Question:
…a melody which, you say, was first published in 1893. How could it possibly still be copyrighted? Doesn’t copyright run from the day of creation of the work? The copyright begins on the date of the copyright!
Don, at present, I believe, the copyright runs from the day of creation of the work. You can register a copyright on the same day that you sue for copyright infringement. Copyright law changed in the ’70’s, so perhaps ‘Happy Birthday’ displays an odd interplay between the old and the new. Qualem blennum!
— Huldah Dixit. Credo. Sufficit. http://www.thriceholy.org Tired of twiddling your thumbs waiting for graphics to load? Download the Thrice Holy archive!: http://psouth.net/~bigfoot/Trisagion.zip
Response:
…a melody which, you say, was first published in 1893. How could it possibly still be copyrighted? Doesn’t copyright run from the day of creation of the work? The copyright begins on the date of the copyright! Don, at present, I believe, the copyright runs from the day of creation of the work. You can register a copyright on the same day that you sue for copyright infringement. Copyright law changed in the ’70’s, so perhaps ‘Happy Birthday’ displays an odd interplay between the old and the new.
Works created after 1/1/1978 - life of the longest surviving author plus 70 years Works registered before 1/1/1978 - 95 years FROM THE DATE COPYRIGHT WAS SECURED. Works registered before 1/1/1923 – Copyright protection for 75 years has expired and these works are in the public domain. The Sonny Bono Copyright Term Extension Act was signed into law on October 27, 1998. Prior to the Sonny Bono 20 year copyright term extension, copyright protection for works registered before 1/1/1978 was 75 years; therefore, compositions registered in 1922 or earlier entered the public domain on 1/1/1998. The 1998 copyright extension did not extend copyright protection from 75 to 95 years for songs already in the public domain so . . . The Good News – works published in the United States in 1922 or earlier are in the public domain even if they are not yet 95 years old. The Bad News – no new works will enter the public domain until January 1, 2019. D* These comments are meant to offend everyone equally. If, for some reason you are not offended, please write me with a description of yourself including your name, race, weight, religious views, political party, strong opinions, physical disabilities and anything else that you are
Response:
Very informative! Thanks for the education, Don.
– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – …a melody which, you say, was first published in 1893. How could it possibly still be copyrighted? Doesn’t copyright run from the day of creation of the work? The copyright begins on the date of the copyright! Don, at present, I believe, the copyright runs from the day of creation of the work. You can register a copyright on the same day that you sue for copyright infringement. Copyright law changed in the ’70’s, so perhaps ‘Happy Birthday’ displays an odd interplay between the old and the new. Works created after 1/1/1978 - life of the longest surviving author plus 70 years Works registered before 1/1/1978 - 95 years FROM THE DATE COPYRIGHT WAS SECURED. Works registered before 1/1/1923 – Copyright protection for 75 years has expired and these works are in the public domain. The Sonny Bono Copyright Term Extension Act was signed into law on October 27, 1998. Prior to the Sonny Bono 20 year copyright term extension, copyright protection for works registered before 1/1/1978 was 75 years; therefore, compositions registered in 1922 or earlier entered the public domain on 1/1/1998. The 1998 copyright extension did not extend copyright protection from 75 to 95 years for songs already in the public domain so . . . The Good News – works published in the United States in 1922 or earlier are in the public domain even if they are not yet 95 years old. The Bad News – no new works will enter the public domain until January 1, 2019. D* These comments are meant to offend everyone equally. If, for some reason
you are not offended, please write me with a description of yourself including your name, race, weight, religious views, political
party, strong opinions, physical disabilities and anything else that you are touchy about, and I will try to offend you in a future comment. Complaints
Response:
…a melody which, you say, was first published in 1893. How could it possibly still be copyrighted? Doesn’t copyright run from the day of creation of the work?
The copyright begins on the date of the copyright! D* Qualem blennum!
Response:
Hi Everyone, I got an idea… Recently I noticed that the people in the restaurants no longer sing Happy Birthday to people. Instead they sort of yell out a cheer. When I asked why they did that, someone told me that the Happy Birthday song had a copyright on it and that restaurants could not sing it without paying a royalty.
That is as silly as it gets. John W – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text -I don’t know whether that is true or not, but I felt people should be able to sing a blessing to each other on birthdays or aniversaries without having to pay a royalty to someone else, so I wrote this simple song. If I own the copyright I can just give it away and tell everyone who wants to use it to use it for free. I don’t know whether it’s good or not. It’s probably a little sappy, but I wanted it to be good for children and old folks and everyone in-between, too, as well as short and easy to play, sing, and remember. Here’s the URL for it: http://www.danieljdick.com/html/song.html Dan Amazing love how can it be that You my King would die for me?
In Christ, John W "Do not run to ‘finish’ the race; run to win." Paul the Apostle, 1st C. AD
Response:
We have a similar problem in Australia It appears that the music to Waltzing Matilda is still under American copyright So when you hear the strains of it sung by Aussie voices it might just be some of us telling the Bush Administration where to go "Alliance of the Willing" be F—-d (is Texas orl like this?)
Response:
We have a similar problem in Australia It appears that the music to Waltzing Matilda is still under American copyright So when you hear the strains of it sung by Aussie voices it might just be some of us telling the Bush Administration where to go
Hopefully it’s a tune that we can adapt to words to return the sentiment should Australia ever be attacked by terrorists. Maybe it’s time that we stopped asking the world’s permission to defend ourselves (and maybe tell the Israelis to do the same) and then we can also stop coming to the rescue of the ingrates of this world too! In Christ, Mike Bugal Heartland Chapel Ministries http://www.heartlandchapel.org/
Response:
- Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – Hi Everyone, I got an idea… Me too. Do you homework. Recently I noticed that the people in the restaurants no longer sing Happy Birthday to people. Instead they sort of yell out a cheer. When I asked why they did that, someone told me that the Happy Birthday song had a copyright on it and that restaurants could not sing it without paying a royalty. They half-way lied. I guess they didn’t do their homework either. Two sisters, Mildred Hill, a teacher at the Louisville, Kentucky Experimental Kindergarten, and Dr. Patty Hill, the principal of the same school, together wrote a song for the children, entitled "Good Morning to All." When Mildred combined her musical talents, as the resident expert on spiritual songs, and as the organist for her church, with her sister’s expertise in the area of Kindergarten Education, "Good Morning to All" was sure to be a success. The sisters published the song in a collection entitled "Song Stories of the Kindergarten" in 1893. Thirty-one years later, after Dr. Patty Hill became the head of the Department of Kindergarten Education at Columbia University’s Teacher College, a gentleman by the name of Robert H. Coleman published the song, without the sisters’ permission. To add insult to injury, he added a second verse, the familiar "Happy Birthday to You." Mr. Coleman’s addition of the second verse popularized the song and, eventually, the sisters’ original first verse disappeared. "Happy Birthday to You," the one and only birthday song, had altogether replaced the sisters’ original title, "Good Morning to All." After Mildred died in 1916, Patty, together with a third sister named Jessica, sprang into action and took Mr. Coleman to court. In court, they proved that they, indeed, owned the melody.
…a melody which, you say, was first published in 1893. How could it possibly still be copyrighted? Because the family legally owns the song, it is entitled to royalties from it, whenever it is sung for commercial purposes. Happy Birthday to You was copyrighted in 1935 and renewed in 1963. The song was apparently written in 1893, but first copyrighted in 1935 after a lawsuit (reported in the New York Times of August 15, 1934, p.19 col. 6)
Doesn’t copyright run from the day of creation of the work? – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – In 1988, Birch Tree Group, Ltd. sold the rights of the song to Warner Communications (along with all other assets) for an estimated $25 million (considerably more than a song). (reported in Time, Jan 2, 1989 v133 n1 p88(1) In the 80s, the song Happy Birthday to You was believed to generate about $1 million in royalties annually. With Auld Lang Syne and For He’s a Jolly Good Fellow, it is among the three most popular songs in the English language. (reported in Time, Jan 2, 1989 v133 n1 p88(1) Happy Birthday to You continues to bring in approximately 2 million dollars in licensing revenue each year, at least as of 1996 accounting, according to Warner Chappell and a Forbes magazine article. At this point, it is not a public domain folk tune, like Jingle Bells. D* Qualem blennum!
— Huldah Dixit. Credo. Sufficit. http://www.thriceholy.org Tired of twiddling your thumbs waiting for graphics to load? Download the Thrice Holy archive!: http://psouth.net/~bigfoot/Trisagion.zip
Response:
Thank you! I like her voice, too, but I’m her dad, so I tend to be prejudiced a little 
Dan – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – Hi Everyone, I got an idea… Recently I noticed that the people in the restaurants no longer sing Happy Birthday to people. Instead they sort of yell out a cheer. When I asked why they did that, someone told me that the Happy Birthday song had a copyright on it and that restaurants could not sing it without paying a royalty. I don’t know whether that is true or not, but I felt people should be able to sing a blessing to each other on birthdays or aniversaries without having to pay a royalty to someone else, so I wrote this simple song. If I own the copyright I can just give it away and tell everyone who wants to use it to use it for free. I don’t know whether it’s good or not. It’s probably a little sappy, but I wanted it to be good for children and old folks and everyone in-between, too, as well as short and easy to play, sing, and remember. Here’s the URL for it: http://www.danieljdick.com/html/song.html Dan Amazing love how can it be that You my King would die for me? — Amazing love how can it be that You my King would die for me? Well done Daniel! Your daughter has a most lovely voice! — Sincerely, Ben mitts From The Word of God; And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up; that whoever believes may in Him have eternal life." Similarly, "God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish, but Have have eternal life." Another: "God did not send the Son into the world to judge the world, but that the world should be saved through Him." He spoke elsewhere: "I am the resurrection and the life; he who believes in Me Me shall live even if he dies, and everyone who lives and believes in Me shall never die. Believe you this?"
Response:
Don, Thanks for your advice. I’ll look into getting it copyrighted correctly so I can maintain the right to keep it free if that’s what’s needed. Since it’s on the usenet with a date, it would be pretty hard for someone to come up with evidence they wrote the song instead of me prior to that date. I guess my only worry is that someone will try to charge someone else for the right to use it. I really want it to be free. Dan – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – Their song or mine? Anyway, Don, I’m glad you shared that bit of history. I’m not sure what the half-way lie is, and frankly I have doubts there is such a thing. Every lie is a full blown lie and every lie is supported by truth. The problem here is not that there is a lie but that there is a lack of information. Apparently there was a copyright as I was told and whether it is by misunderstanding or not, it is apparently the reason many are afraid to sing Happy Birthday in the restaurants. That is what I meant by half truth. The restaurants DO ALREADY pay BMI and ASCAP for playing ANY kind of background music or entertainment, unless some guy just sits in the corner and improvises on a guitar or keyboard all night. Seems like the Happy Birthday song would be covered under that blanket license. I think the waiter didn’t know what he was talking about. HOWEVER…on TV…the royalty is paid separately. Occasionally, you will hear TV hosts make a joke out of paying the royalty when they sing it. But they pay a royalty on EVERY song that is sung on their show. No one is trying to be mean…it is intellectual property. You want to be paid for your work, especially if someone else claimed it, published it and made money from YOUR work. I do remember hearing the Good morning to you song sung to children in preschools, kindergartens, TV shows for kids, etc., and it’s interesting someone else stole the tune and made money off of it when perhaps the original writers should have received credit and the royalties of it. "…received credit" for the tune or for the lyrics? Remember, the sisters did not lay any claim to the song UNTIL someone else published and was selling it. Only THEN is when they finally copywrited the song…AFTER it had been absconded and illegally published. I just wish I had written a song like that, or New York, New York, or Misty or one of those. I could now be living on that island in the Caribbean! But, regardless, I would like to see people be free to bless one another on birthdays or aniversaries freely and not be burdened with any worries about royalties. So, as for my song, it’s free, period. An attorney would tell you that you SHOULD copyright the song so that YOU can maintain the RIGHT to give it away. A non-copywrited song is a dangerous thing! D* Qualem blennum!
Response:
Their song or mine? Anyway, Don, I’m glad you shared that bit of history. I’m not sure what the half-way lie is, and frankly I have doubts there is such a thing. Every lie is a full blown lie and every lie is supported by truth. The problem here is not that there is a lie but that there is a lack of information. Apparently there was a copyright as I was told and whether it is by misunderstanding or not, it is apparently the reason many are afraid to sing Happy Birthday in the restaurants.
That is what I meant by half truth. The restaurants DO ALREADY pay BMI and ASCAP for playing ANY kind of background music or entertainment, unless some guy just sits in the corner and improvises on a guitar or keyboard all night. Seems like the Happy Birthday song would be covered under that blanket license. I think the waiter didn’t know what he was talking about. HOWEVER…on TV…the royalty is paid separately. Occasionally, you will hear TV hosts make a joke out of paying the royalty when they sing it. But they pay a royalty on EVERY song that is sung on their show. No one is trying to be mean…it is intellectual property. You want to be paid for your work, especially if someone else claimed it, published it and made money from YOUR work. I do remember hearing the Good morning to you song sung to children in preschools, kindergartens, TV shows for kids, etc., and it’s interesting someone else stole the tune and made money off of it when perhaps the original writers should have received credit and the royalties of it.
"…received credit" for the tune or for the lyrics? Remember, the sisters did not lay any claim to the song UNTIL someone else published and was selling it. Only THEN is when they finally copywrited the song…AFTER it had been absconded and illegally published. I just wish I had written a song like that, or New York, New York, or Misty or one of those. I could now be living on that island in the Caribbean! But, regardless, I would like to see people be free to bless one another on birthdays or aniversaries freely and not be burdened with any worries about royalties. So, as for my song, it’s free, period.
An attorney would tell you that you SHOULD copyright the song so that YOU can maintain the RIGHT to give it away. A non-copywrited song is a dangerous thing! D* Qualem blennum!
Response:
- Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – Hi Everyone, I got an idea… Recently I noticed that the people in the restaurants no longer sing Happy Birthday to people. Instead they sort of yell out a cheer. When I asked why they did that, someone told me that the Happy Birthday song had a copyright on it and that restaurants could not sing it without paying a royalty. I don’t know whether that is true or not, but I felt people should be able to sing a blessing to each other on birthdays or aniversaries without having to pay a royalty to someone else, so I wrote this simple song. If I own the copyright I can just give it away and tell everyone who wants to use it to use it for free. I don’t know whether it’s good or not. It’s probably a little sappy, but I wanted it to be good for children and old folks and everyone in-between, too, as well as short and easy to play, sing, and remember. Here’s the URL for it: http://www.danieljdick.com/html/song.html Dan Amazing love how can it be that You my King would die for me? — Amazing love how can it be that You my King would die for me?
Well done Daniel! Your daughter has a most lovely voice! — Sincerely, Ben mitts From The Word of God; And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up; that whoever believes may in Him have eternal life." Similarly, "God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish, but Have have eternal life." Another: "God did not send the Son into the world to judge the world, but that the world should be saved through Him." He spoke elsewhere: "I am the resurrection and the life; he who believes in Me Me shall live even if he dies, and everyone who lives and believes in Me shall never die. Believe you this?"
Response:
So Can you use the words with a different melody? ken
As far as I know, it is the words that are copywrited. That is what I always thought. However, maybe the tune is also. D* – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – Hi Everyone, I got an idea… Me too. Do you homework. Recently I noticed that the people in the restaurants no longer sing Happy Birthday to people. Instead they sort of yell out a cheer. When I asked why they did that, someone told me that the Happy Birthday song had a copyright on it and that restaurants could not sing it without paying a royalty. They half-way lied. I guess they didn’t do their homework either. Two sisters, Mildred Hill, a teacher at the Louisville, Kentucky Experimental Kindergarten, and Dr. Patty Hill, the principal of the same school, together wrote a song for the children, entitled "Good Morning to All." When Mildred combined her musical talents, as the resident expert on spiritual songs, and as the organist for her church, with her sister’s expertise in the area of Kindergarten Education, "Good Morning to All" was sure to be a success. The sisters published the song in a collection entitled "Song Stories of the Kindergarten" in 1893. Thirty-one years later, after Dr. Patty Hill became the head of the Department of Kindergarten Education at Columbia University’s Teacher College, a gentleman by the name of Robert H. Coleman published the song, without the sisters’ permission. To add insult to injury, he added a second verse, the familiar "Happy Birthday to You." Mr. Coleman’s addition of the second verse popularized the song and, eventually, the sisters’ original first verse disappeared. "Happy Birthday to You," the one and only birthday song, had altogether replaced the sisters’ original title, "Good Morning to All." After Mildred died in 1916, Patty, together with a third sister named Jessica, sprang into action and took Mr. Coleman to court. In court, they proved that they, indeed, owned the melody. Because the family legally owns the song, it is entitled to royalties from it, whenever it is sung for commercial purposes. Happy Birthday to You was copyrighted in 1935 and renewed in 1963. The song was apparently written in 1893, but first copyrighted in 1935 after a lawsuit (reported in the New York Times of August 15, 1934, p.19 col. 6) In 1988, Birch Tree Group, Ltd. sold the rights of the song to Warner Communications (along with all other assets) for an estimated $25 million (considerably more than a song). (reported in Time, Jan 2, 1989 v133 n1 p88(1) In the 80s, the song Happy Birthday to You was believed to generate about $1 million in royalties annually. With Auld Lang Syne and For He’s a Jolly Good Fellow, it is among the three most popular songs in the English language. (reported in Time, Jan 2, 1989 v133 n1 p88(1) Happy Birthday to You continues to bring in approximately 2 million dollars in licensing revenue each year, at least as of 1996 accounting, according to Warner Chappell and a Forbes magazine article. At this point, it is not a public domain folk tune, like Jingle Bells. D* Qualem blennum!
Qualem blennum!
Response:
Their song or mine? Anyway, Don, I’m glad you shared that bit of history. I’m not sure what the half-way lie is, and frankly I have doubts there is such a thing. Every lie is a full blown lie and every lie is supported by truth. The problem here is not that there is a lie but that there is a lack of information. Apparently there was a copyright as I was told and whether it is by misunderstanding or not, it is apparently the reason many are afraid to sing Happy Birthday in the restaurants. I do remember hearing the Good morning to you song sung to children in preschools, kindergartens, TV shows for kids, etc., and it’s interesting someone else stole the tune and made money off of it when perhaps the original writers should have received credit and the royalties of it. But, regardless, I would like to see people be free to bless one another on birthdays or aniversaries freely and not be burdened with any worries about royalties. So, as for my song, it’s free, period. The only way I can think of it not being free is if somehow someone happened to write something with the same tune or same words either by coincidence or that somehow the song came out of my subconscious mind having heard it before, but I don’t think that is the case. But, I do have to confess I did not do my homework on that. I just grabbed the guitar, came up with the tune and words and wrote them down, and then my 10 year old daughter wanted to sing it for the web site. Thanks for the history on that song. Dan – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – So Can you use the words with a different melody? ken Hi Everyone, I got an idea… Me too. Do you homework. Recently I noticed that the people in the restaurants no longer sing Happy Birthday to people. Instead they sort of yell out a cheer. When I asked why they did that, someone told me that the Happy Birthday song had a copyright on it and that restaurants could not sing it without paying a royalty. They half-way lied. I guess they didn’t do their homework either. Two sisters, Mildred Hill, a teacher at the Louisville, Kentucky Experimental Kindergarten, and Dr. Patty Hill, the principal of the same school, together wrote a song for the children, entitled "Good Morning to All." When Mildred combined her musical talents, as the resident expert on spiritual songs, and as the organist for her church, with her sister’s expertise in the area of Kindergarten Education, "Good Morning to All" was sure to be a success. The sisters published the song in a collection entitled "Song Stories of the Kindergarten" in 1893. Thirty-one years later, after Dr. Patty Hill became the head of the Department of Kindergarten Education at Columbia University’s Teacher College, a gentleman by the name of Robert H. Coleman published the song, without the sisters’ permission. To add insult to injury, he added a second verse, the familiar "Happy Birthday to You." Mr. Coleman’s addition of the second verse popularized the song and, eventually, the sisters’ original first verse disappeared. "Happy Birthday to You," the one and only birthday song, had altogether replaced the sisters’ original title, "Good Morning to All." After Mildred died in 1916, Patty, together with a third sister named Jessica, sprang into action and took Mr. Coleman to court. In court, they proved that they, indeed, owned the melody. Because the family legally owns the song, it is entitled to royalties from it, whenever it is sung for commercial purposes. Happy Birthday to You was copyrighted in 1935 and renewed in 1963. The song was apparently written in 1893, but first copyrighted in 1935 after a lawsuit (reported in the New York Times of August 15, 1934, p.19 col. 6) In 1988, Birch Tree Group, Ltd. sold the rights of the song to Warner Communications (along with all other assets) for an estimated $25 million (considerably more than a song). (reported in Time, Jan 2, 1989 v133 n1 p88(1) In the 80s, the song Happy Birthday to You was believed to generate about $1 million in royalties annually. With Auld Lang Syne and For He’s a Jolly Good Fellow, it is among the three most popular songs in the English language. (reported in Time, Jan 2, 1989 v133 n1 p88(1) Happy Birthday to You continues to bring in approximately 2 million dollars in licensing revenue each year, at least as of 1996 accounting, according to Warner Chappell and a Forbes magazine article. At this point, it is not a public domain folk tune, like Jingle Bells. D* Qualem blennum!
Response:
So Can you use the words with a different melody? ken
– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – Hi Everyone, I got an idea… Me too. Do you homework. Recently I noticed that the people in the restaurants no longer sing Happy Birthday to people. Instead they sort of yell out a cheer. When I asked why they did that, someone told me that the Happy Birthday song had a copyright on it and that restaurants could not sing it without paying a royalty. They half-way lied. I guess they didn’t do their homework either. Two sisters, Mildred Hill, a teacher at the Louisville, Kentucky Experimental Kindergarten, and Dr. Patty Hill, the principal of the same school, together wrote a song for the children, entitled "Good Morning to All." When Mildred combined her musical talents, as the resident expert on spiritual songs, and as the organist for her church, with her sister’s expertise in the area of Kindergarten Education, "Good Morning to All" was sure to be a success. The sisters published the song in a collection entitled "Song Stories of the Kindergarten" in 1893. Thirty-one years later, after Dr. Patty Hill became the head of the Department of Kindergarten Education at Columbia University’s Teacher College, a gentleman by the name of Robert H. Coleman published the song, without the sisters’ permission. To add insult to injury, he added a second verse, the familiar "Happy Birthday to You." Mr. Coleman’s addition of the second verse popularized the song and, eventually, the sisters’ original first verse disappeared. "Happy Birthday to You," the one and only birthday song, had altogether replaced the sisters’ original title, "Good Morning to All." After Mildred died in 1916, Patty, together with a third sister named Jessica, sprang into action and took Mr. Coleman to court. In court, they proved that they, indeed, owned the melody. Because the family legally owns the song, it is entitled to royalties from it, whenever it is sung for commercial purposes. Happy Birthday to You was copyrighted in 1935 and renewed in 1963. The song was apparently written in 1893, but first copyrighted in 1935 after a lawsuit (reported in the New York Times of August 15, 1934, p.19 col. 6) In 1988, Birch Tree Group, Ltd. sold the rights of the song to Warner Communications (along with all other assets) for an estimated $25 million (considerably more than a song). (reported in Time, Jan 2, 1989 v133 n1 p88(1) In the 80s, the song Happy Birthday to You was believed to generate about $1 million in royalties annually. With Auld Lang Syne and For He’s a Jolly Good Fellow, it is among the three most popular songs in the English language. (reported in Time, Jan 2, 1989 v133 n1 p88(1) Happy Birthday to You continues to bring in approximately 2 million dollars in licensing revenue each year, at least as of 1996 accounting, according to Warner Chappell and a Forbes magazine article. At this point, it is not a public domain folk tune, like Jingle Bells. D* Qualem blennum!
Response:
Hi Everyone, I got an idea…
Me too. Do you homework. Recently I noticed that the people in the restaurants no longer sing Happy Birthday to people. Instead they sort of yell out a cheer. When I asked why they did that, someone told me that the Happy Birthday song had a copyright on it and that restaurants could not sing it without paying a royalty.
They half-way lied. I guess they didn’t do their homework either. Two sisters, Mildred Hill, a teacher at the Louisville, Kentucky Experimental Kindergarten, and Dr. Patty Hill, the principal of the same school, together wrote a song for the children, entitled "Good Morning to All." When Mildred combined her musical talents, as the resident expert on spiritual songs, and as the organist for her church, with her sister’s expertise in the area of Kindergarten Education, "Good Morning to All" was sure to be a success. The sisters published the song in a collection entitled "Song Stories of the Kindergarten" in 1893. Thirty-one years later, after Dr. Patty Hill became the head of the Department of Kindergarten Education at Columbia University’s Teacher College, a gentleman by the name of Robert H. Coleman published the song, without the sisters’ permission. To add insult to injury, he added a second verse, the familiar "Happy Birthday to You." Mr. Coleman’s addition of the second verse popularized the song and, eventually, the sisters’ original first verse disappeared. "Happy Birthday to You," the one and only birthday song, had altogether replaced the sisters’ original title, "Good Morning to All." After Mildred died in 1916, Patty, together with a third sister named Jessica, sprang into action and took Mr. Coleman to court. In court, they proved that they, indeed, owned the melody. Because the family legally owns the song, it is entitled to royalties from it, whenever it is sung for commercial purposes. Happy Birthday to You was copyrighted in 1935 and renewed in 1963. The song was apparently written in 1893, but first copyrighted in 1935 after a lawsuit (reported in the New York Times of August 15, 1934, p.19 col. 6) In 1988, Birch Tree Group, Ltd. sold the rights of the song to Warner Communications (along with all other assets) for an estimated $25 million (considerably more than a song). (reported in Time, Jan 2, 1989 v133 n1 p88(1) In the 80s, the song Happy Birthday to You was believed to generate about $1 million in royalties annually. With Auld Lang Syne and For He’s a Jolly Good Fellow, it is among the three most popular songs in the English language. (reported in Time, Jan 2, 1989 v133 n1 p88(1) Happy Birthday to You continues to bring in approximately 2 million dollars in licensing revenue each year, at least as of 1996 accounting, according to Warner Chappell and a Forbes magazine article. At this point, it is not a public domain folk tune, like Jingle Bells. D* Qualem blennum!
Response:
Hi Everyone, I got an idea… Recently I noticed that the people in the restaurants no longer sing Happy Birthday to people. Instead they sort of yell out a cheer. When I asked why they did that, someone told me that the Happy Birthday song had a copyright on it and that restaurants could not sing it without paying a royalty. I don’t know whether that is true or not, but I felt people should be able to sing a blessing to each other on birthdays or aniversaries without having to pay a royalty to someone else, so I wrote this simple song. If I own the copyright I can just give it away and tell everyone who wants to use it to use it for free. I don’t know whether it’s good or not. It’s probably a little sappy, but I wanted it to be good for children and old folks and everyone in-between, too, as well as short and easy to play, sing, and remember. Here’s the URL for it: http://www.danieljdick.com/html/song.html Dan Amazing love how can it be that You my King would die for me? — Amazing love how can it be that You my King would die for me?
Response:
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) Less is more. Unless you are Zakk Wylde. R. No, that still applies to Zakk Wylde too. Trust me. I can’t even listen to The Blessed Hellride without wanting to stick knitting needles in my ears…. The man needs to learn the wonders of variation…. 9_9 
