Closing logos of Screen Gems
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This is a guide to the various closing logos used at the end of Screen Gems television programs.
Logos history: The \"S from Hell and the S from Heaven\"
The most well-known Screen Gems closing logo (known by some as the "Filmstrip S", and also referred to as the "S From Hell") was developed for Screen Gems in the mid-1960s, and first used in 1965.
It starts with a tiny parallelogram coming forward from the top of the screen and a huge one backing away from the bottom. As they grow in length and wrap around a space where a dot appears, they form a stylized "S." At that very same moment, the words "SCREEN GEMS" quickly pop in, increasing rapidly in size. The two parallelograms are supposed to represent a strip of film travelling around a sprocket (the 'dot').
Overall, the strips do form an 'S', but looking at the sprocket and the lower strip, you will see a lower case 'g', representing the 'Gems' half. In 1973 the words "A DIVISION OF COLUMBIA PICTURES INDUSTRIES, INC." appeared underneath the Screen Gems name. The upper half of the logo resembles as a spiral "6".
From 1965 to 1970, the music consisted of six notes, followed by two synthesized upward arpeggios. By 1970, the music was shortened to three notes and the two arpeggios. The colors of the logo changed along with it.
In 1965, there was a black-and-white representation as well as a red on gold representation. In 1971, a black (or blue) on gold version was added.
Finally, in 1973, it was grey on gold. Viewers have often referred to the logo as scary and cite the rough animation and the music as contributing factors to this perception. Some have even claimed that it caused nightmares resulting in them not wanting to watch the shows that featured this logo.
The short version was also used when Columbia Pictures Television unveiled its "CPT Pretzel" logo in 1974. The letters C-P-T appear one by one, with the "T" appearing in the top center while the screen moves outward on a red background, to form the points of a triangle, before merging together to form a pretzel-like shape. On either side of the logo's stem are the words "COLUMBIA PICTURES" and below that is "TELEVISION" and under the logo is "A DIVISION OF COLUMBIA PICTURES INDUSTRIES, INC." A version of this music with electric piano was heard in the Pretzel logo seen at the end of the 1976 Emmy-nominated TV movie, The Lindbergh Kidnapping Case. The "Filmstrip S" music was finally "retired" in 1976, when Columbia Pictures Television unveiled its new "Abstract Torch" closing logo and jingle.
For nearly three decades, the "Filmstrip S" would be frequently replaced by newer Columbia Pictures Television logos on reruns of Screen Gems shows from this era. However, on current TV Land reruns of Bewitched and I Dream of Jeannie, Sony Pictures Television's current "Silver Bars" closing logo immediately follows the "Filmstrip S" logo; the DVD releases of both shows, however, do not.
Some people have reported being traumatized by the music the logo used from 1965-1974. The tune, composed by Eric Siday and Van Alexander, was an early electronic music piece featuring an electric piano and filtered brass instruments, all run through a reverb effect. The resulting "off-balance" sound, combined with the stark look of the animation, bothered some people (especially those who were children at the time) enough that the combination would eventually be nicknamed "The S From Hell". It is often cited (with other closing logos such as Viacom's "Big Purple V" and Paramount's rushing horizontal bar, punctuated with the brief theme song known as "Closet Killer") as one of the scariest production logos ever made.
When Sony brought back the Screen Gems name for its specialty film division, the "S" logo was also resurrected and updated. On a black background, a flash of light forms an icy blue dot. As the curved lines of the S come into view from the flat position, a series of ITC-like tops spin around them. Shortly before the symbol is complete, the Screen Gems reference, in the same color, flips in from the bottom. The following byline, "A SONY PICTURES ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY," lights up underneath the reference. The music starts with a rising orchestra, then to an extremely majestic/inspirational 9-note tune. This logo is called the "S from Heaven" due to its more pleasant animation and music.
Screen Gems TV logo history
- No logo (1948-1952)
- Television Tube (A Screen Gems Inc. Production "Presentation/Film Production" (1952-1955)
- Torch Lady w/ giant "SCREEN GEMS" (A "SCREEN GEMS" Film Presentation/Film Production Television Subsidiary Columbia Pictures Corporation) (1955-1960)
- Torch Lady w/o clouds with "SCREEN GEMS" below (Male voiceover:"This has been a Screen Gems Film Presentation from the Hollywood studios of Columbia Pictures") (1960-1963)
- Screen Gems Dancing Sticks (1963-1965)
- Filmstrip "S" or the "S from Hell" (1965-1974)
- *"A Division of Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc." (1973-1974)
- Torch Lady from 1992 CPT logo (Screen Gems Network) (1999-2001)
- "CGI Filmstrip S" or the "S from Heaven" (1999-present)
External links
- [Television Without Pity article on the logo]
- [John S. Flack, Jr's Tribute to the S From Hell] (Contains Audio and Video)
- [The Scary Logo Shrine, a group on YouTube that has videos of "scary" logos including the "S From Hell"]
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