Cartoon Drawings

Rights and Restrictions Information

Prints and Photographs Division, Library of Congress, Washington, D.C., 20540-4730

The Cartoon Drawings collection (CD1) contains original drawings for cartoons, spanning the late 1700s to the present, by hundreds of cartoonists. Patrons wishing to publish or otherwise distribute items from this collection must conduct item-specific assessments of the rights which may be associated with the specific pieces. All information documented by P&P staff regarding publication and/or copyright claimants has been recorded in the catalog record. When the Library is aware of restriction information on a specific artist, it is available under the artist's name.

Access: Permitted; subject to P&P policy on serving originals.

Reproduction (photocopying, hand-held camera copying, photoduplication and other forms of copying allowed by "fair use"): Permitted; subject to P&P policy on copying. This policy prohibits xeroxing of original drawings.

Publication and other forms of distribution: Works published works before 1923 are now in the public domain. Published works copyrighted 1923 through 1977 that are still in their original term of copyright or whose copyright was renewed are protected for 95 years from the copyright date. (Copyrights registered up until Dec. 31, 1963 expired after 28 years, unless the copyright was renewed. The only way to determine whether items published from 1924 through 1963 are still in a renewal term of copyright is to do a copyright search and establish that the item was copyrights and that the copyright was renewed.) Unpublished works created but not registered for copyright before January 1, 1978 may be protected by copyright law until the year 2002 or the life of the author/creator/copyright holder plus 70 years, whichever is longer. Unpublished works registered for copyright before 1923 are now in the public domain. Works created after Jan. 1, 1978 are protected for the author/creator/copyright holders' life plus 70 years. All information documented by P&P staff regarding publication and/or copyright claimants has been recorded in the catalog record When restriction information on a specific artist is known, it is available under the artist's name.

Credit Line: Library of Congress, Prints & Photographs Division, [reproduction number, e.g., LC- USZ62-90145]

For more information, please read: Copyright and Other Restrictions: ... Sources for Information

Prepared by: Prints and Photographs Division staff. Last revised: December 1, 1999.