The Problem of Orphan Works

Last week, I had lunch with a writer who is deep into revising her memoir. She showed me a stack of photos from her years in summer stock theater and Off-Off-Broadway plays. She told me how important they were to her book. Unfortunately, I put my lawyer hat on, and I asked her if she had permission to use the photos. Most likely a photographer or theater company or someone owns the copyright in those photos. Her jaw dropped. “How am I ever going to figure that out?”

Very good question.

When t...