the.com/sonny bono act
the law that keeps mickey mouse out of the public domain for another twenty years, again.
means a 1998 US law extending copyright terms to life plus 70 years (or 95 years for corporate works), so nothing new entered the public domain in America until 2019.
from named after congressman and former sonny-and-cher singer sonny bono, who died in a skiing accident in 1998 before the bill passed; disney lobbied hard since mickey mouse's original copyright was about to expire, earning it the nickname the mickey mouse protection act.
official namecopyright term extension act of 1998
nicknamemickey mouse protection act, coined by critics
freeze lengthblocked public domain entries for 20 years straight
vote marginpassed unanimously by voice vote in senate
for instance
steamboat willie — finally entered public domain january 1, 2024
the great gatsby — delayed from 1991 entry to 2021 under the act
winnie the pooh — 1926 original text freed only in 2022