Studio Logos - Page 2

Warner doesn't seem to replace any logo but their own as a rule.  If they wanted to replace the RKO or MGM logos, they would have by now. I doubt they ever will (or would.)  I firmly believe they have some in-house policy regarding their own logos that leads to the constant replacement (short of the one built into the film).

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Originally Posted by MatthewA 

I agree with that wholeheartedly. They're part of the film, it makes no one angry to leave them in, why waste time removing them?

I think it may have to do with the lawyers and up-top corporate policy rather than the home video people - I'm sure if you were to ask the people in the home video department about these things, most would probably say they were in favor of preserving the film as it was.  If the logo being replaced had the name of a company that's no longer connected to the studio, there can be legal issues about including their name (even if to you and me that seems ridiculous, because, well, it is ridiculous).  My educated guess says its 50% not wanting to give credit to an entity that no longer owns the studio or not legally being able to do so, and 50% current ownership wanting their name on everything.  If a company were to change hands, the new owner often feels that its their right to have their name on everything that comes out, even if they weren't around when those things were originally made.

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Originally Posted by Dick 

And, having mentioned his name, let me submit that the world's worst film logo was that horrible, amateurish Turner Entertainment one which, fortunately, is all but gone from DVDs and Blu-rays. 

Agreed!  Unfortunately it still lingers on - I saw it recently on one of the Warner Archive DVD titles.

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Originally Posted by JohnMor 

Warner doesn't seem to replace any logo but their own as a rule.  If they wanted to replace the RKO or MGM logos, they would have by now. I doubt they ever will (or would.)  I firmly believe they have some in-house policy regarding their own logos that leads to the constant replacement (short of the one built into the film).

Turner Entertainment or Warner Bros actual restored the RKO logo on many films where it had been removed when the films were sold to TV in the 1950's. This includes the title card where RKO presents was removed. Sometimes the title card is just a still and the film jumps to the rest of the credits instead of a fade. Warner also restored the Paramount logo to most the Popeye cartoons it released on DVD.

Its a shame the Flash Gordon and Buck Rogers serials with Buster Crabbe are missing the original Universal logo. Buck Rogers is showing on TCM and the logo is not there.
 

I still like the old Columbia Pictures intro from the late 70s/80s.

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Originally Posted by Douglas R 

I'm sure if Warner Bros had to pay MGM for the use of Leo the Lion they would have scrapped the logo from the films long ago! I suspect that when Ted Turner bought the MGM library from Kirk Kerkorian, it included the right to keep the original logos on the films - having "MGM" films was a status symbol for Turner. Kerkorian retained the right to use the logo but he was only really interested in having it for his hotel.  

 

Actually Ted Turner bought all of MGM/UA and then sold off everything but the MGM/RKO / pre 48 films Warner back to Kerkorian  and others, the actual MGM studio was sold to Lorimar.. Since Turner was the owner of everything he probably could negoatiate the use of the logos as part of the sale.

Yes, there are a few, rare MGM DVDs that have retained the 70s-era UA logo.  Off the top of my head, JEREMY contains the UA Transamerica logo. 

As for the Saul Bass-designed Warner Communications logo, on Blu-ray, it is also retained on the DIRTY HARRY films that it originally appeared in front of.
 

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Originally Posted by Dick 

 

Walt Disney is even worse than Warner Bros. even on VHS they used to plaster their "Blue Castle Logo" on nearly everything, and now that they have the CGI logo, that one is put everywhere. The Nightmare Before Christmas was a Touchstone release, and now carries the Disney Logo. Toy Story 1 and 2 used to have specially made CGI logos with music by Randy Newman, but those are gone as well. Beauty and the Beast doesn't have the Blue Castle logo anymore. Surely this doesn't have anything to do with rights?

One thing that completely puts me off about the otherwise incredible Twilight Zone Blu-rays:

At the end of each episode (or at least the ones I've watched all the way through), they include the original CBS network billboard, followed by a brand spanking new CGI CBS one that takes me right out of the moment every time.

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Originally Posted by Brian Borst 

Walt Disney is even worse than Warner Bros. even on VHS they used to plaster their "Blue Castle Logo" on nearly everything, and now that they have the CGI logo, that one is put everywhere. The Nightmare Before Christmas was a Touchstone release, and now carries the Disney Logo. Toy Story 1 and 2 used to have specially made CGI logos with music by Randy Newman, but those are gone as well. Beauty and the Beast doesn't have the Blue Castle logo anymore. Surely this doesn't have anything to do with rights?

 

I have a bad feeling about the fate of the Buena Vista logos on any film from 1954 until the early 1980s that reaches Blu-Ray.

You're right!  I'd forgotten about the audio when I was posting that.

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Originally Posted by TravisR 

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Originally Posted by Chas in CT 

One thing that completely puts me off about the otherwise incredible Twilight Zone Blu-rays:

 

At the end of each episode (or at least the ones I've watched all the way through), they include the original CBS network billboard, followed by a brand spanking new CGI CBS one that takes me right out of the moment every time.

 

I don't really care that they added a new logo as much as they feel the need to BLAST THE LOGO'S MUSIC AS LOUD AS POSSIBLE compared to the rest of the audio on the episode. It's like commercials where they're annoyingly loud so it'll catch your attention.

I hate that too. No wonder so many sound mixers are losing their hearing. CBS/Paramount puts it on everything, even the DVD of The Boys in the Band.

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Originally Posted by TravisR 

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Originally Posted by Chas in CT 

One thing that completely puts me off about the otherwise incredible Twilight Zone Blu-rays:

 

At the end of each episode (or at least the ones I've watched all the way through), they include the original CBS network billboard, followed by a brand spanking new CGI CBS one that takes me right out of the moment every time.

 

I don't really care that they added a new logo as much as they feel the need to BLAST THE LOGO'S MUSIC AS LOUD AS POSSIBLE compared to the rest of the audio on the episode. It's like commercials where they're annoyingly loud so it'll catch your attention.

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Originally Posted by Chas in CT 

You're right!  I'd forgotten about the audio when I was posting that.

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Originally Posted by MatthewA 

I hate that too. No wonder so many sound mixers are losing their hearing. CBS/Paramount puts it on everything, even the DVD of The Boys in the Band.

I will say I was VERY pleasantly surprised to find that on The Lucy Show: Season 4 eps, the sound for the CBS/Paramount logo is at normal volume.  I was shocked.  Hopefully it's a sign of the future and not just a fluke.  But it was at normal level after each ep in the set, so I'm very hopeful. 

I personally was pleasantly surprised to see the original 70s Warner logo on the BluRay of "Dirty Harry" (on DVD, they used a latter version, probably from the 80s).

Re: "The Godfather" - the new Paramount logos are disturbing, and the sepia effect does little to help - in fact, it feels rather artificial. Also, the extended restoration credits do disturb me (they were perfect the way they were before, with the music and all).

I could be wrong but I think Robert Harris mentioned under The Godfather thread (I think) and I hope I am right that originally The Godfather opened without the Paramount logo at all in its original theatrical release.

I know I picked up three recent classics - The Outlaw Josey Wales (Logo replaced by a new one that seems fitting to the films color scheme, yet for the trouble just release it as it was please)

Man Who Would Be King contains an old Allied Artists AP Green Background logo so that was nice. (I take it this was never a Warner film. Also Papillon opens with a New WB logo without that distracting "You Must Remember This" I believe this was a Allied Artist film also so it may not ever have followed a logo opening.

I love it when the films logo is built into the film and can't be changed. Much like The Omega Man, or Who's That Girl (animated opening, Madonna's Character comes thru the WB logo like opening a door.)

Besides Dirty Harry with the clasic Saul Bass logo, Enter The Dragon contains the same logo on the BLU. If it ever gets issued with uncompressed audio I dread it being cut.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yWoci4V3kFw

It would be cool to gather a listing of films that never contained a studio intro logo at all. (In a lot of cases they are added in on subsequent releases)

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Originally Posted by Mark Edward Heuck 

Just a hunch, but I believe that the Saul Bass "ugly W" logo is still being used by the Warner Music Group (WB Records, Elektra, Atlantic, etc), which, it should be pointed out, is NOT owned by Time Warner anymore (they may still have a minority stake). As such, perhaps WB has been removing the Bass W logo from older WB titles because they don't want to continue the association between them and a company they no longer are affilated with, or maybe Warner Music asked them to remove them to avoid confusing people. Granted, WB Records still use the shield as their logo on CDs and such, but that could be in the separation contract, just as Universal Music still uses the globe logo even though that music company is also no longer directly owned by Universal Studios (Vivendi has the music label and video games, Comcast has the studio).

Well beauty is in the eye of the beholder.

But you have a very valid point.  Warner Bros continues to use the MGM, and RKO logos on the titles they own and have been pretty good about using original logos when they can.  There must be a legal reason to remove the logo unless it is Incorporated into the opening titles.  I would also expect Columbia asked to have their logo removed from The Cardinal and Advise and Consent, or from the Preminger estate.