Motion Pictures, 1950-1959

Motion Pictures, 1950-1959, is a cumulative catalog listing works registered in the Copyright Office in Classes L and M from January 1, 1950, through December 31, 1959. The series of cumulative catalogs began in 1951 with Motion Pictures, 1912-1939, and continued with Motion Pictures, 1940-1949, published in 1953. A third volume, Motion Pictures, 1894-1912, was published also in 1953 (though not as a part of the series); it lists works copyrighted prior to 1912 which were identified as motion pictures by Howard Lamarr Walls. These four volumes, together with the current issues of the Catalog of Copyright Entries, Third Series, Parts 12-13, Motion Pictures and Filmstrips, comprise an unbroken record of the copyright registration of motion pictures and, also, an extensive although not complete record of motion picture production in the United States through the entire history of the industry.

The information given in the entries for the period 1950-1959 is that which was recorded in catalog entries made at the time of registration. These entries recorded information taken from the original applications for the registration of the copyright claims, from descriptive material deposited with the applications and films at the time of registration, and from the films themselves. Slight changes in format of the entries have been made in some cases for the sake of overall consistency with present practices; these do not affect the essential facts presented. Entries for filmstrips registered in Class J have been omitted from the cumulative catalogs.

Each entry contains information which describes the film and identifies the copyright claimant, the date of the beginning of the copyright term, and the copyright registration number.

The entries for unpublished works contain the date or dates of deposit in the Copyright Office of the title, description, and required prints. The entries for published works contain date of publication as given in the application for registration. Deposit of published copies has in every case been made.

The name of the claimant is that given in the application. Information relating to renewal copyrights or to subsequent changes of ownership recorded in the Copyright Office can be ascertained upon request and upon payment to the Register of Copyrights of the fee specified in the law for the conduct of a search of the records. In addition, information relating to renewal copyrights can be secured by referring to issues of the Catalog of Copyright Entries covering renewal registrations for the particular class of work during the renewal period.

The publication of the Catalog of Copyright Entries is authorized by sections 210 and 211 of Title 17 of the United States Code. Section 210 provides in part: “The current catalog of copyright entries and the index volumes herein provided for shall be admitted in any court as prima facie evidence of the facts stated therein as regards any copyright registration.”

The purpose of the cumulative catalogs is threefold: 1) to meet the administrative needs of the Copyright Office; 2) to provide compact index volumes to the legal profession, publishers, authors, and others interested in copyright; and 3) to make available, for other research uses, the information on record in the Copyright Office, much of which is not available elsewhere.