Public Domain Day 2026: Betty Boop, Pluto (As Rover), And Flip The Frog Hit The Commons On January 1

When the calendar hits January 1, 2026, works first published in 1930 officially enter the U.S. public domain. An increasingly exciting tradition as the years move by, Public Domain Day brings a mix of famous characters and largely forgotten gems that offer a snapshot of modern animation’s roots, nearly a century ago.

This year’s most notable entrants include the first incarnation of Betty Boop, Disney’s Pluto before he was known as Pluto, and Ub Iwerks’ Flip the Frog, created during his short-lived indie period.

Betty Boop (1930 version)

Betty Boop’s long-anticipated public domain debut arrives in 2026, though only in her earliest, slightly uncanny iteration. She was introduced in Fleischer Studios’ Dizzy Dishes, a nightclub-set cartoon steeped in surreal transformations, rubber-hose animation, and Gilded Age excess.

The original Betty is instantly recognizable: a sing-song flapper with enormous eyes and curly black hair, although elongated dog ears remind us that she was initially conceived as a love interest for Bimbo, a canine character who serenades her in the cartoon.

The pre-Hays Code cartoon offers a taste of what might have been if fewer puritan influences had encroached into 1930s politics. Fleischer’s adult-aimed animation feels edgy and modern, teasing sexual energy, visual instability, and a surreal sense that nothing is quite what it seems, at least not permanently.

Rover, Who Later Became Pluto

Disney’s Pluto joins the public domain this year, although under a different name. In the Mickey Mouse short The Picnic, the character appears as Rover, an enthusiastic dog who tags along with Mickey and Minnie for a day outdoors.

In the short, Rover is already recognizable as Pluto in temperament; he’s loyal, energetic, and easily distracted, although he has not yet settled into his most familiar design and personality that would later define the canine for decades.

As with Steamboat Willie’s Mickey Mouse, only this earliest incarnation of the character is now free to use. Later versions of Pluto remain protected.

Flip the Frog

Flip the Frog is a fascinating detour in animation history. Created by the legendary Ub Iwerks after his break from Disney, Flip starred in a series of cartoons produced independently in the early 1930s.

Visually, Flip echoes Iwerks’ most memorable creation, Mickey Mouse, but the cartoons often lean toward looser movement and more mature humor. Flip never gained lasting popularity, but his shorts remain valuable artifacts from a period when animation’s stylistic rules were still being written.

Nine Mickey Shorts

Mickey has been in the public domain for three years now, and with each passing New Year’s Day, more of his appearances become available. This year, nine Mickey shorts hit the public commons: Fiddlin’ Around, The Barnyard Concert, The Cactus Kid, The Fire Fighters, The Shindig, The Chain Gang, The Gorilla Mystery, the aforementioned Pluto debuting The Picnic, and Pioneer Days. In just a few days, each will likely flood free streaming platforms as Disney’s authority over them will disappear.