Free at Last For Mickey And Friends

米奇和朋友們終獲自由 二創蓄勢待發

If you’re the creative type and you’re struggling to come up with your next idea, do not fear: some big works, including the original version of Mickey Mouse, entered the public domain Monday in the United States.

若你是創作人，又正苦於發想下個點子，別怕：一些重要作品，包括原版的米老鼠米奇，已於元旦在美國進入公共領域。

And if, on the other hand, you prefer your Disney characters to be cute, cuddly and never-changing, well, ... you might want to stop reading.

反之，若你更想要你的迪士尼角色能夠可愛、令人想擁入懷中且永遠不變，那麼…你可能會想要就此打住不讀。

In 2024, thousands of copyrighted works published in 1928 entered the public domain, after their 95-year term expired.

數千件在1928年發表、受版權保護的作品，隨著95年的期限屆滿，在2024年進到了公共領域。

This means that those characters and stories can be remade — on the page, stage or screen — without permission. (Finally, I can make that Peter Pan musical in which a middle-aged Peter laments unexplained back pains at the end of Act I.)

這意味著那些角色和故事得以在未經許可之下，於書頁、舞台或者螢幕上進行重製。（我終於可以製作那部彼得潘的音樂劇了，劇中第一幕尾聲中將會有個中年的彼得哀怨自己沒有來由的背痛。）

“It’s important for the preservation of our cultural record, for meaningful access to older works for inspiring future creativity,” said Jennifer Jenkins, director for the Center for the Study of the Public Domain at Duke Law School.

杜克大學法學院公共領域研究中心主任珍妮佛．詹金斯指出：「對於我們文化紀錄的保存、為了啟發未來創意而有意義的取用過往作品來說，這很重要。」

The creme de la creme of this year’s public domain class are Mickey Mouse and, of course, Minnie, or at least black-and-white versions of our favorite squeaky rodents that appeared in “Steamboat Willie.” The Walt Disney Co. is famously litigious, and this copyright only covers the original versions of the character.

今年進入公共領域者之中，翹楚正是米老鼠米奇，當然還有米妮，或者說至少是這兩隻備受鍾愛、吱吱叫的齧齒動物在「汽船威利號」裡登場的黑白版本。迪士尼公司以熱愛興訟知名，而該項版權僅包括角色的初始版本。

Tigger was also liberated Monday and could soon be reunited with Winnie-the-Pooh in the reborn character’s next slasher film. Yes, you read that right. In a preview of what could be awaiting other 95-year-old icons, the silly old bear became a sledgehammer-wielding monster in “Winnie-the-Pooh: Blood and Honey.” The sequel is slated for February.

跳跳虎也在元旦脫離束縛，很快就可以和小熊維尼在該角色脫胎換骨後的下一部砍殺電影裡團聚。是的，你沒看錯。在「小熊維尼：血與蜜」中，這頭傻氣的老熊化身為揮舞著大錘的怪獸，讓人預見可能等著其他95歲明星的角色。該片續集預定2月推出。

And if that still isn’t enough to get you started, just wait. Over the next decade, freedom awaits all of these characters: Popeye; Pluto; Donald Duck; King Kong (the original film version); Superman; Daffy Duck; Bilbo Baggins, Gandalf and others from the Hobbit; James Bond; Batman; and Captain Marvel.

而如果那還不夠讓你開始著手，就等等吧。未來10年間，這些角色都將迎來自由：（大力水手）卜派、布魯托、唐老鴨、金剛（初代電影版）、超人、達菲鴨、比爾博．巴金斯、甘道夫和其他「哈比人歷險記」的角色、詹姆士龐德、蝙蝠俠、驚奇隊長等。

Get to work, people. And remember, “Freedom’s just another word for nothin’ left to lose.”*

開始動工吧，大家。然後請千萬記得：「自由就是沒有什麼能再失去的換句話說。」*

*This song lyric is still under copyright until 2064.

*這首歌的歌詞直到2064年仍受版權保護。

New York City Aims to Build Low-Rent Units In Rich Areas

應對住房危機 紐約市計畫在富人區建合宜住宅

New York City officials put forward a plan to direct public money toward mixed-income housing projects in wealthier neighborhoods — a proposal aimed at addressing the affordable housing shortage and spurring development after a lucrative property tax exemption lapsed last year.

紐約市官員提出一項計畫，將公共資金用在較富裕的區域興建混合收入住宅，這個提議旨在處理合宜住宅短缺問題，並在一項有利可圖的財產稅豁免於去年失效後促進發展。

Currently, the Department of Housing Preservation and Development uses city money to subsidize developments containing only affordable homes. But under the new plan, officials would make money available to projects that have a combination of affordable and market-rate homes.

目前住房保護和開發局使用紐約市補貼的房屋開發只限合宜住宅。但新計畫下官員將提供資金給合宜住宅和市價住房結合開發項目。

The hope is that developers, who can no longer benefit from the property tax break, will produce more affordable units using the income from high-rent, market-rate apartments to supplement the city financing. Those units would also be in neighborhoods where affordable homes have traditionally not been built.

他們希望無法再因財產稅豁免而獲益的開發商，能利用從高租金、市價公寓賺來的收入，建造更多合宜住宅，補充紐約市資金。這些住房也會位於傳統上沒有興建合宜住宅的地區。

The proposal is an acknowledgment from the city that its traditional affordable housing tools have hit a wall.

這項提議等同紐約市承認其傳統合宜住宅工具碰壁。

A contentious New York state tax exemption known as 421a, introduced in 1971 but relied on by developers in nearly every big residential project in recent decades, expired last spring amid pushback from progressive lawmakers, who criticized it as a giveaway to the real estate industry. Even the industry’s lobbying group, the Real Estate Board of New York, conceded that the program no longer matched the city’s housing needs, but it is uncertain if or when a replacement program will be passed. And a separate federal program driven by tax-exempt bonds has been stretched to its limit, city officials said.

有爭議的紐約市稅務豁免又被稱為421a，在1971年推出，開發商近數十年來幾乎所有大型住宅專案都仰賴該政策。但在進步派議員反對下，該政策去年春季結束，他們批評這項政策對房地產業而言是個贈品。連該產業遊說團體「紐約房地產董事會」也承認，這項計畫不再符合紐約市住房需求，但尚不確定替代計畫何時會通過。紐約市官員表示，由免稅債券推動的個別聯邦計畫也已達到極限。

The agency, which could implement the proposal without additional legislation, will first seek input from developers through February to see where and how it might be deployed.

住房局無須透過額外立法就能實施這項計畫，他們將在2月先徵求開發商意見，觀察專案可能進行的地點和方式。

Brad Lander, the New York City comptroller, said he supported the goals of the scheme , and he believed the Housing Department had a “long history” of calculating the level of subsidies needed to get the right mix of affordability in individual developments.

紐約市主計長蘭德表示，他支持這些計畫的目標，他並認為住房局「長期以來」都善於計算所需補助水平，讓個別開發案可負擔性獲得正確組合。

“We need more housing at all income levels with a focus on affordability and with a focus on generating affordable units in high-opportunity neighborhoods,” he said. “This sounds like a potentially useful new tool to help make that happen.”

他說：「我們需要更多各類收入水平住房，關注負擔能力，並關注在經濟狀況良好的高機會區域建造合宜住宅。這聽來是個可能有用的新工具，能幫助我們讓這些事成真。」