"It's a Wonderful Life" Almost Had an Unhappy Ending

The perennial Christmas classic wasn't always a TV staple. In 1974, National Telefilm Associates, the owners of the film rights to "It's a Wonderful Life," made a clerical error and the film went from copyrighted classic to a work in the public domain. And it remained there until 1993.

So studio lawyers went to court—stating the film was a derivative of the book "The Greatest Gift." The court ruled in favor of the studio and reinstated the film's copyright. When a legacy is on the line, it's crucial to have expert advice on your side.

We are electrical engineers, computer scientists, chemists, mechanical engineers, biologists, computer engineers, chemical engineers, molecular biologists, attorneys.

Thomas, Kayden, Horstemeyer & Risley, LLP (Thomas|Kayden) is Atlanta’s IP boutique—the largest Atlanta-based intellectual property law firm providing services in litigation, patent, copyright and trademark. Our attorneys practice solely in IP law and have a wide variety of education and industry experience. This allows us to specialize—and deliver our clients the singular expertise needed to turn great ideas into valuable assets.

"It's a Wonderful Life" Almost Had an Unhappy Ending

We are electrical engineers, computer scientists, chemists, mechanical engineers, biologists, computer engineers, chemical engineers, molecular biologists, attorneys.

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