1930年的米老鼠形象
(Photo credit: Keystone France / Gamma-Rapho / Getty Images).
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As a consequence of US copyright law, entertainment giant Disney could soon lose the exclusive rights to some of the characters most responsible for the brand’s universal recognition, including the mouse that acts as its mascot.
根据美国版权法规定，娱乐业巨头迪斯尼公司可能很快就会失去对该品牌普遍认可的一些角色的独家权利，包括作为其吉祥物的米老鼠。
Mickey Mouse will enter the public domain in the year 2024, almost 95 years after his creation on 1 October 1928 – the length of time after which the copyright on an anonymous or pseudo-anonymous body of artistic work expires.
米奇老鼠将于2024年进入公共领域，距离其诞生之日1928年10月1日已近95年之久。而95年是美国匿名或伪匿名艺术作品的版权到期的时长。
Daniel Mayeda is the associate director of the Documentary Film Legal Clinic at UCLA School of Law, as well as a longtime media and entertainment lawyer. He said the copyright expiration does not come without limitations.
丹尼尔梅耶达（Daniel Mayeda）是加州大学洛杉矶分校法学院纪录片法律诊所的副主任，也是一名长期从事媒体和娱乐业的律师。他说，版权到期并不意味着不再存在使用限制。
“You can use the Mickey Mouse character as it was originally created to create your own Mickey Mouse stories or stories with this character. But if you do so in a way that people will think of Disney，then in theory, Disney could say you violated my copyright.”
"你可以使用米老鼠的初代形象来创造你自己的米老鼠故事。但是，如果你的创作让人们联想到迪士尼，那么理论上，迪士尼就可以说你侵犯了它的版权。"
While this first rat-like iteration of Mickey will be stripped of its copyright, Mayeda said Disney retains its copyright on any subsequent variations in other films or artwork until they reach the 95-year mark.
虽然初代米奇将被剥夺其版权，但梅耶达说，迪斯尼保留了后续几代米奇在其他电影或艺术品中的版权，直到它们达到95年的版权时限大关。
米老鼠的演进史
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Mickey Mouse made his public debut in the black-and-white film short Steamboat Willie. The premiere of Steamboat Willie marked a breakthrough moment in animation history not just for the character, but for the introduction of sound. The film lasted a mere seven minutes and the plot was simple.
米老鼠在黑白电影短片《汽船威利号》中首次公开亮相。威利号的首映标志着动画史上的一个突破性时刻，不仅是对角色的突破，而且是对声音的引入。这部电影只持续了7分钟，情节也很简单。
译注：于1928年11月18日在纽约上映的《汽船威利号》是华特迪士尼全球第一部有声动画片。片中米老鼠没有说话，只随着轻快的音乐跃动和吹口哨。
Over the years, Mickey Mouse has gone through several transformations to his physical appearance and personality. In his early years, the impish and mischievous Mickey looked more rat-like, with a long pointy nose, black eyes, a smallish body with spindly legs, and a long tail. Parents wrote in expressing dismay at Mickey’s antics in the cartoons and complained that Mickey was no role model for children.
多年来，米老鼠的外貌和性格都经历了几次转变。早年，顽皮捣蛋的米奇看起来更像一只真的老鼠，有一个长长的尖鼻子，黑色的眼睛，身材矮小，腿脚不灵活，还有一条长尾巴。家长们来信对米奇在动画片中的滑稽行为表示失望，并抱怨说米奇不是儿童的榜样。
Fred Moore, a Disney animator stepped in to refine Mickey’s physical image and his character. The change was gradual but significant; Mickey’s eyes were enlarged and pupils were added to make him more expressive and life-like.
迪斯尼的动画师弗雷德-摩尔（Fred Moore）介入了米奇的身体形象和他的性格的完善。变化是渐进的，但意义重大；米奇的眼睛被放大了，增加了瞳孔，使他更有表现力和生命力。
1947年 米老鼠出现在伦敦一个儿童晚会上
(Photo credit: Keystone France / Gamma-Rapho / Getty Images).
维尼熊脱籍后竟成了杀手？
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Honey-loving bear Winnie the Pooh from the Hundred-acre Woods and most of his animal friends entered public domain in January this year and some have wasted no time in capitalizing on the beloved characters.
爱吃蜂蜜的小熊维尼和它的大多数动物朋友在今年1月因版权过期而进入了公共领域。一些人已经迫不及待地开始地打起它们的主意了。
Ryan Reynolds used Winnie the Pooh in an advert for his mobile phone company as the beloved children’s character entered the public domain.
维尼熊一进入公共领域，演员瑞安-雷诺兹就在他的移动电话公司的广告中使用了小熊维尼的形象。
More disturbingly, Pooh and his close pal Piglet are now the stars of Winnie the Pooh: Blood and Honey, a soon-to-be released horror film, written and directed by Rhys Waterfield, that sees the two go on a bloody rampage of killing after being abandoned by their old friend, Christopher Robin.
更令人不安的是，维尼和他的亲密伙伴小猪成了一部即将上映的恐怖片的主角。《小熊维尼：血与蜜》由里斯-沃特菲尔德编剧和导演，剧中维尼和小猪在被他们的老朋友罗宾兔抛弃后，开始了一场血腥的疯狂杀戮。
《小熊维尼：血与蜜》剧照
Mayeda said it’s important for artists like Waterfield not to cross the line when it comes to creating new works based on the old characters. If a particular work confuses the public into thinking it is actually affiliated with Disney, there could be major legal consequences.
梅耶达说，像沃特菲尔德导演的创作者在根据迪士尼老角色创作新作品时不能越界，这一点很重要。如果某件作品使公众误以为它实际上与迪斯尼有关，可能会有重大的法律后果。
Disney may still maintain trademarks on certain catchphrases or signature outfits worn by the characters, such as Pooh’s red shirt, which Waterfield intentionally avoided using in his movie.
迪斯尼可能仍然保留着某些口头禅或人物所穿的标志性服装的商标，如维尼的红衬衫，沃特菲尔德在其电影中特意没有使用。
“Copyrights are time-limited,” Mayeda said. “Trademarks are not. So Disney could have a trademark essentially in perpetuity, as long as they keep using various things as they’re trademarked, whether they’re words, phrases, characters or whatever.”
"版权是有时间限制的，"梅耶达说。"但是商标没有。因此，迪斯尼可以永久拥有一个商标，可以任意使用相关产品，无论是单词、短语、字符或其他。“
原文链接：
https://www.theguardian.com/film/2022/jul/03/mickey-mouse-disney-copyright-expiry
https://rarehistoricalphotos.com/original-mickey-mouse-pictures-1928/
https://variety.com/2022/film/news/winnie-the-pooh-blood-and-honey-director-1235278405/