Scary Logos Wiki
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Logos[]

1st logo (January 10, 1924-December 31, 1927)[]

On a dark gray background with arch clouds below, there is a female Roman soldier dressed in a soldier's outfit, covered in a toga, holding a shield in her left hand and holding a grain of wheat (or possibly festuca, associated with Libertas) in her right hand. There is the text "COLUMBIA PICTURES CORPORATION Presents" with "COLUMBIA PICTURES" appearing in an arched text and the text "CORPORATION" underneath the arched words in a straight line and the text "Presents" below.

2nd logo (January 1, 1928-June 12, 1936)[]

There is a medium shot of a lady (Columbia, a representation of the USA), holding a light torch in her right hand. The lady is featured with a dark bob and a kind of Cleopatra-like headdress across her forehead. She is draped in an American flag complete with the stars on her left shoulder and the stripes coming across her middle, supported by her left arm, and hanging down her right side. Her torch is displayed with a rather primitive, flickering style of animation emitting lines of light as rays. The Torch Lady's head is under an arch of chiseled, square-shaped letters reading the words "A COLUMBIA PRODUCTION" or "A COLUMBIA PICTURE". At the end of the movie, or short subject the words are "THIS IS A COLUMBIA PICTURE" with "The End" below it in a script font.

Variants[]

  • Earlier movies until 1932 would feature the name in a different typeface, and will sometimes read as "COLUMBIA PICTURES CORPORATION" at the start of the film (sometimes also with the word "Presents" below, in a script font), and "A COLUMBIA PRODUCTION" at the end of the film, like on The Miracle Woman.
  • Another variation consists of the words "A COLUMBIA PRODUCTION" and "The End" below. It was spotted on The Miracle Woman, Platinum Blonde, Three Wise Girls, The Final Edition, American Madness, and the Three Stooges short "Restless Knights".
  • A rare opening variation has the words "COLUMBIA PICTURES" on top and "Presents" below. It was spotted on The Pagan Lady, The Guilty Generation, The Secret Witness, and the early John Wayne film Maker of Men (all 1931).
  • There is another closing variant that has the words "COLUMBIA PICTURES", with "The End" appearing below, which can be found at the end of The Secret Witness and Forbidden (1932).
  • In 2004, Columbia TriStar Home Entertainment released several Three Stooges shorts by having the Torch Lady in color, and the words are in yellow.

3rd logo (June 13, 1936-April 5, 1976)[]

There is the lady, this time standing on top of a pedestal with a backdrop of clouds over her, while she is holding her light torch. Much more refined, ethereal and goddess-like, her facial features became less pronounced and she looked away (up and to the right) instead of straight ahead. Her headdress was removed and her hair swept back instead of hanging by the sides of her face. The drape over her shoulder became less-obviously an American flag, the stars on the left shoulder having been toned down in a shadow, and the stripes visible only on the portion of the drape hanging down her right side. "A COLUMBIA PRODUCTION" was replaced with the tall chiseled letters of "COLUMBIA" (which fades in a second afterward) running straight across the top section of the screen, with the lady's torch glowing in front of the "U". A new form of animation was used on the logo as well, with a torch that radiates light instead of flickers. Until the mid-1960s, this logo would also appear at the end of films, sometimes with the words "The End" in a script font.

Variants[]

  • Starting in 1974, the company byline "A DIVISION OF COLUMBIA PICTURES INDUSTRIES, INC." appears at the bottom of the screen.
  • 1942: The lady looks much like she did in 1936, only the stripes were removed and the flag became simply a drape without markings (the Sony website implies that the change was to coincide with a new law that forbade the usage of the American flag as clothing), dark on the left shoulder but only the shadows of the folds differentiating the rest of it from the lady's white gown on her right side. The "COLUMBIA" lettering was also modified, still chiseled but less bold, and with darker shadowing.
  • July 17, 1953: The Columbia Lady's robe was redrawn with a plunging neckline. The logo is also adapted for widescreen.
  • January 26, 1955: The logo is adapted for CinemaScope. The Torch Lady lost her slipper-clad foot peeking out from the bottom of her robe as it divided just above the pedestal. Also, the clouds behind the logo became concentrated in the center and more billowy in shape.
  • April 1968-December 12, 1973, April 5, 1974, August 1, 1976: The drapery was temporarily pink during this era. Some films that feature this variant include The Swimmer, Where Angels Go, Trouble Follows!, Funny Girl, The Wrecking Crew, MacKenna's Gold, Easy Rider, Castle Keep, Cactus Flower, Five Easy Pieces, The Anderson Tapes, Dollars ($), The Horsemen, Brian's Song, Nicholas and Alexandra, Monty Python's And Now for Something Completely Different, 1776, Lost Horizon (1973), The Way We Were, The Last Detail, The Golden Voyage of Sinbad, Tommy, and Brian De Palma's Obsession.
  • On the Three Stooges short "Disorder in the Court" and the 1936 western Stampede, "PRESENTS" appears below.
  • On The Three Stooges shorts from 1940-1945, the 1936 (or 1942) Torch Lady appears on the left side of The Three Stooges title card. On the steps are the words "COLUMBIA" on top, "SHORT SUBJECT" in the middle, and "PRESENTATION" on the bottom step.
  • On the 1976 film Taxi Driver, the logo is on a black background with blue clouds and had all of the text appearing at the same time.
  • On the 1948 Three Stooges short "Fuelin' Around", the 1968 logo in black & white was seen at the beginning. Obviously, this plastered the Screen Gems logo on some TV prints, with/without the original music. This variant was seen on said short when reran on The Family Channel in the mid '90s.
  • On 3D movies produced by the company, a 3D version of this logo was employed. Depth was as followed: the Torch Lady was closest to the screen, with "COLUMBIA" slightly behind her, and the cloud background farthest back.
  • An ending variant was used on serials in the '30s and '40s. Along the bottom, it would read "A Columbia Serial" along the bottom. These were used on the Batman serials among others.
  • Another ending variant existed for short subjects, as well as the standard "The End" additional text below would read "A Columbia Short Subject Presentation". This is seen on Three Stooges shorts and often accompanies the aforementioned title card variant.

4th logo (April 6, 1976-June 25, 1982)[]

It begins with the familiar Columbia Torch Lady (a less-detailed yellow-toned 1942 Torch Lady), standing on the pedestal holding her light torch against the backdrop of clouds. Then, the picture moves upward and towards the torch as the rays pull in, which shines even more as the picture blurs around it. It then emits a flash that fills the screen. When the flash dissolves, the light torch itself appears, as if in sunburst, against a black screen and as it shrinks, it changes into a more "abstract" torch: a blue half circle, or a semicircle, with thirteen white light rays in the center and the words "Columbia Pictures" in Souvenir font under it. The entire logo then slowly backs away as it fades out.

Variant[]

When viewed in 4:3 full-frame, there are varying versions where there is her pedestal. There are close and medium views. There is a far view version in 1.85:1 on the US Blu-ray release of Tommy.

5th logo (June 26, 1981-June 12, 1993)[]

There is the standard Columbia Torch Lady (a somewhat less detailed version of the '70s Torch Lady) standing on a pedestal with her torch against the backdrop of clouds. The torch then shines into a bright abstract shape, as if in sunburst, then dims back in place. The words "Columbia Pictures" (appearing in the same font from the last logo) fade to the left and right of the Torch Lady. Her torch "shines".

Variants[]

  • When viewed in full screen, there are varying versions where there is her pedestal. There are close, medium and far views.
  • Starting around 1989, the logo fades in and then the company name fades in about a second afterward. There was no big bright light in this variation.
  • This logo was also used for the first half of the Triumph Films logo in 1982.
  • On a 1986 HBO airing and the 1985 VHS of Starman and the original UK VHS release of Flatliners, the logo's original aspect ratio was squeezed into 4:3 full screen.
  • Oddly, on the original 1993 video releases of A League of Their Own and A Few Good Men, they have a shortened version of the sunburst logo. The first film fades in as the sunburst retracts, while the second film fades in when the sunburst flares in. Current prints of said films, however, have the standard 1989 logo.

Closing Variants[]

  • From 1989-April 30, 1993, Columbia's print logo was featured scrolling at the end of the movies' closing credits. This features the Torch Lady with the "sunburst" from the 1981-1989 variation of the opening logo. The phrase, appearing in the same font as the opening logo, reads "A Columbia Pictures Release" underneath. An earlier version of this didn't include the print logo, but rather the text instead. A few movies such as Ghostbusters II, Welcome Home and Year of the Comet have the words in a different font (the latter two films did not even feature the print logo, as did The Adventures of Baron Munchausen, When Harry Met Sally... and Misery). This would stop regular use on August 28, 1992, with the release of Honeymoon in Vegas, but this made a surprise appearance on The Pickle.
  • Another one would feature the same closing logo, but would use "COLUMBIA PICTURES" in Bank Gothic font with the SPE byline below. On A River Runs Through It and El Mariachi, as well as Castle Rock films, the words "RELEASED BY" appear on top. Used from September 23, 1992-May 14, 1993. A variant also appeared at the end of Josh and S.A.M., released on November 24, 1993. In this one, it has "A COLUMBIA PICTURES RELEASE" above the "RELEASED BY" variant, while the movie itself would use the 1993 logo at the beginning. The possible reason for this is that it was delayed; a teaser for said film, which was found on the 1993 VHS releases of Single White Female and Mr. Saturday Night, had it originally intended for a spring 1993 release, but when it finally came to theaters, Columbia might have replaced the 1989 logo with their new logo, but didn't touch the credit logo. Another example of Sony's poor editing habits.
  • On Sibling Rivalry, the closing logo is based on the 1981-1989 print logo: it has the Torch Lady with sunburst inside a dome (which might have been a precursor to the current 1993 print logo, using a box motif) with "Columbia Pictures" below. Below that is "A COLUMBIA PICTURES RELEASE".
  • Eat a Bowl of Tea has the "Torch Lady in a Dome" print logo with "A Columbia Pictures Release" below it.
  • There are two versions of the Torch Lady print logo. One with a short lady and the big sunburst, which was the one seen inside the dome, but would occasionally appear without the dome. A later version was introduced in 1989, with a smaller sunburst and the Torch Lady appears taller and slimmer and more cleaned up in design. No dome was used for this version.

6th logo (June 13, 1993-)[]

  • Columbia pictures
    1993-2006: This logo has a face lifted Torch Lady from 1936-1976 on her pedestal on a sky background filled with cumulonimbus clouds, giving more detail to the drawing. First, there is a bright light, as if in sunburst, with the cloud background fading in a brief second later. The light is coming from a torch, which zooms out to reveal the lady who's holding it. After the lady, along with the cloud background, are fully zoomed out, on the top "COLUMBIA", seen in a bold, silver chiseled font, fades in afterwards as a ring of light shimmers around the lady, while the cloud background very slowly moves to the right.
  • 2006-2014: Starting with The Holiday, released on December 8, 2006, the logo was given a more "enhanced" look, similar to the 2001 Columbia TriStar Home Entertainment logo and Michael J. Deas' original artwork of the logo, which can be seen here. The hand is in a different pose in which her finger is at the tip of the torch. The sky is also darker and the "COLUMBIA" text has more silver in it and is slightly off-center. Trailers and TV spots, however, continued to use the 1993 version of the logo until 2008. On The Holiday, it shows the logo already formed; the fully animated variant debuted on Ghost Rider, as between those two films, the 1993 version was still used until The Messengers.
  • 2014-2022: Starting with The Amazing Spider-Man 2, released on May 2, 2014, the logo is preceded by the Sony Corporation logo. This involves the addition of blurry parting clouds with a very bright light between them. The light gets brighter until the clouds are apart and then it fades to the traditional zoom out from the torch.
  • 2022-: Starting with Uncharted, released on February 15, 2022.

Variants[]

  • Starting with the release of The Craft on May 3, 1996, "a SONY PICTURES ENTERTAINMENT company" appears on the bottom. It is slightly off center. However, some post-1996 films such as I Know What You Did Last Summer, Dance with Me, and John Carpenter's Vampires may have this logo without the byline, while trailers and TV spots continued to use the bylineless version of the logo until 1999. The last film to use this byline was Captain Phillips, released on October 11, 2013.
  • In 2014, the byline was shortened to "a Sony Company", with the orange-yellow color of the previous byline changed to a bronze. This version was first spotted on The Monuments Men and the official trailers for The Amazing Spider-Man 2 and 22 Jump Street.
  • In 1999, the company celebrated its 75th anniversary. The beginning of the logo started off with the 1936 logo of Columbia Pictures in black & white, leaving the 1993 cloud background intact. The Torch Lady then slowly morphs into the current Torch Lady as the effects from black & white later turn to color. As the camera zooms back, we see a red arched banner dropping from above saying "SEVENTY-FIFTH ANNIVERSARY LIGHTING UP SCREENS AROUND THE WORLD" and the Torch Lady standing on the pedestal, where we see a red box with the gold, giant chiseled name "COLUMBIA" inside on top, and the small word "PICTURES" below in spaced-out letters. We also see the gold giant number "75" unfolding in between the Torch Lady.
  • There is one version where the left and right sides of the cloud background are stretched out more and the Torch Lady and the "COLUMBIA" text, along with the byline, are zoomed out a little.
  • At the end of Black Hawk Down, the logo zooms out to a much further distance than usual, revealing the bottom of the cloud background below the pedestal. This is because the film was shot in Super 35 1.66:1 negative ratio, and framed for 2.39:1 scope. This variant is seen on 4:3 prints of the film, which exposes more vertical information that was not meant to be seen. This variant can also be found on a trailer for Erin Brockovich (2000).
  • On a few Columbia Pictures licensed video games, such as Ghostbusters: Sanctum of Slime and The Smurfs, the print version, seen on most DVD covers of Columbia films, appears on a white background, with the text in black and the byline below the stacked words.
  • The superimposed closing variant features the Torch Lady (and the cloud background) placed inside a rectangular box. The torch, and the cloud BG, overlap the top of the box. Next to the logo are the words "COLUMBIA PICTURES", with "COLUMBIA" over "PICTURES". The phrase below the text reads "A COLUMBIA PICTURES RELEASE" or "RELEASED BY" above the logo with the SPE byline underneath the logo. Starting with American Hustle, the byline was shortened to "a Sony Company", though the older SPE byline made a surprise appearance on Pixels, released on July 24, 2015.
  • One early closing variant of such featured the boxed Torch Lady logo at center, with "COLUMBIA PICTURES" and the SPE byline below one another. Sometimes, the text and byline are smaller and the logo is bigger to fit the width of the text.
  • Some movies have "RELEASED BY" above the logo. This variant was previously very rare but now it's becoming increasingly common starting with The Angry Birds Movie.

Music/Sounds[]

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The intro of any movie.

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A majestic horn sounder, much like the Fox logo, or the opening/closing theme of the short or feature.

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Usually, the beginning/end of a movie's score plays over the logo. On some films, the logo appears completely silent. However, on several mid to late '30s Three Stooges shorts, it has a majestic theme before playing the Stooges' theme. On several other films, it would have a different theme.

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It begins with a dramatic theme that builds up as the camera zooms in on the torch, and with the flash/sunburst, it takes an inspirational, majestic tone. This theme was composed by Suzanne Ciani. Of course, like many other movie logos, this could also be silent or have the opening music from any soundtrack play over it, but usually not.

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Usually, it is silent or has the opening theme of the movie or music from any given soundtrack playing over it.

Music/Sounds Variants[]

  • On the DVD release of Big Trouble (1986), the 1984 Australian VHS of Christine, a mid '80s Australian VHS of Tough Guys (1974; plastering the previous logo), a 1988 Goodtimes Home Video VHS of The Amsterdam Kill (plastering the 3rd logo), and the 1999 Australian VHS of The Karate Kid, it has the Sunburst music from the previous logo.
  • On post-2005 prints of Stripes, as well as some foreign dub tracks of Tootsie, the fanfare from the next below is strangely heard. It is unknown whether these instances were attempts at plastering or placement choices when making the audio remixes/dubbing.
  • On Pulse (1988), there's the rather distinct sound of a flame burst which is dubbed into the soundtrack as the torch on the Columbia logo ignites. This is a reference to the Pulse in the film taking control.
  • On a Portuguese print of Stone Cold, this has the 1995 MGM lion roar, due to a reverse plastering error.

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A majestic tune is heard, which ends with a brass sounder. Composed by JonathanElias.There are three versions of the fanfare: one that sounds orchestrated that's played by a piano with orchestration, one that sounds more synthesized, and the third, which was first heard on John Carpenter's Vampires, released on October 30, 1998, has both themes mixed in together. All three have the same ending. Starting with Sex Tape, released on July 18, 2014, extra build-up is added at the beginning, to match up with the parting clouds. Sometimes, it is silent, or has the opening theme to any given film.

Music/Sounds Variants[]

  • On the Open Season short "Boog & Elliot's Midnight Bun Run" and The ChubbChubbs Save Xmas, the first half of the Sony Pictures Animation logo music can be heard during the logo, before the Columbia logo cuts into the mentioned logo as the music finishes.
  • There is a high tone theme on such films like The Pink Panther, Open Season, Casino Royale (2006), The Pursuit of Happiness, Catch and Release, Ghost Rider, Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs, How Do You Know, the 2012 remake of Total Recall, and Hotel Transylvania.
  • On Finding Forrester, a guitar version of the theme is heard.
  • There is also a double-pitched (very high tone) version of the theme, which can be heard on Hollow Man and The Messenger: The Story of Joan of Arc.
  • On Palmetto, yet another arrangement of the theme is heard without cymbal hits, ending smoothly with synthesized flutes. This variant was only seen on the original Columbia TriStar releases, as the current releases remove this logo (prior to Time Warner owning Castle Rock library, as Palmetto is a Castle Rock film).
  • It is believed that on the Sony region 2 DVDs of Evolution (2002), the 5.1 English track contains the DreamWorks jingle. Oddly enough, a similar thing happened on the DreamWorks logo on the R1 DVD when the 2.0 English track is selected and the 1993 CP jingle is heard.

Scare Factor[]

1st logo[]

None to low.

2nd logo[]

Low to medium. The loud music and dark atmosphere could get to some.

3rd logo[]

None to low, due to the dark atmosphere.

4th logo[]

None to minimal. This is a favorite of many.

5th logo[]

Minimal for the sunburst version. None for the short version.

6th logo[]

None. This logo has a beautiful fanfare and a soothing backdrop, and is a favorite of many. [[Category:Disturbing/Offensive Logos]

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