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Katharine hepburn woman of the year
Summary
Publicity still of Katharine Hepburn in the 1942 film Woman of the Year.
Such images were taken on set during filming, or as part of an organized photo-shoot, by a studio photographer. They were then disseminated to the media and the public to promote the film. (see Film still)
This is definitely a publicity still as the quality is too high (for comparison, see this screenshot from the same scene) and a stock code can be seen in the left hand corner.
Public domain explanation
Despite the presence of a stock code, this photograph does not contain the copyright symbol ©, the word "Copyright", or the abbreviation "Copr.", as then required for copyright.
By publishing a photograph without such a notice, under the terms of the 1909 Copyright Act (which was law until 1978) the image went into the public domain.
If there is any chance that the photograph was copyrighted, under the terms of the 1909 Copyright Act it would have had to be renewed 28 years after publication. A search for copyright renewal records of 1970 ([1],[2]) reveal no trace that this occurred.
Film industry author Gerald Mast has written:
"According to the old copyright act, such production stills were not automatically copyrighted as part of the film and required separate copyrights as photographic stills ... Most studios have never bothered to copyright these stills because they were happy to see them pass into the public domain, to be used by as many people in as many publications as possible." (Film Study and the Copyright Law (1989) p. 87.)
Katharine Hepburn (12 May 1907 - 29 June 2003) was an iconic American actress known for her fierce independence, distinctive voice and a career that spanned six decades. Born in Hartford, Connecticut, she came from a wealthy family and left Bryn Mawr College to pursue acting. Hepburn attracted attention with her performance in the Broadway play "The Warrior's Husband" (1932) and made her film debut in "A Bill of Divorcement" (1932). She won four Academy Awards for Best Actress, a record she still holds, for her roles in Morning Glory (1933), On Golden Pond (1981), The Lion in Winter (1968) and Guess Who's Coming to Dinner (1967). Known for her strong-willed and independent personality, Hepburn often played such characters in her films, challenging traditional gender roles. She had a remarkable on-screen partnership with Spencer Tracy, with whom she appeared in nine films. Despite setbacks in the mid-1930s, she made a triumphant comeback with The Philadelphia Story (1940), which she also co-produced. Her career spanned from the early 1930s to the 1990s, making her one of the few actresses to successfully transition from the Golden Age of Hollywood to later eras. Katharine Hepburn died on 29 June 2003 at the age of 96, leaving behind a rich legacy in the world of entertainment.
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