Columbia Pictures Television

Logos[]

1st logo (1974-1976)[]

Against a red background, the yellow letters "C-P-T" appear one by one as each initial appears on screen and zooming out at the same time. The "T" is in the middle of and on a higher plane than the "C" and "P", which slide upwards diagonally to merge with the "T" to form a stylized logo, which looks like a pretzel. On either side of the logo's stem are the words "COLUMBIA" and "PICTURES", and below that "TELEVISION". Under all that is the byline "A DIVISION OF COLUMBIA PICTURES INDUSTRIES INC." all in white lettering.

Variant[]

A stretched 16:9 variant was spotted on a Plus7 streaming print of Police Woman.

2nd logo (1974-2002)[]

Just a simple in-credit from the following:

Days of our Lives (1974-1983): "A CORDAY PRODUCTIONS COLUMBIA PICTURES TELEVISION PRESENTATION © (year), PRE-RECORDED".

The Young and the Restless (1974-2002): "A COLUMBIA PICTURES TELEVISION PRESENTATION in association with BELL-PHILLIP TELEVISION, INC. (later "BELL DRAMATIC SERIAL CO." in 1984) and CORDAY PRODUCTIONS, INC. Copyright © (year) by (name of CPT company) All Rights Reserved".

Dealer's Choice (1974) and The Diamond Head Game (1975): "This has been a Columbia Pictures Television Presentation". The former show had it in the Cooper Black font (later used for one of the font style for Columbia) while the latter used Peignot.

The Fun Factory (1976): This has the Fishman-Freer Productions in-credit logo with a copyright notice and below that is "in association with COLUMBIA PICTURES TELEVISION".

The Upper Hand (1990-1993): "Produced in association with COLUMBIA PICTURES TELEVISION".

Beakman's World (September 18, 1992-1997): We have the Columbia Pictures print logo in white with the words "Columbia Pictures Television Distribution" in Souvenir font (later Bank Gothic MD BT font as "COLUMBIA PICTURES TELEVISION DISTRIBUTION" in 1993) under the Torch Lady. Underneath that is the phrase "In Association With", which was later changed into "IN ASSOCIATION WITH" in all-caps since 1993. September 18, 1992-May 22, 1993, episodes have the 1989-1993 print Torch Lady with the sunburst behind her, while episodes aired between September 18, 1993-1997 have the current Torch Lady with a cloud background placed inside a box.

Miracle on Interstate 880 (February 22, 1993): "COLUMBIA PICTURES TELEVISION".

Variants[]

On S1 of The Upper Hand, it scrolls in the credits.
On The Best of Beakman's World, the phrase, "In Association With" is in the similar font as the show's credits.

3rd logo (1976-1982; 1984-1988?)[]

We see a bright torch light appear against a black screen and as it shrinks, it changes into a more "abstract" torch light. The light rays recede from the bottom to about half way with 13 symmetrical white light rays remaining. An orange half circle, or a semicircle, fades in from behind the rays and the words "Columbia Pictures Television" appear under it in a gold Souvenir font. The entire logo then slowly backs away as it fades out.

Variants[]

On occasion, the glow around the sunburst varied in brightness or was not visible at all. This was exceptionally the case during the 1980s on network TV.
On the second episode of the short-lived series Filthy Rich, titled "Town and Garden", the sunburst appears in-credit as animating on the end-title scene. The CPT logo here, however, does not have its own jingle playing; rather, the Filthy Rich closing theme plays over it.
A black & white version exists.
There is also a variant for Pay Television that reads as "COLUMBIA PICTURES PAY TELEVISION" with "PRESENTS" below in the same Cooper Black font from the Columbia Pictures Home Entertainment logo. The closing variant is the same as before, except the words "A" and "PRESENTATION" are seen above and below the CPPTV text respectively.
An ultra dark/deteriorated version was recently spotted on an episode of Fantasy Island. The sunburst appeared as a brownish color and the text was nearly invisible.

4th logo (1982-1993)[]

We see the then-current Columbia Pictures logo, the lady holding a light torch on top of a pedestal (Columbia, a representation of the USA), in her 1981-1993 incarnation against the backdrop of clouds. The words "Columbia Pictures" appear on either side of the torch lady, the word "Television" underneath, and underneath that, either the respective company byline, or sometimes nothing at all. The woman's torch "shines" after the music ends, and the words also shine lightly.

Variants[]

There are several versions of this logo, namely in bylines, company name, and animation:

1982-1989: Blue clouds/Gold company name, byline is the Coca-Cola one with "Coca-Cola" in its trademarked logo font. An early version has a very tiny Coke byline. Another version has a medium-sized byline. This was first used on Days of our Lives and The Young and the Restless in late 1982 or early 1983. Prior to this, neither show used a Columbia or Screen Gems logo, with the exception of in-credit text on Days of our Lives (see Corday Productions). 1982-1988: Teal clouds/gold company name (alternate with no byline).
1982-1988: Another version features darker clouds.
1983: Alternate gold company name with a medium-sized Coke byline.
1985: Alternate 1982 logo.
1986: On the TV movie The Canterville Ghost, there is only a static image of the logo with the Coke byline.
1986-1988: On the first season of The Real Ghostbusters, the logo would play until the theme finishes and there would be a freeze frame effect for two seconds and disappear.
1986-1988: Gold company name, smaller Coca-Cola byline with "Coca-Cola" in its trademarked logo font.
1986-1988: Gold company name, normal Coca-Cola byline, dark and muddy Torch Lady, little shining animation.
January 4, 1988-1989: Blue clouds/Gold company name, Columbia Pictures Entertainment byline. There was an early distribution logo used on Punky Brewster, which has this logo with "Distributed by" and the CPE byline in a plain looking font.
January 4, 1988-October 5, 1991: Purple clouds/Gold company name, Columbia Pictures Entertainment byline. (alternate 1988 network logo).
January 9, 1988-1989?: Teal clouds/Gold company name, Columbia Pictures Entertainment byline. (alternate 1988 logo, based on the 1982 bylineless logo).
January 1989-1992: Blue/Ivory company name as seen on the theatrical version, byline is changed to Columbia Pictures Entertainment (network version, 1989; syndication prints have "Distributed by" on top). If you look closely on the torch, you can see the sunburst slowly dimming out. On some distribution variants, the sunburst fades in, rather than out. Although it stopped general use around September 1991, a few shows, such as the Married... with Children spin-off Vinnie & Bobby, used this until 1992.
On the 1988 TV movie Intrigue, the 1988 logo has a gray CPE byline.
1989-1992: There was a phrase "In Association With" that was seen above the blue/ivory logo on Screen Gems shows. This followed either the 1987 or 1989 LBS Communications logo. From 1989-1991, the font was cheaply tacked in white with the black outline around it. This version looped part of the animation, causing the sunburst to fade out, then suddenly reappear. It would also fade in. On Days of our Lives, the logo used the IAW variant in Souvenir font and was used from 1991-1993.
October 1991-1992: Blue/gold and purple/gold company name, no byline, animated. This was used during the early years under Sony Pictures Entertainment.
Open matte versions of the 1989 and 1991 logos exist, revealing more of the Torch Lady's pedestal. The 1989 version is seen on Dark Avenger (1990) and Hardball (the latter has the phrase "in association with" appear below that) while the 1991 version is seen on Christmas on Division Street. On the 1989 version, the text looks bronze rather than gold. Another version, seen on part one of Switched at Birth, Cast the First Stone, and a few episodes of the short-lived 1989 CBS drama A Peaceable Kingdom have no black under the pedestal. The open-matte version was used excursively to TV movies and drama shows, barring the soap operas.
September 1991-June 18, 1993: Blue/ivory company name, no byline (network version; syndication prints have "Distributed by" on top from 1991-1992).
There is also a B&W rendition of this logo to plaster the Screen Gems logo on classic shows.
There is a short version of the 1982 logo.
Another version of the 1991 logo exists where you can see a few extra steps in the pedestal, but it's not a full open matte logo, like in the Christmas on Division Street version. Seen on Revolver.
The 1992 TV documentary Titanic: Treasure of the Deep has the 1991 logo fading in.
Another fade-in version with the 1989 logo is seen on the 1989 TV pilot Shivers, which aired on the CBS Summer Playhouse.

5th logo (1992-2001)[]

We see a still picture of a brand new Columbia Torch Lady (designed by Michael J. Deas, and modeled by Louisiana homemaker, Jenny Joseph; some think it resembles actress Annette Benning) holding a light torch on top of a new pedestal against the background of clouds with dark blue skies around it. The word "COLUMBIA" appears in giant chiseled silver letters behind her at the very top, similar to the classic Columbia Pictures logo from 1936-1976. Underneath the lady are the words "COLUMBIA PICTURES TELEVISION", or until 1996, "COLUMBIA PICTURES TELEVISION DISTRIBUTION" (in Bank Gothic MD BT font) and underneath that is the byline "a SONY PICTURES ENTERTAINMENT company". It should be noted that movies did not begin using this new Torch Lady until 1993 when a animated version was created by Synthespian Studios, as well.

Variants[]

On a Jeopardy! episode aired on December 23, 1993, the logo was seen on a "Video Daily Double" question. The logo appears to be close-up, there is no text below the Torch Lady and the "COLUMBIA" text is not there.
There is a black & white variation that was used to plaster Screen Gems logos on classic B&W shows.
On the TV pilot movie of Dark Skies, "The Awakening", the name and the byline fade out at the same time as the logo.

Music/Sounds[]

1st logo[]

A little sped-up version of the 1970-1974 Screen Gems theme as the first three opening notes bring forth the three initials in the logo. The rest of the theme plays normally. The first three notes appears to be played faster than on the SG version.

Music/Sounds Variants[]

On the TV movie The Lindbergh Kidnapping Case, the same music was heard being played on an organ.
Sometimes, the closing theme of the show or TV movie would play over it.

2nd logo[]

The show's closing theme.

3rd logo[]

The television theme is a variation of the theatrical inspirational music, which was also written by Suzanne Ciani. Some people find it appropriate for the company that would be owned by Coca-Cola, as the effects in the song resemble the sound of pouring and fizzing soda. A silent version appears at the end of the final episode of Barney Miller, "Landmark, Part 3", and is retained on the 2011 Shout! Factory complete-series DVD set. The Pay TV version has the second half of the theatrical theme.

Music/Sounds Variants[]

Some syndicated broadcasts of this logo have a shorter version of the music, only playing the second half. This was due in part because of the splice edit method that was commonplace on early film prints of their shows.
In exceptional cases, it used the closing theme of the show or TV movie.
A silent version appears at the end of the final episode of Barney Miller, "Landmark, Part 3".
The Pay TV version has the second half of the theatrical theme.
On one episode of the short-lived Mr. Merlin, the theme starts from the second note and is in a higher pitch.

4th logo[]

1982-1989: A shortened, slightly higher pitched version of the Sunburst music was used by Suzanne Ciani. The 1976 version was also used on this logo for a long version.
January 4, 1988-1993: A 6-note brass jingle mixed with twinkles composed by Tim Thompson that was played on a keyboard. Also consider that Columbia's logo editing habits were so sloppy during this era that sometimes this logo was plastered over a Screen Gems or Embassy Communications logo with the original logo's music still intact. No trace of the SG music for this logo has been found since. However, the Embassy theme was retained on a Diff'rent Strokes episode when it was reran on Antenna TV. It may have been retained on Black Starz! (now Starz in Black) reruns.
Sometimes, the end theme of the show or TV movie is played over the logo, or none.

Music/Sounds Variants[]

On Married... with Children: The Most Outrageous Episodes: Volume 2, at the end of the episode "A Man's Castle", the 1993 music from the fifth logo (see below) is heard.
There was a warped version with Thompson's music seen on 1980s prints of Screen Gems shows such as Occasional Wife. The theme is also in a higher pitch.
There exists a slowed down version of Thompson's music used with the 1988 and 1991 logos. The 1988 version was seen on "Partners in Slime", an episode of The Real Ghostbusters included on the 2005 DVD of Ghostbusters II (perhaps due to the print itself being artificially slowed), while the 1991 version is seen on the 1991 The Young and the Restless Christmas episode.
On the DVD print of the season four Punky Brewster episode "The Nun's Story", the short Columbia TriStar Television Distribution theme is used on the 1982 version.
On a couple episodes of My Two Dads on the S1 DVD set, the music fades in at the third note.
On Switched at Birth and several episodes of Designing Women, the 1988 theme echos for a long time after the logo fades out.
On Intrigue, the 1988 CPT theme is low toned.
On the first three episodes of A Peaceable Kingdom, the logo fades out half way before the theme finishes, though the note it fades out on varies by episode:
"Pliot": 6th and final note.
"Snakebite": 4th note and you can hear a little bit of the 5th note.
"Bison": 6th note and you can hear a little bit of the 6th note as it fades out.
Some Screen Gems programs had the "S From Hell" logo sloppily plastered with this logo in the early/mid '80s, in a way that the first 2-3 notes of the SG jingle would be heard, then the Ciani music would be heard starting in mid-jingle.
On the Designing Women episode "The Girlfriend" on the S4 DVD set, the first note sounds higher-pitched.

5th logo[]

Here are the main versions:

1992-1994: The 1988 music from the previous logo. The Young and the Restless and Days of Our Lives were the two series who used this starting in mid-Spring 1993 and used it until New Years Eve 1993. This also appears on the Sanford and Son season 1 episodes "We Were Robbed", "A Pad for Lamont", "The Great Sanford Siege", and "The Piano Movers" on the 2002 DVD release.
September 1993-2001: A 6-note majestic tune is heard; full of brass instruments composed by Dave Grusin.
1994-2001: A re-composed version of the Grusin theme that's slightly re-arranged.

Music/Sounds Variants[]

Sometimes, the ending theme of the show plays over it. An example is ONE Australia reruns of Walker, Texas Ranger.
There is a silent version of the logo.
On The Greatest '70s Cop Shows, the short Columbia TriStar Television Distribution theme was heard on the first regular episode of Police Woman (and it was also heard on Gidget Grows Up), and the long Columbia TriStar Television Distribution theme was heard on the pilot of Starsky & Hutch. This was the fact that it was a rushed job due to horrible plastering. The short CTTD theme is also heard on The Jeff Foxworthy Show on TBS and The Dana Carvey Show episode "The Mug Root Beer Dana Carvey Show" on DVD.
The short-lived 1997 series Ivanhoe used the second half of this logo in black & white.
For the black & white and color versions of CPTD, a warped version of the 1993 theme was sometimes used.
On syndicated reruns of the Early Edition episode "Red Fellas", the 1993 TriStar Television logo music is heard. This was probably due to a plaster error.
On the short-lived series Dark Skies starting on episode 2, "Moving Targets", as well as some episodes of Charlie's Angels and the 1996 TV movie Sudden Terror: The Hijacking of Bus #17, the Columbia TriStar Television theme is used.
On the CTHE DVD print of the season one Charlie's Angels episode "Night of the Strangler", the final note of the 1993 CPT theme echoes.
On a print of the TV movie To Kill a Cop, the 1976 theme is used.
It is rumored that some episodes of Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman have this logo paired with the elusive TAT Communications jingle (most likely due to rushed plastering).

Scare Factor[]

1st logo[]

Same as the 1965 Screen Gems Television logo (none).

2nd logo[]

None.

3rd logo[]

Low. This is a favorite of many.

4th logo[]

It depends on the music used:

1982-1989: Low with the "sunburst" music. The music and the Torch Lady don't mix, but most will not mind.

1988-1993: Low bordering on medium. The loud music/dark background combination might startle some people.

5th logo[]

Depending on the logo variant:

1992-1993: Minimal because the 1988 theme is still there, but a bit tamer.
1993-2001: None.