Betty Boop Left Doggedly Waiting for Public Domain Freedom Since 1930
KEY POINTS
- •Copyrighted works from 1930, including Betty Boop's first anthropomorphic dog form, enter public domain in 2026.
- •A 1928 hit song, 'Button Up Your Overcoat,' just became free to use after long copyright constraints.
- •Sound recordings remain under copyright, leaving some vintage music still trapped despite the public domain advance.
This year marks an epic copyright liberation party as works created in 1930, like Betty Boop—yes, the anthropomorphic dog version from 'Dizzy Dishes'—finally date themselves out of digital jail. Our confused author friend wistfully remembers wanting to use 'Button Up Your Overcoat,' a 1928 song held hostage by copyright until just two years ago. Meanwhile, Fleischer Studios' iconic dog-faced diva has been twirling in copyright limbo for nearly a century. Just imagine the joyous filing cabinets of lawyers finally collecting dust, as Nancy Drew, Pluto, and hundreds of vintage works join the 21st-century free-for-all, except those pesky sound recordings, which still hold their sinister grip.
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Betty Boop was a dog in 1930 and had to wait 96 years just to legalize her dance moves. Copyright law: the ultimate slow clap.
If you thought waiting for your favorite song to leave copyright was slow, Betty Boop’s been stuck as a cartoon dog since 1930—that’s commitment to being legally unavailable.
Public domain comes so late even Betty Boop aged from dog to flapper while lawyers hoarded rights like they were vintage comic books.
Source: Theverge | Published: 1/1/2026 | Author: Barbara Krasnoff
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