This was such an interesting lecture for a topic that can be stereotyped as “boring”. I really enjoyed it and there were so many things that I found mind blowing. I have never had to have something copyrighted but I have seen others do it for their personal businesses so I do understand the basics and process.
The Happy Birthday song is known worldwide and is habit to sing on a birthday when someone is bringing out the cake. Personally, I hate when people sing it, especially on my birthday, which is why my family no longer does it when I turn a year older. One article I found really intriguing was “Surprise! You may soon….without being sued”. The article discusses that the tune was made by two men by the names of Warner and Chappell and how a lawsuit was put into play and it may be able to be used in films (won’t summarize an article we both read). This made me think back to any TV episodes or movies about birthdays and remember if they sang a song. This brings me to a FRIENDS episode where Rachel is turning 30 and Joey starts singing “Happy Bir-” and they get caught off by another character. It is played off but I am wondering if the reason Joey did not sing it all is because the show could have been sued. Guess it is best that I make my family not sing it to me on my birthday!
I also enjoyed how we discussed how Disney renews the Mickey Mouse copyright occasionally for a period of years, as well as the ears symbol. My classmate also informed me that anyone could also technically make a very similar version of a Disney story as long as a few details are different, basically a parody. This also got me thinking about another example that I have seen in real life. When I was in middle school, there was a series called “Twilight” about vampires, etc. it was taking over! I remember walking through Target one day and looking at a book that was similar but also different. But the covers and aesthetic were almost identical. It was called “Nightlight” and they changed the name of the main characters.
I think it is important to copyright certain things but maybe not everything? I’m just saying that because I don’t want to be sued for singing happy birthday. But if I were to create something, I would not someone using it as they please without getting any credit. It’s a tricky subject and there are so many rules to it that people do not know about.