Bourne Co. Music Publishers

Bourne Co. Music Publishers is an American music-publishing company based in New York City. It publishes and licenses musical compositions rather than recording or performing them as its primary business. The company is associated with a catalog of more than 3,000 titles and is described in reference material as one of the largest privately held international music publishers. The company traces its origins to 1919, when Saul Bourne, Max Winslow, and Irving Berlin established Irving Berlin Inc. Bourne, born Saul H. Bornstein and also known professionally as Sol Bourne, had previously worked as the professional manager of Irving Berlin's publishing business. The early company handled Berlin's works as well as other compositions. After Winslow's death in 1942 and the ending of Bourne's business relationship with Berlin in 1944, the non-Berlin portion of the business was reorganized under the Bourne name, while Berlin's subsequent publications were handled by the Irving Berlin Music Company. Bourne's business model has historically centered on controlling, administering, publishing, and licensing musical copyrights. Its repertoire spans popular standards, songs associated with cinema and television, and works used in commercial and other audiovisual contexts. The catalog includes music connected with Charlie Chaplin films, early Walt Disney animated features, and songs recorded or performed by artists including Louis Jordan, Elvis Presley, Fleetwood Mac, Bing Crosby, Frank Sinatra, Shirley Temple, and others. Better-known works associated with the catalog include “Smile,” “Eternally,” “Heigh-Ho,” “When You Wish Upon a Star,” “Whistle While You Work,” “Who's Afraid of the Big Bad Wolf?,” “Are You Lonesome Tonight?,” “Black Magic Woman,” “Popcorn,” and “My Girl.” Catalog ownership and licensing arrangements can vary by territory, work, and copyright period. Leadership of the company remained within the Bourne family for much of its history. After Saul Bourne died in 1957, his wife Bonnie assumed responsibility for running the business. Their daughter Beebe Bourne later succeeded her mother and served as the company's modern-day publisher until her death in 2005. Bonnie and Beebe were both recognized with the Abe Olman Publisher Award from the Songwriters Hall of Fame, making them the only mother-and-daughter pair identified in the supplied reference material as recipients of that award. The company operates internationally through subsidiaries or affiliated entities identified as Bourne Music Canada Limited, Bourne Music France, and Bourne Music Ltd. in the United Kingdom. Its international structure supports the administration and licensing of copyrights across multiple territories. The company has also been involved in significant copyright litigation, including disputes concerning derivative works, audiovisual exploitation, advertising use, and the duration or territorial scope of publishing rights. These cases illustrate the practical importance of music publishers in determining how compositions may be reproduced, synchronized, distributed, or used commercially. Bourne remains best understood as a rights-management and music-publishing brand with a historically important catalog, rather than as a consumer-facing entertainment label. Current ownership, executive leadership, financial results, and the precise present-day composition of its catalog are not established by the supplied reference material.

Bourne Co. Music Publishers developed from a publishing enterprise founded in 1919 by Saul Bourne, Max Winslow, and Irving Berlin. Bourne, whose birth name was Saul H. Bornstein, had worked as the professional manager of Berlin's own publishing company before the new firm was established. The business, initially known as Irving Berlin Inc., published Berlin's compositions as well as works by other songwriters. The partnership changed during the 1940s. Winslow died in 1942, and the relationship between Bourne and Berlin ended in 1944. The business was then renamed Bourne, Inc., while Berlin's later works were issued through the Irving Berlin Music Company. The separation left Bourne with a substantial body of non-Berlin copyrights and provided the foundation for the company that became Bourne Co. Music Publishers. Saul Bourne died in 1957. His wife, Bonnie Bourne, took over operation of the company and maintained its family-oriented management. In 1993, their daughter Beebe Bourne succeeded her. Beebe continued as the company's publisher until her death on November 1, 2005. Both Bonnie and Beebe received the Abe Olman Publisher Award from the Songwriters Hall of Fame; the supplied reference identifies them as the only two women in the award's history to have received that recognition. Over time, Bourne built a catalog combining popular-song copyrights, screen music, and works that became standards through prominent recordings and performances. Its holdings include compositions associated with Charlie Chaplin's films, such as “Smile,” “Eternally,” and “Terry's Theme,” as well as songs from early Disney animated films, including “Heigh-Ho,” “When You Wish Upon a Star,” “Whistle While You Work,” and “Who's Afraid of the Big Bad Wolf?” Other titles connected with the catalog include “Ain't Nobody Here but Us Chickens,” “Are You Lonesome Tonight?,” “Black Magic Woman,” “Bring Me Sunshine,” “Me and My Shadow,” “My Mammy,” “On the Good Ship Lollipop,” “Popcorn,” “Swinging on a Star,” “Witch Doctor,” and “My Girl.” The company has functioned as a rights holder and administrator across print, recording, audiovisual, advertising, and international licensing contexts. Its catalog has therefore produced legal questions extending beyond the sale of sheet music. In Woods v. Bourne, decided in 1995, the company successfully defended an appeal concerning derivative works and statutory termination rights. In Bourne v. Walt Disney Co., also decided in 1995, Bourne challenged Disney's exploitation of compositions from Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs and Pinocchio. The jury did not accept the videocassette infringement claim but found in Bourne's favor regarding use in television commercials. A 1997 report also described a dispute over United Kingdom rights in Phil Spector's “To Know Him Is to Love Him.” Bourne's international presence has included entities identified as Bourne Music Canada Limited, Bourne Music France, and Bourne Music Ltd. in the United Kingdom. Reference material describes the company as one of the largest privately held international music publishers and reports a catalog exceeding 3,000 titles. The company is headquartered in New York City and continues to be presented as an active music publisher, although current corporate ownership, management, revenue, and detailed catalog changes are not specified in the supplied sources.

• 2005

  Beebe Bourne dies

  [1]Bourne Co. Music Publishersen.wikipedia.org

  Beebe Bourne dies on November 1 after serving as the company's publisher.

• 1995

  Two major copyright cases are decided

  [1]Bourne Co. Music Publishersen.wikipedia.org

  Bourne wins the appeal in Woods v. Bourne and prevails on the television-advertising aspect of Bourne v. Walt Disney Co.

• 1993

  Beebe Bourne succeeds her mother

  [1]Bourne Co. Music Publishersen.wikipedia.org

  Beebe Bourne takes over leadership of the family publishing business.

• 1957

  Bonnie Bourne assumes management

  [1]Bourne Co. Music Publishersen.wikipedia.org

  Following Saul Bourne's death, his wife Bonnie takes over operation of the company.

• 1944

  Business separates from Irving Berlin

  [1]Bourne Co. Music Publishersen.wikipedia.org

  Bourne and Berlin end their business relationship; the non-Berlin business is renamed Bourne, Inc., while Berlin's later publications move to the Irving Berlin Music Company.

• 1942

  Max Winslow dies

  [1]Bourne Co. Music Publishersen.wikipedia.org

  The death of co-founder Max Winslow precedes the later dissolution of the original Bourne-Berlin partnership.

• 1919

  Irving Berlin Inc. is founded

  [1]Bourne Co. Music Publishersen.wikipedia.org

  Saul Bourne, Max Winslow, and Irving Berlin establish the publishing company that later becomes the basis of Bourne Co. Music Publishers.

A privately held, internationally oriented music-rights publisher built around a long-established catalog of popular standards, film songs, and commercially valuable compositions.

• Print music · 1919

  Sheet music and printed editions

  Bourne's traditional publishing activity includes the publication and distribution of sheet music and other printed editions of compositions. The business grew from early twentieth-century popular-song publishing and has retained a catalog-oriented model in which compositions are made available for performance, study, and licensed reproduction.

• Audiovisual music rights

  Film and soundtrack compositions

  The catalog includes compositions associated with films, notably songs from early Disney animated features and music written or associated with Charlie Chaplin productions. These works can generate rights activity through reprints, recordings, synchronization, home video, television, advertising, and other audiovisual uses, subject to applicable copyright and territorial arrangements.

• Music publishing catalog

  Popular standards catalog

  Bourne administers and licenses a broad group of established popular songs and standards. Representative titles include “Are You Lonesome Tonight?,” “Black Magic Woman,” “On the Good Ship Lollipop,” “Swinging on a Star,” “Popcorn,” and “My Girl,” although rights and territories may differ by individual composition.

• 1995

  Litigation over Disney audiovisual usesOther

  Background

  Bourne alleged that Disney infringed copyrights by selling videocassettes featuring compositions from Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs and Pinocchio and by using the compositions in television commercials.

  Action taken

  Bourne pursued the case in court and obtained a favorable jury finding concerning television-commercial use, although the jury rejected the videocassette infringement claim.

  Aftermath

  The case became a notable example of a music publisher enforcing composition rights across different audiovisual exploitation channels.

  Source

• 1944

  Reorganization after the Bourne-Berlin separationStrategy

  Background

  The original Irving Berlin Inc. partnership ended after the death of Max Winslow and the breakdown of the business relationship between Saul Bourne and Irving Berlin.

  Action taken

  The non-Berlin publishing business was renamed Bourne, Inc., while Berlin's later publications were assigned to the Irving Berlin Music Company.

  Aftermath

  The reorganization established the independent Bourne publishing enterprise and left it with a substantial catalog of non-Berlin compositions.

  Source

1. 1Bourne Co. Music Publishersen.wikipedia.org
2. 2Bourne Co. Music Publishers official websitebournemusic.com