Original Opening Logo WB / United Artist etc. (1 Viewer)

[Powell&Pressburger]

I seem to be the biggest advocate of having original opening logos used on new DVD, and Blu Ray editions more than anyone. I think others miss them too, I see posts regarding usually WB and United Artists logos being omitted and instead we get the new fresh logo that well... athestically it usually clashes with the look and mood of the film since a brand new looking logo before a film like The Shining. (they have been using the late 80's version) WB's has almost but stopped including the classic Saul Bass design (see my avatar) We did get it attached to the Dirty Harry films accordingly.

United Artists has been replacing their logo's with a new logo also. Some of us miss the classic U.A. slowly turning with the ominus music cue also. Or even the UA Transamerica logo.

It seems like it the mainly the 1970's logo's becoming extinct.

I would like to have constructive posts regarding the logo changes, I realize some find the classic logo's ugly but they are part of film history and deserve to be seen attached to their corresponding films.

I would like to say Universal does a great job with keeping thier original opening logo's intact on older catalog films, they will show the new logo first and that is fine because when the actual film starts you get the orginal logo.

If WB or United Artists did what Universal does then that would be a great compromise.

There are some who don't care at all and that is fine, since those who don't care about the usage of the logo at all then there is no harm in having the original for the purists out there who love the classic logos.

Any thoughts? WB PLEASE give us back those logos! Same to United Artists!

 

[Stephen_J_H]

I suspect, but have not been able to confirm, that the UA/Transamerica logos may have had to be removed at the request of Transamerica when UA was sold to MGM. That would not explain how the logos wound up getting replaced every time UA changed its logo, but it may explain why films from the Transamerica era have been altered.
My experience with the WB films is that the logo has only been changed when the film has had a theatrical rerelease in an altered form, or WB obtained the rights to the film after it had been released previously by another studio (e.g. Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory). Paramount has also replaced logos from time to time for the same reason. While it would be nice to retain the original logos, it's not a deal-breaker for me, although it annoyed me when MGM, after releasing The Princess Bride on VHS with the original Fox logo intact, turned around and replaced it with an MGM logo on the subsequent DVD releases. This kind of inconsistency in practice is unacceptable. Make a policy and stick with it.

 

[Timothy E]

I want to see the original logos at the beginning of films since it adds to the nostalgia factor, which is a cherished part of the experience for watching films from another era.

 

[WadeM]

I love original logos!! "They are part of film history and deserve to be seen attached to their corresponding films. "

If they must use their new logos, then like you said, do what Universal does, and include it before the original logo--not instead of.

 

[Rodney]

Put me in the original logo camp. I thought it was great that Disney put the original RKO logo in front of Pinocchio. Neat stuff.
Could you imagine Raiders of the Lost Ark without the original logo? It would ruin that first shot!

 

[MCCLOUD]

I agree! I want to see the original logos. I don't like the new Warner Brothers Logo. I really do like the Warner Brothers logo from the 1970's, the red Warner Communications that you have posted. They should include the original logo so we can watch the movie like it was originally shown. If you have to have the new logo, then yes by all means follow Universal's example include the new and the original logos. The 1970's WB changing to the red Warner Communications is Warner Brothers best ever logo in my opinion!

Take Care!

Robert

 

[ahollis]

I also vote for the original logos. As indicated earlier, Universal gets the kudos with not only their original logos, but they also show the Paramount logo on the films they own. MGM is the worst. Not only with the changing of the UA logo, but also cutting off the AIP and Orion logos in most cases and adding the roaring lion. While Orion is just a so so logo (IMO), I love the AIP logo for it was just as cheesy as the films themselves. Also thank goodness that Fox, Columbia (Sony), and Warner Brothers' RKO & MGM films still use the original for the film's time. I can not even imagine the Singing In the Rain or Wizard Of Oz without the MGM lion.

 

[JohnMor]

My experience with the WB films is that the logo has only been changed when the film has had a theatrical rerelease in an altered form, or WB obtained the rights to the film after it had been released previously by another studio (e.g. Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory).

Well, that isn't always the case. For instance Dog Day Afternoon and the WB Streisand films A Star is Born and The Main Event did not have re-releases in altered form and all lost their Bass 70's WB logos between their VHS and DVD incarnations, which feature the new logo. I know there are others as well, but I can't think of them off the top of my head.
I love to see the original logos, but I also understand that it's in big part for nostalgia reasons. I mean no one who didn't see the film in it's initial theatrical run or early video incarnations would probably even know what logo was first used. But to me, if there is no legal restriction from using it, why not use the original. Even if you put it after the new one, like Universal does.

 

[MatthewA]

Unless there is a compelling legal reason not to do so, I don't see why not to use the original logo. It's in the negative (presumably), it saves time of cueing up a replacement, and it was intended to be in the film.
Transamerica no longer uses their "T" trademark from the 1970s, and MGM could always buy it out to use it on UA films which had it originally.

 

[Southpaw]

I also love how current movies use logos from the era in which the movie takes place ala Zodiac using the old Paramount (and Warner) logo at the beginning. Sets the mood nicely...

 

[WillG]

WB seems to be the main culprit named in this discussion. There is a chat coming up with them. Just sayin'

 

[Dick]

What I also find offensive is when studios alter their perfectly fine (even terrific) logos in order to modernize them, and in the process create a piece of utter crap. Cases in point: Universal's quite nice earlier turning globe with the graphics coming around from behind and going flat in front of the Earth. That part hasn't changed, but now it is all neon and diffused bright spots and looks cheap and tawdry. They continue to use it, though. Columbia for a couple of years in the 1970's did that horrible zoom-in on the statue's shining light, which then became an abstract pointy "crown" within a blue half-circle. What were they thinking? Then, of course, there's the latest Warner Bros. logo, which was not terrible at first but grew tiresome very quickly. I now really hate those dumb, poorly-painted clouds and boring sky behind the shield, which itself is lackluster, and long for the days when we got a velvet-black background and a powerful gold shield dead center.

 

[JohnMor]

I HATE the new (i.e. current, it's not really new anymore I guess) Universal logo. I think it is so ugly.

 

[MatthewA]

Columbia for a couple of years in the 1970's did that horrible zoom-in on the statue's shining light, which then became an abstract pointy "crown" within a blue half-circle. What were they thinking?

Give me that over what they currently use for their TV (where they tack it onto ABSOLUTELY EVERYTHING) and home video divisions: meaningless gray bars in a blue void (the logo of the Sony Corporation). God help us if it ever reaches theater screens.

 

[JohnMor]

Give me that over what they currently use for their TV (where they tack it onto ABSOLUTELY EVERYTHING) and home video divisions: meaningless gray bars in a blue void (the logo of the Sony Corporation). God help us if it ever reaches theater screens.

I know this thread is primarily about feature films, but you just reminded me that on the recently released "Bewitched: The Complete Seventh Season" Sony included the old Columbia Pictures Television "Screen Gems" logo after each episode. It was very nice to see. Too bad they hadn't included the various ones on all the seasons.

 

[EricKA]

I agree, I would like to see the 70's infamous "worm" logo on all WB movies that had them at the time. What bothers me the most is what MGM has done by NOT including the UA logo (Transamerica or not) with several of its Bond Films and the Pink Panther films. I have no problem seeing the MGM lion first, as long as the UA logo that was originally shown in theaters is presented. I do appreciate Paramount and Columbia and Universal, as they do show the original logos most of the time. I really liked how Disney put the original RKO logo on the new BD/DVD of Pinocchio. I would like it to be an industry standard to see the logo as originally presented.

 

[Powell&Pressburger]

I HATE the new (i.e. current, it's not really new anymore I guess) Universal logo. I think it is so ugly.

I think that mid 90's Universal Logo was great very well done and colorful it just worked amazingly well... I will second the other post also that calls it tawdry... It is the Stella " Sure I like a good time." Dallas of logos haha.

 

[Brian Borst]

I loved the 'Worm' logo when it came before The Shining. I had never seen it earlier, and it fit the film somehow. Too bad the remasters carried the 'Shield' version. I thought Barry Lyndon did still carry the 'worm' logo.
And I too liked the older Universal logo much better than the current one. I think it looks more realistic than the new one, and has more 'personality'. I can't explain it.
Disney does a lot of revisionism as well. A lot of the classics carry the blue castle logo, when that was put in use in 1985. I love that logo, but it shouldn't be in place of the older RKO and Buena Vista titles.

 

[Powell&Pressburger]

Barry Lyndon does carry the classic logo and All the President's Men does also in B/W I am hoping for a BLU ray release for President's Men but I am scared to death that new logo will happen and I will take the disc and trash it haha. I hate the ever not knowing what logo we are gonna get with the films from the 70's.

I would love to see the old one attached to KLUTE if it ever featured one sometimes they didn't would depend.

 

[Bradley-E]

This is my biggest gripe about Warner. they pretty much have removed the original logos from many 70's - 90's films and replaced them with the current one. There are a few exceptions, but very few. I love the 70's version.