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

[MatthewA]

Original theatrical prints for BLAZING SADDLES did open first with the Bass W, followed by the flaming WB shield.Absurdly, the Blu-Ray replaces the Bass W with the modern Burbank-spin-to-shield logo, and *still* goes to the burning shield afterward. Why not just start with the burning shield at that point?

I agree. I first saw the film in the old Warner Home Video pan-and-scan laserdisc because, for no good reason at all, there was no widescreen version until DVD. And boy oh boy, did the print they used for that transfer looked like it had been dragged across the lone prairie. But the Saul Bass W wasn't there and it did just start with the burning shield. It should be there because the burning of the shield is a symbol of how casually Hollywood discards the past sometimes.

 

[Powell&Pressburger]

I nice member over on the Blu-Ray.com UK thread noted that the Arrow UK Limited Edition release of Thief contains the original United Artist opening logo. (this title is REGION B LOCKED)

 

[Vahan_Nisanain]

I nice member over on the Blu-Ray.com UK thread noted that the Arrow UK Limited Edition release of Thief contains the original United Artist opening logo. (this title is REGION B LOCKED)

And speaking of United Artists...


The 1958 British film The Horse's Mouth (Directed by Ronald Neame and starring Alec Guinness) originally began with a UA Hexagon. It is intact on the Criterion DVD. Looks beautiful, too.

 

[ClassicTVMan1981X]

While I know this is about opening logos, but speaking of closing logos, I wish we could campaign to CBS Studios to stop replacing the 1968-2003 Paramount Television logos on such DVD sets as Happy Days (season 2 on), Laverne & Shirley (season 2 on), Taxi and others. I know they did preserve the original logos on the DVD sets for all five seasons of The Brady Bunch as well as all seven seasons of MacGyver.


Season 1 of The Odd Couple, as released by Time-Life, did preserve the original 1969 and '70 Paramount TV logos but subsequent seasons released by CBS Home Entertainment did the usual plastering practices. That means we'll no longer hear the unique version of the Lalo Schifrin fanfare heard on season 5 (1974-75).


~Ben

 

[Vahan_Nisanain]

Powell&Pressburger, are you sure the UA logo seen on the Criterion DVD of Thief is the original? I saw a picture of it, and it was the 1982 Turning UA. The original print had the 1975-1981 logo.



Look at the bottom-right corner of poster.

 

[Powell&Pressburger]

Not the Criterion but only on the UK Arrow Video release of the bonus Limited disc of the theatrical cut edition only. the Dir cut only features an updated logo.

 

[Vahan_Nisanain]

Not the Criterion but only on the UK Arrow Video release of the bonus Limited disc of the theatrical cut edition only. the Dir cut only features an updated logo.

Right. But like I said, the Turning UA was NOT on the original print of the film. The individual who said that was mistaken.


One way to usually determine how a film originally opened, is to look at the distributor logo on the original poster, like the Thief example.

 

[Powell&Pressburger]

Got Ya I will remove that one from the listing then. I am still waiting on my disc so I can't confirm myself.


I was going to update that info on the main original post of the thread but I suppose my post had the listing that I created and added to etc deleted from the post. Sorry folks. I suspect that someone found that thread unhelpful as a resource.

 

[Brian McP]

Sorry -- I seemingly must be in the minority, but I love the updated studio logos ahead of classic rereleases of movies theatrically or on home video. My favorite was the one for United Artists from the early 90s (or was it first used for "Goldeneye"?)


To me it demonstrates that there must have been some decent restoration work done to the original movie in the first place, if only to make it seem seemless the transition between the new logo sequence and the restored classic it is attached to.


Also it highlights the fact that film is timeless -- something with modern special effects or graphics and then a wonderous movie that usually looks and sounds magnificent -- it gives me the sense of seeing a great movie, the day it opened, but the updated studio logo sequence grounds it in today.


I like also when a studio puts their present logo sequence ahead of a movie it has bought to add to the studio's library -- for example, I recently got "It's A Wonderful Life" on bluray -- it had the Paramount logo sequence from the late 2000s and went straight into the Liberty Films logo sequence then into the movie -- that too I love and have seen it many times, usually with reissues of United Artists movies these days.


BUT I do hate it when some small 'studio' or production company puts their own company's logo ahead of a movie that may be in public domain or has no studio headers at all. It reminds me of all the crummy video distributors of the 1980s who'd put their logo ahead of some movie and state they 'proudly present' whatever poor movie they picked up and probably run into the ground -- that would be comparable to war crimes to me and not even The Hague could save such people from what some buffs (including me) would consider appropriate for these folks.

 

[Josh Steinberg]

I like what Paramount did on the recent "Wings" restoration - it starts with the newest Paramount logo and then transitions through all the different versions over the years until finally it arrives at the logo that originally opened the movie. I thought that was a really neat touch for the first Best Picture winner.

 

[Garysb]

While I know this is about opening logos, but speaking of closing logos, I wish we could campaign to CBS Studios to stop replacing the 1968-2003 Paramount Television logos on such DVD sets as Happy Days (season 2 on), Laverne & Shirley (season 2 on), Taxi and others. I know they did preserve the original logos on the DVD sets for all five seasons of The Brady Bunch as well as all seven seasons of MacGyver.


Season 1 of The Odd Couple, as released by Time-Life, did preserve the original 1969 and '70 Paramount TV logos but subsequent seasons released by CBS Home Entertainment did the usual plastering practices. That means we'll no longer hear the unique version of the Lalo Schifrin fanfare heard on season 5 (1974-75).


~Ben

I don't know this to be a fact, but it could be the Paramount, which no longer owns the TV series since CBS became a separate company from Viacom, does not want its logo on DVDs released after the split. Though Paramount generally put whatever its current logo was on the TV DVD releases when they owned them. As the CBS video is now the current logo, this could just be a continuation of this. This is a long thread so i was wondering if anyone discussed the possibility of their being some legal reason, such as copyright and/or trademark protection, for the most current logos to be used. .

 

[Dick]

If you haven't guessed, the Transamerica UA logos from 1967 to 1981 are my favorites by far. Mainly because they are all near extinction.

The color version of the animated Transamerica "T" logo has finally shown up on Blu, on the Twilight Time Blu-ray of EQUUS. Nice to finally see this, as it's been nice seeing the occasional Saul Bass Warner Bros. logo lately.

 

[Jon Hertzberg]

Right. But like I said, the Turning UA was NOT on the original print of the film. The individual who said that was mistaken.


One way to usually determine how a film originally opened, is to look at the distributor logo on the original poster, like the Thief example.

I've seen THIEF projected on 35mm and the print did open with the turning "paperclip" logo. Joe Harnell's music for that logo did not play over the logo. Instead, the sound of rain from the THIEF soundtrack played over the logo, as is the case on the Blu-ray and other home editions of the film.

 

[Vahan_Nisanain]

I've seen THIEF projected on 35mm and the print did open with the turning "paperclip" logo. Joe Harnell's music for that logo did not play over the logo. Instead, the sound of rain from the THIEF soundtrack played over the logo, as is the case on the Blu-ray and other home editions of the film.

Then it must have been a reissue. I once came upon a 16mm copy of Diamonds Are Forever with the 1982 UA logo, and that one clearly originally had the 1968 logo.


Thief was released in 1980, when Transamerica still owned UA. UA's relationship with Transamerica ended in 1981, after 14 years, due to the massive failure of Heaven's Gate. The first VHS release of Thief was by Magnetic Video in late 1981; the UA logo used was freeze-framed to hide the Transamerica references.

 

[Jon Hertzberg]

Then it must have been a reissue. I once came upon a 16mm copy of Diamonds Are Forever with the 1982 UA logo, and that one clearly originally had the 1968 logo.


Thief was released in 1980, when Transamerica still owned UA. UA's relationship with Transamerica ended in 1981, after 14 years, due to the massive failure of Heaven's Gate. The first VHS release of Thief was by Magnetic Video in late 1981; the UA logo used was freeze-framed to hide the Transamerica references.

Maybe a reissue, who knows for sure, but to be precise THIEF was released in the U.S. in late March, 1981.


MGM purchased United Artists from Transamerica after the March 1981 theatrical release of THIEF, which you can read about in this New York Times article from May of '81.

 

[Garysb]

When TCM showed Klute recently, it had the WB A Kinney Company logo used prior to name change to Warner Communication and the Saul Bass W logo.

 

[Jon Hertzberg]

When TCM showed Klute recently, it had the WB A Kinney Company logo used prior to name change to Warner Communication and the Saul Bass W logo.

Yes, that's the logo I saw on an archival 35mm print of KLUTE recently. Nice to see that it survived on the tv print that TCM ran.

 

[Powell&Pressburger]

When TCM showed Klute recently, it had the WB A Kinney Company logo used prior to name change to Warner Communication and the Saul Bass W logo.

That is so cool! This is one of my favorite WB films from the 1970's I keep hoping if it finally gets a BLU release can they please include the original logo! The TCM presentation gives me hope that maybe it could happen.


I watched All the President's Men last nite on BLU and just cringed at that new CGI logo with the MUSIC! (not needed) ruins the whole intro into that movie. You should hear nothing until the typing starts. The original WB Bass logo was b/w no audio. It was perfect.

 

[Sky Captain]

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...

I just saw the opening credits on YouTube (11:25 PM local Toronto time) and while the Paramount logo is true to the eras the film's set in, the Warner logo isn't-it has the 2007 WB shield with the 'A Time Warner Company' byline when it should have the 1969 'W7' (Warner Bros.-Seven Arts) logo with the 'A Time Warner Company' at the bottom and the Time Warner eye logo next to it (for those of who who need a refresher, here's both):

To be fair, apparently logo plastering has been going on for years, with many of the companies doing it (U&M TV Corporation used to do this to the old Paramount Casper The Friendly Ghost cartoons way back when); if a company owns a movie, it's theirs, unless said movie's in the public domain in which case, no logo-this has happened with the TV shows The Hollywood Palace (originally owned by United Artists Television) and the unsold pilot for an Archie TV series that was made by Screen Gems but is no longer owned by Screen Gems's parent company Sony Pictures, both of which are at the Internet Archive. What should really matter is how good the film is.

 

[Jesse Skeen]

Sorry -- I seemingly must be in the minority, but I love the updated studio logos ahead of classic rereleases of movies theatrically or on home video. My favorite was the one for United Artists from the early 90s (or was it first used for "Goldeneye"?)


To me it demonstrates that there must have been some decent restoration work done to the original movie in the first place, if only to make it seem seemless the transition between the new logo sequence and the restored classic it is attached to.

If they want to put the new intro AHEAD of the movie then that's fine, but it's simply wrong to replace it in the actual movie. Universal discs usually show the current intro before the movie shows whatever intro originally came with it, though now the first few years of Universal DVDs now have an intro that is no longer current.