Call for IP Golden Oldies

Think of "Golden Oldies", and Elvis or Petula Clark come to mind. Something quite different was suggested while listening to a podcast interview with the august U.S. law academic and judge, Richard A. Posner, of the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals and the University of Chicago Law School. Judge Posner is, if I recall correctly, the most-cited law academic in modern times, noted for his contribution to law and economics and his prodigious output, even while serving on the bench.

All of this is by way of background to interview that Judge Posner gave this week to Bloomberg radio in connection with his new book, The Crisis of Capitalist Democracy. What caught my attention in the interview was Judge Posner's lament that modern economists have largely ignored the observations made by both John Maynard Keynes and Frank Knight (a founder of University of Chicago economics) in the 1920s, which Judge Posner believed are highly instructive to explain events today. Judge Posner noted, more or less, a certain modern arrogance that two long-gone academics could have been so right nearly a century ago.

His comment got me to thinking. How much do we know about the "golden oldies"of the IP literature? Even more importantly, how much can we learn today from these former masters? And so--my offer. If any readers want to share with me an article or the like from the past that he or she believes should be brought to the attention of this IP community, this KAT will be delighted to peruse the text and report on it in an appropriate fashion. You can decide how far back in time is "far"--1980, 1950, 1920, 1492, 1066, or other. I am at your service.

More on Petula Clark here.
More on Golden Oldies here.