Mort Walker (d. 2018) | No copyright renewal found for the relevant strips |
| Sgt. Snorkel | Beetle Bailey (March 30th, 1951) | United States | 1978? | No copyright renewal was found for the strip in which Sgt. Snorkel debuted in 1951. [41] Was unnamed until later and his dog Otto is still under copyright as a renewal is seen for 1956. | Mort Walker (d. 2018) | No copyright renewal found for the relevant strips |
| Dennis the Menace (US) | Dennis the Menace (1951) | United States | 1979? | No copyright renewal was found for the Dennis the Menace strip.[42] The comic strip itself doesn't seem to have ever been registered either according to the Virtual Card Catalogue. | Hank Ketcham (d. 2001) | |
| Marmaduke | Marmaduke (1954) | United States | 1982? | No copyright renewal was found for the Marmaduke strip. Early strips were also never registered either. [43]. | Brad Anderson (d. 2015) | |
| Fin Fang Foom | Strange Tales #89 (1961) | United States | 1989 | Copyright was not renewed for Strange Tales #85-95[44][45] | Jack Kirby (d. 1994) Stan Lee (d. 2018) | |
| Richie Rich | Little Dot #1 (September 1954) | United States | 1984 | Little Dot #1 was not renewed in 1984 [46]. | Alfred Harvey (d. 1994) | Trademark is still owned by Classic Media LLC. |
| Wendy the Good Little Witch | Casper The Friendly Ghost #20 (May 1954) | United States | 1982 | Casper The Friendly Ghost #20 was not renewed in 1984 [47]. | Steve Mufatti (d. 1968) | Trademark is still owned by Classic Media LLC. |
| Charlie Brown and Snoopy (as Rover) | Lil' Folks (1947) Peanuts (1950) | United States | 1947 (Lil' Folks characters) 2046 (Peanuts characters) | While the syndicated Peanuts is still under copyright due to being renewed, the early prototype of the strip titled Lil' Folks which was originally published in the St. Paul Pioneer Press in 1947 lacked a copyright notice on all of the strips.[48] Charlie Brown was a name given to multiple minor characters, and Rover, who would become Snoopy, was a normal dog. It is debatable, however, whether the Lil' Folks characters have enough continuity with the Peanuts characters to affect the copyright status of the latter or if the "Charlie Brown" and "Rover" are different characters in a similar situation to Donald Duck's 1931 prototype from The Adventures Of Mickey Mouse. | Charles Schulz (d. 2000) | |
| Nero | De Avonturen van Detectief Van Zwam (1947) | Belgium | 2030 | All of Sleen's comics will be willingly released by his estate into the public domain in 2030. As of 2025, they exist under a license where they are free to use, but all commercial uses must be approved by the Marc Sleen Foundation and political or religious organisations are forbidden from using them.[49] | Marc Sleen (d. 2019) | |
| Namor | Motion Picture Funnies Weekly #1, Marvel Comics #1 (both 1939) | United States | 2035 | One of the first Marvel Comics characters. The character was created for Motion Picture Funnies Weekly and first appeared in said book as well as Marvel Comics in 1939. The former book didn't have its copyright renewed[11] so if it was published first, Namor would be in the public domain. However, it is unclear which book was published first, or if the former book was published at all.[50] | Bill Everett (d. 1973) | |
| Cerebus the Aardvark | Cerebus the Aardvark #1 (1977) | Canada | 2073 at maximum | Dave Sim has criticized the use of copyrights to restrict the use of creations which would have more quickly become public domain under earlier copyright law, and has arranged for his body of work to fall into the public domain following his death.[51] Cerebus is already free to a degree, as Dave Sim has stated that other creators are free to use his characters in their own works. | Dave Sim (still living) | |
| Blondie and Dagwood Bumstead | Blondie comic strip (1930) | United States | 2026 | Chic Young (d. 1973) | needs to be checked | |
| Norakuro | Shōnen Kurabu (1931) | Japan | 2059 (Japan) / 2027 (US) | One of the earliest mangas ever made. | Suihō Tagawa (d. 1989) | |
| Nancy Ritz | Fritzi Ritz comic strip (January 2, 1933) | United States | 2029 | Ernie Bushmiller (d. 1982) | needs to be checked | |
| Agent X-9 | Secret Agent X-9 comic strip (1934) | United States | 2030 | Dashiell Hammett (d. 1961)
Alex Raymond (d. 1956) |
needs to be checked | |
| Li'l Abner | Li'l Abner comic strip (1934) | United States | 2030 | Al Capp (d. 1979) | needs to be checked | |
| Snuffy Smith | Barney Google comic strip (November 17, 1934) | United States | 2030 | Billy DeBeck (d. 1942)
Fred Lasswell (d. 2001) |
needs to be checked | |
| Mandrake the Magician | Mandrake the Magician comic strip (1934) | United States | 2030 | Lee Falk (d. 1999) | needs to be checked | |
| Little Lulu | The Saturday Evening Post cartoon (February 23, 1935) | United States | 2031 | Marjorie "Marge" Henderson Buell (d. 1993) | R304878 for the February 23, 1935 edition of The Saturday Evening Post | |
| Huey, Dewey, and Louie | Donald Duck comic strip (October 17, 1937) | United States | 2033 | First appeared in animation in Donald's Nephews (1938) | Ted Osborne (d. 1968)
Al Taliaferro (d. 1969) |
R354206 for comic
R361885 for animated short |
| The Addams Family | The New Yorker cartoon (6 August, 1938)[52] | United States | 2034 | The family members wouldn't get names until later on. Names cannot be copyrighted but legal issues could still happen due to trademarks by The Charles Addams Foundation. Only Morticia, Pugsley, Lurch, and Grandmama will be free. Lurch was originally implied to be Morticia's husband and had a beard. | Charles Addams (d. 1988) | R366101 for the August 6, 1938 edition of The New Yorker |
| Superman | Action Comics #1 (1938) | United States | 2034 | The earliest comic strips did not have their copyrights properly placed. The Paramount cartoons (1941–1943) did not have their copyrights renewed. The first incarnation of a "Superman" character created by Siegel and Shuster, Bill Dunn as seen in the written story "The Reign of the Superman", is already public domain, but has very little, if anything, in common with the Superman known today. | Jerry Siegel (d. 1996)
Joe Shuster (d. 1992) |
R362187 |
| Batman | Detective Comics #27 (1939) | United States | 2035 | Bob Kane (d. 1998)
Bill Finger (d. 1974) |
R383871 | |
| The Phantom Blot | Mickey Mouse comic strip (May 22, 1939) | United States | 2035 | Floyd Gottfredson (d. 1986)
Merrill De Maris (d. 1948) |
R390650 | |
| Robin | Detective Comics #38 (1940) | United States | 2036 | For the Dick Grayson version; later versions had separate copyrights | Bob Kane (d. 1998)
Bill Finger (d. 1974) Jerry Robinson (d. 2011) |
R415982 |
| The Joker | Batman #1 (1940) | United States | 2036 | Bob Kane (d. 1998)
Bill Finger (d. 1974) Jerry Robinson (d. 2011) |
R410635 | |
| The Spirit | "The Origin of The Spirit" (June 2, 1940) | United States | 2036 | Will Eisner (d. 2005) | needs to be checked | |
| The Flash | Flash Comics #1 (1940) | United States | 2036 | Jay Garrick version is from 1940
Later versions like Barry Allen and Wally West debuted in 1956 and 1959, respectively; West first became The Flash in 1986 before he was Kid Flash |
Gardner Fox (d. 1986)
Harry Lampert (d. 2004) |
R412577 for the 1940 comic |
| Green Lantern | All-American Comics #16 (1940) | United States | 2036 | Alan Scott is the version from 1940
Later versions like Hal Jordan and John Stewart debuted in 1959 and 1971, respectively |
Martin Nodell (d. 2006)
Bill Finger (d. 1974) |
R421919 for the 1940 comic |
| Captain America | Captain America Comics #1 (1941) | United States | 2036 | While the comic was cover dated for 1941, it was copyrighted in December, 1940 | Joe Simon (d. 2011)
Jack Kirby (d. 1994) |
R429502 |
| Wonder Woman | All Star Comics #8 (1941) | United States | 2037 | William Moulton Marston (d. 1947)
H. G. Peter (d. 1958) |
R457919 | |
| Aquaman | More Fun Comics #73 (1941) | United States | 2037 | Mort Weisinger (d. 1978)
Paul Norris (d. 2007) |
R461009 | |
| Green Arrow | More Fun Comics #73 (1941) | United States | 2037 | Mort Weisinger (d. 1978)
George Papp (d. 1989) |
R461009 | |
| Desperate Dan | The Dandy (1937) | United Kingdom | 2033 (USA) / 2040 (UK) | Dudley D. Watkins (d. 1969) | ||
| Lord Snooty | The Beano (1938) | United Kingdom | 2034 (US) / 2040 (UK) | Original incarnation, does not include Lord Snooty the Third | Dudley D. Watkins (d. 1969) | |
| Wednesday Addams | The New Yorker cartoon (26 August, 1944) | United States | 2040 | Charles Addams (d. 1988) | R511729 for the New Yorker | |
| Scrooge McDuck | Christmas on Bear Mountain (1947) | United States | 2043 | A predecessor character to Scrooge, the thrifty duck from The Spirit of '43 is already public domain as the short was commissioned by the US Government. | Carl Barks (d. 2000) | R592670[53] |
| Uncle Fester | The New Yorker cartoon (March 23, 1946)[54] | United States | 2042 | Often mistaken to have debuted in 1938, the first appearance of Uncle Fester was in a cartoon in 1946. Was also unnamed until much later. | Charles Addams (d. 1988) | needs to be checked |
| The Shmoo | Lil' Abner comic strip (August 31, 1948) | United States | 2044 | Al Capp (d. 1979) | needs to be checked | |
| Iron Man (Canadian comics) | Better Comics #1 (1941) | Canada | 2045 (Canada) / 2037 (US) | The first Canadian superhero. | Vernon Miller (d. 1974) | |
| Nelvana of the Northern Lights | Triumph-Adventure Comics #1 (1941) | Canada | 2045 (Canada) / 2037 (US) | The first Canadian national superhero. | Adrian Dingle (d. 1974) | |
| Dennis the Menace (UK) | The Beano (1951) | United Kingdom | 2047 (US) / 2073 at maximum (UK) | His US concidental counterpart is already public domain due to lack of a renewal. Gnasher was co-created by David Law and Ian Gray (d. 2007) so will become public domain in the UK in 2078. | George Moonie (d. 2002) David Law (d. 1971) Ian Chisholm (d. 1981) | |
| Tintin and Snowy | Le Petit Vingtième, strip (1929) Tintin in the Land of the Soviets, book (1930) | Belgium | 2025 (US)/2054 (Belgium/France) | The first American release of the series was by Golden Press in 1959. Thompson and Thomson and Captain Haddock will enter the US public domain by 2029 (for Cigars of the Pharaoh) and 2037 (for The Crab with the Golden Claws) | Hergé (d. 1983) | |
| Supergirl | Action Comics #252 (1959) | United States | 2055 | An earlier incarnation, known as Super-Girl, who was simply a bumbling joke character who was killed off in the end, debuted a year prior, alongside many other earlier incarnations of a gender-swapped Superman | Otto Binder (d. 1974) Al Plastino (d. 2013) | needs to be checked |
| Fantastic Four | The Fantastic Four #1 (November 1961) | United States | 2057 | Often called "Marvel's First Family", the group's success would lead to the creations of many other famous Marvel characters (including Hulk and Spider-Man, who both debuted less than a year after the FF). | Stan Lee (d. 2018)
Jack Kirby (d. 1994) |
needs to be checked |
| Astro Boy | Shonen (April 1951) | Japan | 2047 (US)/2060 (Japan) | Osamu Tezuka (d. 1989) | ||
| Kimba the White Lion | Manga Shōnen (November 1950) | Japan | 2046 (US) 2060 (Japan) | Known as Jungle Emperor Leo in Japan, Kimba name would not be used until American localisations circa 1966 | Osamu Tezuka (d. 1989) | |
| Spirou | Le Journal de Spirou #1 (April 21, 1938) | Belgium | 2034 (US)/2062 (Belgium) | Robert Velter (d. 1991) | ||
| Johan | La Dernière Heure (1947) | Belgium | 2043 (US)/2063 (Belgium) | Peyo (d. 1992) | ||
| Peewit | Spirou #845 (1954) | Belgium | 2050 (US)/2063 (Belgium) | Peyo (d. 1992) | ||
| The Smurfs | Spirou #1072 (October 1958) | Belgium | 2054 (US)/2063 (Belgium) | First appeared in the Johan and Peewit story The Smurfs and the Magic Flute | Peyo (d. 1992) |
Radio/Sound Origin
Sound recordings have different copyright lengths from other works. (Although first publication of the character like The Shadow or compositions which have the same term as other works such as Frosty the Snowman could still see them enter earlier but the recordings have longer terms.) See Ask a Librarian
| Character | First appearance | Source country | Expiration | Notes | Original author/copyright owner | Renewal (if applicable) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Shadow | Detective Story Hour (July 31, 1930) | United States | 2026 or 2031 | First appeared on radio as a storyteller with a creepy voice and laugh, later became a full-fledged character in pulp fiction. It is currently unknown for us if the original radio appearances are still copyrighted, or whether they are covered under copyright rules for written scripts or sound recordings. We have the same queries regarding Lone Ranger and Green Hornet. | Walter B. Gibson (d. 1985) | needs to be checked |
| Frosty the Snowman | "Frosty the Snowman" (1950) | United States | 2046 (for the composition and the character), 2061 (for the recording) | Often mistaken for being public domain | Walter E. "Jack" Rollins (d. 1973) Steve Nelson (d. 1981) | needs to be checked |
| Gerald McBoing-Boing | Gerald McBoing-Boing, children's record (1950) | United States | 2061 | "Dr. Seuss" (d. 1991) | RE0000047396 | |
| Alvin and the Chipmunks | "The Chipmunk Song (Christmas Don't Be Late)" (1958) | United States |
|
Ross Bagdasarian (d. 1972) | RE0000315031 for the composition
The original recording is copyrighted until February 15, 2067 under the CLASSICS ACT |
Other Origins
| Character | First appearance | Source country | Expiration | Notes | Original author/copyright owner | Renewal (if applicable) | Medium |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Humpty Dumpty | (oral tradition) Earliest printing of the rhyme was as sheet music in Samuel Arnold's Juvenile Amusements (1797) | United Kingdom | The original nursery rhyme was always public domain due to old age and of oral tradition. While his iconic depiction in Through the Looking-Glass expired in 1913 (UK) and never had US copyright as well as popularize the egg-like appearance of Humpty Dumpty, the character was first illustrated as a egg as early as James William Elliot's National Nursery Rhymes and Nursery Songs (1870) or much earlier. | Folk song | |||
| Bibendum | Nunc est bibendum!!.. (1894) | France | 2022 (France) | Be cautious of trademarks, as this is an active advertising character. | O'Galop (d. 1946) | Poster | |
| Mr. Potato Head | Mr. Potato Head toy (1952) | United States | 1980 | Be cautious of trademarks, as this is an active product character. Originally depicted with a human body and was made with a real organic potato. Don Rickles' portrayal from Toy Story will likely remain under copyright until 2091. | George Lerner (d. 1995) | Toy | |
| The Golden Bat | Black Bat (1930) | Japan | 1930 (Japan and United States) | Kamishibai is not considered copyrightable in Japan and Golden Bat has became copyright-free there as well as copyright-free in the US too due to being a work already being in the public domain in it's home country before the Berne Convention [55]. Various manga and anime featuring him are still copyrighted. | Takeo Nagamatsu (d. 1961) | Kamishibai (paper theatre) | |
| Baby Shark | Baby Shark (20th century) | Unknown | Often mistakenly believed to have originated with Pinkfong in the 2010s | Unknown | Folk song | ||
| MissingNo. | Pocket Monsters Red and Pocket Monsters Green (1996) Pokémon Red Version and Pokémon Blue Version (1998, L-shape) | Japan America (L-shape) | 2023 | Simply a jumbled mess of glitched sprites that cannot be discerned, so legally computer-generated - has notably been used in the Cartoon Network series We Bare Bears without issue. Wider game is under copyright with famously strict protection. However, while the sprite itself is public domain and the name is too generic to copyright, the ways in which MissingNo. effects the game (such as its duplication ability and movelist) are ambigious. Ghost and fossil forms remain under copyright, being human-drawn artwork the glitch happens to utilise. | Pokémon game code (legally AI) | Video game | |
| Boyfriend and Girlfriend | Friday Night Funkin' (upcoming, first beta released in 2020) | Canada | Not public domain - instead (formerly) licensed under a commercial free-use license. Early versions of the game were released under the Apache license - following a string of low-quality unlicensed for-profit merchandise and games, the license was changed to only apply to game code and not characters, however, it seems to not actually be possible to revoke an Apache license. FNF incorporates crossover characters, who are not under free-use, heavily and any characters introduced in 2023 or later will not be open-source. | ninjamuffin99 (still living) | Video game | ||
| Barbie | 1959 | United States | 2055 | Ruth Handler (d. 2002) | needs to be checked | Toy | |
| Martians | Mars Attacks (1962) | United States | 2058 | Inspired by the aliens on the cover of Weird Science #16 (1951) | Len Brown (still living) | needs to be checked | Trading cards |
| Mario, Donkey Kong, and Pauline | Donkey Kong (1981) | Japan | Unknown (Japan) 2077 (US) | Provided as an example of when video games with recognisable characters will start becoming public domain. Miyamoto was not initially credited for Donkey Kong, therefore it could possibly be attributed as a creation of Nintendo and enter public domain in Japan 70 years from publication, in 2052. Contrary to popular belief, Mario possessed the name Mario as far back as 1981, however Pauline would only gain her name a year later in a coloring book, being known as "Lady" prior. | Shigeru Miyamoto (still living) | Too recent for renewal | Video game |
See also
References
- ↑ https://web.archive.org/web/20100209223845/http://www.michaelbarrier.com/Essays/DumboRollABook/DumboRollABook.html
- ↑ https://archive.org/details/catalogofcopyrig361lib/page/410/mode/2up?q=dumbo
- ↑ https://digitalcollections.syr.edu/Documents/Detail/dumbo-the-flying-elephant-roll-a-book-galleys/22325?item=22326
- ↑ The Black Seas of Copyright
- ↑ S. T. Joshi (1996). H. P. Lovecraft: A Life
- ↑ https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/17287790/conan-doyle-estate-ltd-v-springer/
- ↑ https://www.theguardian.com/books/2020/dec/22/lawsuit-copyright-warmer-sherlock-holmes-dismissed-enola-holmes
- ↑ https://www.reddit.com/r/publicdomain/comments/14mied7/is_robot_monster_1953_public_domain/
- ↑ https://cocatalog.loc.gov/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?ti=76,0&Search%5FArg=Felix%20the%20cat&Search%5FCode=TALL&CNT=25&REC=0&RD=0&RC=0&PID=Lsq1efGIUuq3WFIEmIGVfQ5YmyKi&SEQ=20250326212736&SID=59
- ↑ Donald Duck Arrived in Print Three Years Earlier Than His On-Screen Appearance. D23 (June 21, 2013).
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 https://web.archive.org/web/20091027095729/http://geocities.com/cash_gorman/copyright1.html
- 1 2 3 4 https://community.cbr.com/threads/the-public-domain-status-of-the-charlton-characters-and-more.159754/
- 1 2 https://www.reddit.com/r/publicdomain/comments/12xls81/charlton_comics_pd_proof/
- ↑ https://mashable.com/article/public-domain-day-2025
- ↑ https://www.npr.org/2024/12/26/nx-s1-5231543/copyright-public-domain-2025-cartoon-popeye-tintin-faulkner-hemingway
- ↑ https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/happy-public-domain-day-popeye-rhapsody-in-blue-the-sound-and-the-fury-and-thousands-of-other-captivating-creations-are-finally-free-for-everyone-to-use-180985744/
- ↑ https://web.law.duke.edu/cspd/publicdomainday/2025/
- ↑ https://onlinebooks.library.upenn.edu/cce/1960r.html
- ↑ https://onlinebooks.library.upenn.edu/cce/1962r.html
- ↑ https://onlinebooks.library.upenn.edu/cce/1965r.html
- ↑ https://onlinebooks.library.upenn.edu/cce/1966r.html
- ↑ https://onlinebooks.library.upenn.edu/cce/1958r.html
- ↑ https://onlinebooks.library.upenn.edu/cce/1959r.html
- ↑ https://onlinebooks.library.upenn.edu/cce/1959r.html
- ↑ https://onlinebooks.library.upenn.edu/cce/1960r.html
- ↑ https://www.google.com/books/edition/Catalog_of_Copyright_Entries_Third_Serie/5hwhAQAAIAAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&bsq=Mickey
- ↑ https://books.google.com/books?id=MR4hAQAAIAAJ&q=Dick+tracy#v=onepage&q=Dick%20tracy&f=false
- ↑ https://books.google.com/books?id=ZB0hAQAAIAAJ&printsec=frontcover#v=onepage&q=Dick%20tracy&f=false
- ↑ https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/11821.html.images
- ↑ https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/11822.html.images
- ↑ https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/11823.html.images
- ↑ https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/11824.html.images
- ↑ https://chart.copyrightdata.com/c06A.html
- ↑ https://copyrightsociety.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/cpy_69-3-Examining-Copyright.pdf
- ↑ https://www.comics.org/series/84550/
- ↑ https://thephantom.fan/collectibles/king-features-syndicate-distribution-book/
- ↑ https://www.reddit.com/r/publicdomain/comments/1jpmzfd/guide_how_to_search_for_renewals_on_syndicated/
- ↑ Catalog of Copyright Entries, Third Series. Part 2: Periodicals Jan-Dec 1964: Vol 18
- ↑ Catalog of Copyright Entries, Third Series. Part 2: Periodicals Jan-Dec 1965: Vol 19
- ↑ https://www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/11856/pg11856-images.html
- ↑ https://cocatalog.loc.gov/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?PostSearchSortBy1=PUB_DATE&HID=7446608&HID=14405235&HID=31032247&HID=37310683&HID=5113469&HID=3358446&HID=2411094&HID=1245157&HID=20061919&HID=19944015&HID=20061918&HID=19944014&HID=7568472&HID=7168289&HID=7168308&HID=7169581&HID=7204137&HID=7204109&HID=7204141&HID=7204170&HID=7204180&HID=7204182&HID=7250877&HID=7250878&HID=7252290&PostSearchSortBy2=NULL&Search_Arg=Beetle+Bailey&Search_Code=TALL&ti=1%2C0&CNT=25&PID=jvJSwF4zuFG-gMkHbF4x8xWRsJV&SEQ=20250515090128&REC=0&RD=0&RC=0&MAILADDY=&EMAILADDRESS=None&LIMITBUTTON=0
- ↑ https://cocatalog.loc.gov/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?PostSearchSortBy1=PUB_DATE&HID=36839893&HID=37530939&HID=37104384&HID=36839891&HID=37530937&HID=37104382&HID=37414801&HID=37414919&HID=37414973&HID=37415073&HID=36107156&HID=36839892&HID=37530938&HID=37104383&HID=34831209&HID=35068112&HID=35068113&HID=35068114&HID=35068115&HID=35068116&HID=35068117&HID=35068118&HID=35068119&HID=35068120&HID=35068121&PostSearchSortBy2=PUB_DATE_DESC&Search_Arg=Dennis+the+menace&Search_Code=TALL&ti=1%2C0&CNT=25&PID=X7k9D1REwonOu80EwSzwTUL0EZXM1&SEQ=20250327062221&REC=0&RD=0&RC=0&MAILADDY=&EMAILADDRESS=None&LIMITBUTTON=0/
- ↑ https://cocatalog.loc.gov/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?PostSearchSortBy1=NULL&HID=12753528&HID=30477026&HID=27449127&HID=27180452&HID=24568973&HID=25743736&HID=25895172&HID=25576662&HID=23575050&HID=23617444&HID=24697080&HID=24285849&HID=24285848&HID=22962549&HID=23506042&HID=5654499&HID=5654555&HID=18460519&HID=5113424&HID=18656375&HID=57712&HID=7712040&HID=875027&HID=875628&HID=12900694&PostSearchSortBy2=PUB_DATE&Search_Arg=Marmaduke&Search_Code=TALL&ti=1%2C0&CNT=25&PID=ZyV7kNTO-NUovDw49eAFElgWOwDx681&SEQ=20250509144111&REC=0&RD=0&RC=0&MAILADDY=&EMAILADDRESS=None&LIMITBUTTON=0/
- ↑ https://cocatalog.loc.gov/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?ti=76,0&Search%5FArg=strange%20tales&Search%5FCode=TALL&CNT=25&REC=0&RD=0&RC=0&PID=2pQzauLr6OZwhbb3OQtTIHsNm-&SEQ=20250423095723&SID=1/
- ↑ https://www.deviantart.com/amanacer-fiend0/art/PD-Showcase-PD-Marvel-Comics-from-1951-to-1963-966904542
- ↑ https://cocatalog.loc.gov/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?PostSearchSortBy1=PUB_DATE&HID=27207813&HID=4971907&HID=20254084&HID=20254083&HID=20254082&HID=20254081&HID=20254080&HID=924794&HID=20254079&HID=157936&HID=20574256&HID=20574255&HID=20574254&HID=20574253&HID=7189064&HID=7189065&HID=7189066&HID=7189067&HID=7189068&HID=7189062&HID=7189063&HID=7189069&HID=7189070&HID=7249893&HID=7249895&PostSearchSortBy2=NULL&Search_Arg=little+dot&Search_Code=TALL&ti=1%2C0&CNT=25&PID=5tRufDwFyp0vUVViSEsewoFkizB&SEQ=20250515090418&REC=0&RD=0&RC=0&MAILADDY=&EMAILADDRESS=None&LIMITBUTTON=0
- ↑ https://cocatalog.loc.gov/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?PostSearchSortBy1=PUB_DATE&HID=4913260&HID=4913781&HID=2978122&HID=4913782&HID=4913261&HID=2978123&HID=4913886&HID=4913774&HID=2978115&HID=4913253&HID=31099231&HID=12906361&HID=28289501&HID=32303950&HID=6753702&HID=6734720&HID=20354461&HID=20354460&HID=20354459&HID=19100902&HID=19101132&HID=19100898&HID=20354458&HID=20354457&HID=20594983&PostSearchSortBy2=NULL&Search_Arg=Casper+the+Friendly+Ghost&Search_Code=TALL&ti=1%2C0&CNT=25&PID=1W0nHYirpBIDgzn_b1Fk5tRp7rl&SEQ=20250515090714&REC=0&RD=0&RC=0&MAILADDY=&EMAILADDRESS=None&LIMITBUTTON=0
- ↑ https://peanuts.fandom.com/wiki/Li%27l_Folks,_June_1947_comic_strips
- ↑ https://marcsleen.be/en/termsandconditions/
- ↑ https://comicsarcheology.com/index.php/2023/11/09/marvel-comics-1-namor/
- ↑ http://www.cerebusfangirl.com/artists/0304talk.php
- ↑ https://www.lambiek.net/artists/a/addams_charles.htm
- ↑ https://www.google.com/books/edition/Catalog_of_Copyright_Entries_Third_Serie/jkchAQAAIAAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1
- ↑ https://www.ebay.com/itm/116553444373
- ↑ https://publicdomainsherpa.com/copyright-restoration.html