Question on old magizines!

[Guest imported_Debby]

I recived about 20-30 old magizines. They are Mechanix Illustrated, Popular Mechanics and Popular Science. All in the 1950 a few in 1940. How can I find out if I can take articles from these. I would like to add some of them, they are really great reading. I would like to get permission to add them but how do I find out where to ask?

This is my first time with this.

Thanks

[R W Burgess]

Debby, Let me see if I can get Judy Edwards to answer this. She uses old post cards and such all the time. Wayne

[John N. Packard]

Debby,

There should be a contact at the magazine publishers to obtain permission to use the articles. What I do is write a review of the article and abstract only a few points verbatim. That way there is no copyright infringement.

jnp

[24T42]

Debby,

The issue of copyright is complicated and serious.

I personally avoid the whole problem by mainly using materials published before 1923, which are considered in the public domain (see chart below). This works well for our Region as we have restricted our focus to cars manufactured on/before 1931. It is, therefore, not hard to find information that will appeal to the total membership and still be available for publication. I realize this approach will not work for most AACA regions and chapters.

========================

<span style="font-weight: bold">Publishing Date - Term of Copyright - Notes</span>

Works published before 1923 - Are now in the public domain.

Works published between 1923 and 1963 - Are now in the public domain. - If the term was renewed, they are not public domain.

Works published between 1923 and 1963 and published with a copyright notice - Are protected 95 years from the date of first publication. - The work has been timely renewed.

Works published between 1964 and 1977 - Are protected 95 years from the date of publication - Renewal term is automatic.

.

.

.

=========================

John approach is also a good way to avoid copyright issues. But sometimes you just want to publish the whole article. In that case, you have no option but to get permission to reprint the requested material. If you haven?t done so yet, you might want to read Appendix A of the AACA newsletter editor manual (available on-line at http://www.aaca.org/Restricted/Editors/Newsletter.htm). This whole section is about copyright and offers good advice on how to obtain permission.

I believe the magazines you mentioned are still being published so getting permission should not be that hard. Only you can decide if the article is worth your time and energy in getting the necessary permissions to reprint it.

Hope that helps!

[JanK]

The intellectual property attorney I work with said that I should use 95 years or older as a good rule of thumb. Through AACA I had heard 75, but some materials have had their copyright coverage extended, because of changes in the copyright law.

If you do decide to obtain permission to reprint, be sure to get it in writing. In my day job as a corporate librarian I had to do this quite often. It can be as simple as a statement on their letterhead faxed or mailed to your attention. When you make the contact, make sure you tell them it is for reprint in a newsletter for a non-profit organization with a circulation of XX. ("Non-profit" and small distribution may make them more agreeable.) Most of the time you'll be able to reprint for free, with an appropriate reprint statement. Occasionally you'll be asked to pay a fee, which may or may not be nominal. In that case, you can always "review" the article and include a citation.

Bear in mind that many times the magazine doesn't own the reprint rights, the author does. (That can be true when the author is not a staff writer.) In that case you'll need to contact the author instead. That can be trickier to do, especially for older publications.

Jan K.

Wis Region