Happy Birthday to Who? The Strange History of ‘Happy Birthday’
Is your calendar full of birthday parties this month? You’re not alone. In the United States, more people are born in September than in any other month, meaning Americans will sing many choruses of “Happy Birthday” this month. This popular tune has a surprisingly controversial history. First composed by sisters Mildred and Patty Hill in 1893, the
By the 1930s, “Happy Birthday” appeared all over in films and on the radio, prompting Mildred and Patty’s sister, Jessica, to secure the copyright to “Happy Birthday” due to its similarity to “Good Morning to All.” In 1988, Warner Music acquired the copyright, and the song’s ingrained popularity ensured a profit. They reportedly made $2 million a year on royalty charges. The
Due to its age and popularity, many people have insisted “Happy Birthday” is, or at least should be, in the public domain. When Warner Music tried to charge filmmaker Jennifer Nelson royalties to make a film about the song, she filed a lawsuit. Her attorneys uncovered a 1922 songbook featuring “Happy Birthday” without any copyright notice. They even suggested Warner Music knowingly hid the songbook because it proved “Happy Birthday” had been in the public domain for decades. In 2015, a U.S. judge ruled that “Happy Birthday” is not under copyright. So, the next time you record guests singing “Happy Birthday” at a birthday party, you don’t have to worry about paying royalties if you upload it online. the other is a Honda worth $8,000. Only the pickup falls under the motor vehicle exemption. If a judgment is passed against you, your creditors could make you sell the Honda. An experienced bankruptcy attorney might suggest their client find a friend or family member who would be able to give them a $2,000 loan in exchange for a lien on the Honda. The family member would then record the lien with the Department of Motor Vehicles, signaling another party has a security investment in the car. Next, the client would have to spend all of the $2,000. Now both the Honda and the pickup truck fall under the motor vehicle exemption and can’t be taken away by creditors when the client files for bankruptcy. Need to file for bankruptcy but worried about losing your property? Call 480-755-8000 to learn how you can protect your assets and get out of debt.
Walt Disney Company paid $5,000 to use the song in a parade, and many documentaries were also impacted by the copyright. The civil rights documentary “Eyes on the Prize” never made it to DVD
familiar melody originally belonged to a song called “Good Morning to All,” a song the sisters sang to their students every morning. Over time, the word “birthday” entered variations of the song and became a popular party tune.
because the royalties charge on a scene of Martin Luther King celebrating his birthday was so high.
Do I Have to Sell My Car? Exemption Laws Protect Your Assets During Bankruptcy
In Arizona, there are exemption laws that protect pension and retirement accounts, wages to a certain amount, homesteads up to $150,000, and personal property up to $6,000. Exemption laws can even protect your car. Arizona has a $6,000 motor vehicle exemption. This means if your car has less than $6,000 in equity, you will not be required to sell your car to pay back your debts. However, if your car is valued at $7,500, a creditor could require you to sell your car. It should be noted that if a debtor has some sort of physical disability, their motor vehicle exemption is increased to $12,000. Understanding exemption laws and knowing how to make them work in your favor is a valuable skill. Fear of losing assets is why most people put off filing for bankruptcy, but this is where bankruptcy attorneys are the most valuable. Let’s say you and your spouse have two cars. One is a pickup truck worth $4,000 and
Being in debt is troubling enough, but aggressive creditors often make the situation worse with scare tactics to make debtors pay money they don’t have. Some creditors have threatened to make debtors sell their clothes or even their hair in order to help pay back their debts. As scary as these threats sound, rest assured that creditors are not allowed to force you to do this. There are laws in every state, called “exemption laws,” that protect people from losing certain property to a creditor.
Do you know anyone overwhelmed with debt o
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