|
Desiderata
Be invited to the source and origin
of this page:
Geocities pages
According to some reference books, "Desiderata" is still sometimes thought to
have been 'found' at Old St. Paul's Church in Baltimore and to date back to
1692. It was actually written in the early 1920's by
Max Ehrmann (1872-1945), a
lawyer from Terre Haute, Indiana. Like most of Ehrmann's writings, "Desiderata"
failed to attract much attention during his lifetime; three years after his
death, his widow had it and some of his other works published as "The Poems of
Max Ehrmann" (p.165).
During the Lenten season of 1959 or 1960, Rev. Frederick Kates, the rector of
St. Paul's Church in Baltimore, Maryland, used the poem in a collection of
mimeographed devotional material for his congregation. Someone reprinting it
later, separated from its original credit, erroneously describing it as having
been found in old St. Paul's Church dated 1692, misinterpreting the church
letterhead. The year 1692 is in fact the founding date of St. Paul's Church and
has nothing to do with the poem.
"Desiderata" was copyrighted by Max Ehrmann on January 3, 1927 (federal
copyright NO. 962402). The copyright was bequeathed to his widow, Bertha K.
Ehrmann, upon his death in 1945. It was renewed in 1948 and 1954 by Bertha and
bequeathed to her nephew, Richmond Wight, upon her death in 1962. In 1971,
Richmond Wight assigned the copyright for value to the Crescendo Publishing Co.
headed by Robert Bell. Books containing "Desiderata" are published by Crown
Publishers and can be obtained through bookstores. Other permissions must be
obtained from the owner of the copyright - Robert L. Bell, 427 South Shore
Drive, Sarasota, Florida 34234.
The written use of "Desiderata" without permission is believed to be generally
covered under public domain laws because Max Ehrmann, although having secured a
legal copyright and renewed same, never properly or in any way attached a
copyright notice to copies of "Desiderata" which he released for public domain.
This was tested in 1975 when the Crescendo company instituted a lawsuit,
Bell v. Combined Registry Co.
against a company which published "Desiderata" without permission. The court
ruled in favor of the defendant because of Ehrmann's failure to properly attach
copyright notices to public domain versions of the poem.
According to some reference books, "Desiderata" is still sometimes thought to have been 'found' at Old St. Paul's Church in Baltimore and to date back to 1692. It was actually written in the early 1920's by Max Ehrmann (1872-1945), a lawyer from Terre Haute, Indiana. Like most of Ehrmann's writings, "Desiderata" failed to attract much attention during his lifetime; three years after his death, his widow had it and some of his other works published as "The Poems of Max Ehrmann" (p.165). During the Lenten season of 1959 or 1960, Rev. Frederick Kates, the rector of St. Paul's Church in Baltimore, Maryland, used the poem in a collection of mimeographed devotional material for his congregation. Someone reprinting it later, separated from its original credit, erroneously describing it as having been found in old St. Paul's Church dated 1692, misinterpreting the church letterhead. The year 1692 is in fact the founding date of St. Paul's Church and has nothing to do with the poem. "Desiderata" was copyrighted by Max Ehrmann on January 3, 1927 (federal copyright NO. 962402). The copyright was bequeathed to his widow, Bertha K. Ehrmann, upon his death in 1945. It was renewed in 1948 and 1954 by Bertha and bequeathed to her nephew, Richmond Wight, upon her death in 1962. In 1971, Richmond Wight assigned the copyright for value to the Crescendo Publishing Co. headed by Robert Bell. Books containing "Desiderata" are published by Crown Publishers and can be obtained through bookstores. Other permissions must be obtained from the owner of the copyright - Robert L. Bell, 427 South Shore Drive, Sarasota, Florida 34234. The written use of "Desiderata" without permission is believed to be generally covered under public domain laws because Max Ehrmann, although having secured a legal copyright and renewed same, never properly or in any way attached a copyright notice to copies of "Desiderata" which he released for public domain. This was tested in 1975 when the Crescendo company instituted a lawsuit, Bell v. Combined Registry Co. against a company which published "Desiderata" without permission. The court ruled in favor of the defendant because of Ehrmann's failure to properly attach copyright notices to public domain versions of the poem.
Sources: Fred D. Cavinder, "Desiderata", TWA Ambassador, Aug. 1973, pp. 14-15 |
