PBS Kids

Jumpscare Warning:

This page contains a logo which has a jumpscare, so if you don't like logos like these, or are prone to heart attacks, please do not watch the logo.

Background[]

PBS Kids is the brand for most of the children's programming aired by the Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) in the United States. Some public television children's programs are not produced by PBS member stations or transmitted by PBS. Instead, they are produced by independent public television distributors such as American Public Television, and are not labeled as "PBS Kids" programming, as it is mainly a programming block branding. The target audience is children between the ages of 2, 8 and older. The network is also available in sub-Saharan Africa and Australia.

Logos[]

1st logo:

On a white background, we see some crudely drawn P-heads (the first of which is named Pernell P-Pal), with Pernell wearing a red cap and and an earring, singing "This is! P-B-SSSSSS!" while dancing. Near the end, Pernell ad-libs "Woo-hoo-hooooo!" a la Michael Jackson as his cap flies off. Then, the text "PBS" in its corporate font appears in black as the cap drops back on his head, and a red P-shaped dog (whose name is P-Pet) runs across the screen, barks, then walks away.

Variants[]

There is a variation where the dog gives the P-head a dark blue balloon with the text "e/i" (pronounced, ee-eye, and it's short for "Educational and Informational") on it in the Comic Sans font, which was added in 1996, just after the 6th PBS ident debuted.
Sometimes, the logo fades out after the P-Pet barks.
There is a variation where the camera quickly goes through a doorway on a black background and the three color-changing P-heads are seen against the white background, with confetti falling from the top, and all three P-heads yell "Surprise!" and cheer with loud party horns heard in the background. This was a very short-lived version and was usually played in-between shows as a promo.
There is a long version of the "Surprise!" variant which first takes place on a black background. Then the door opens and one of the P-pals peeks in. Then it peeks out and the door closes. Then the P-Pet (from the standard version), walks through the screen and into the door. Then another P-Pal peeks in from the above and peeks out. Then the door opens and we proceed into the animation above.
There is another variant of the long version where some kids say "The P-Pals are coming!" 8 times, then they say "Who are the P-pals?" right before the door opens, then after the door opens and the P-Pals yell surprise they shout "The P-Pals are coming!" one last time, and then one of the kids says "Watch for them!"
On a 1994 episode of In the Mix, the logo looks a bit washed out, with the brightness and contrast apparently pumped up in excess.

2nd logo: Over footage of kids in red and blue uniforms swinging jumpropes around, the P-head zooms in, facing left as it did until 1984. Then a stylized T, looking like three red dots across with three red dots below, zooms in in a similar fashion, followed by a green square with a cutout V.

3rd logo: On a green background, either a boy (named Dash) or a girl (named Dot) will appear either running up to the screen or thinking about something while scatting until either of them say "Doink!". The background turns into thin yellow, cyan and shocking pink (for the Dot version) or thick shocking pink (for the Dash version) stripes, then a green bubble appears in the center. The girl's face or the boy's face will appear in the bubble and a thought cloud that reads "PBS" appears above the kid's head. Then some kids will sing "PBS Kids!" A URL address for PBS Kids appears at the bottom left of the screen.

Variants[]

There is a variation of this logo used for international prints of PBS Kids shows. In this variant, the background is black, the entire logo is removed except for the word "PBS" and the words "PRODUCED IN ASSOCIATION WITH" appear above the words "PBS". This variant appears instead of the funding credits and the end of international prints of most PBS Kids shows. The start of the international prints of PBS Kids shows cut out the funding credits entirely, meaning it goes straight into the respective show's intro.
On VHS and DVD releases of PBS Kids shows, the word "kidsvideo" appears below the logo. Both Dot and Dash were used for both variants. But beginning in October 2006 starting with the PBS Kids 3 pack DVD set (which included Sagwa the Chinese Siamese Cat, George Shrinks and Zoboomafoo), the Dot version of the PBS Kidsvideo logo was dropped leaving only the Dash version of the PBS Kidsvideo logo with Dot audio at beginning and end.

4th logo: We see the PBS Kids logo from before (most often Dash) placed against a background that differs on the variant. Often times, Dash is either replaced by a character from a PBS Kids show, or a kid depending on the variant.

5th logo: The 1st ident of the set is Dash, the boy, who is at first seen as a caveman, then a scuba diver, and finally a robot. He grabs the letters "PBS", and the circular PBS Kids logo is shown. There is no "doink" or similar sound in this ident. Blue bubbles are shaking on a pale spring bud background. The 2nd one is Dot, the girl, who is at first seen as a tiger, then an octopus, and finally an astronaut. After that, the circular PBS Kids logo is shown on a background with stars. Also, like the 2nd logo at the lower left hand of the screen, the URL address for PBS Kids will appear like before.

Variant[]

On international prints of PBS Kids shows (mainly from the Bookworm Bunch programming block), as well as the series George Shrinks (animated in Japan), Seven Little Monsters, The Berenstain Bears (the 2003 version) and Marvin the Tap-Dancing Horse, there is a variation in which the logo is a still picture of Dot in her astronaut form as part of this logo. However, the logo is slightly off-center and Dash in his robot form is replaced with the words "Produced In Association With" and the PBS "Circle P-Head" logo below. A French variant of this logo also exists.

6th logo: Depending on the variant:

Snow Globe: It is snowing outside. Dash, the boy, is seen ice-skating on an ice rink. Suddenly, he feels the ground shake and he stops. Then, the camera pans out to reveal that he is in a snow globe, which is held by Dot, who looks at us. After she blinks, she giggles a little bit with her mouth closed. Snowflakes are seen transitioning to the circular PBS Kids logo with Dot in it afterwards on a powder blue background filled with snowflakes.
Fish: On a lime-green background, Dash looks at a goldfish in the fishbowl on a desk. We cut to the close-up of it as Dash looks at a goldfish in the fishbowl he is at. Then, the goldfish gets astonished at Dash when he looks at it. Then, bubbles are seen transitioning to Dash as a little orange goldfish, who appears from the upper-left corner of the screen and floats underwater. After a second, he gets swallowed by Dot as a big green fish. She then looks at us before bubbles are seen transitioning to the circular PBS Kids logo with Dot in it afterwards on an aquamarine background filled with bubbles.

Variants[]

Sometimes, the URL address reading "pbskids.org" is seen at the bottom left of the screen.
Starting in 2003, there is native 16:9 variant of this logo with "KIDS" below the circular PBS Kids logo with Dot in it afterwards.
- An enhanced variant of the snow globe bumper exists. Many differences are included:
- The color of the background is a bit darker.
- The ice rink has a slightly different shape.
- The animation is different and less smoother.
- When the camera pans out, Motion Blur is included.
- The background when Dot holds the snow globe is to have no snowflakes.
- The snowflakes are brighter and bigger.
- Dot's eyes are looking down instead of at the viewer.

A version of the fish bumper exists. However there are no other changes. However, there are some differences included:
- It is zoomed in at the beginning when Dash looks at a goldfish in the fishbowl on a desk.
- The close-up of the fishbowl is zoomed out slightly.
- The lens for the fishbowl are slightly different.
- The camera slightly moves differently as bubbles transition to Dash as an orange fish.
- The transitioning bubbles look different with extra ones.
Cropped 16:9 variants exists. This variation was only seen on old PBS Kids airings of Super WHY!, as well as early Martha Speaks episodes. The 2nd ident also appeared on a video of an ending theme from the latter show on PBS, created by Daniel Ingram Music seen here.

7th logo: We first see a soccer ball being kicked to our left by Dash, wearing a blue and black uniform. Then the soccer ball turns into a tennis ball, which Dot, wearing a white and pink tennis uniform, hits it with a tennis racket. The ball turns into a baseball, which Dash, now in a blue uniform and helmet, hits it with a bat. The ball then flies past a scoreboard with the circular PBS Kids logo on it and out of the stadium.

8th logo: We see Dot and Dash walking through what appears to be a factory. Then, we see a roll of polka-dotted wrapping paper, which the two roll up by its end. With it, the circular PBS Kids logo flies in.

9th logo: On a bright sunny background in a beach-like setting, we see Dash in a bathing suit and sandals. To the right of him is a sandcastle that he built. He tries to show it off to Dot but then he is surprised as the camera zooms out to reveal Dot's sand structure, which is a sphinx with her head on it. She dusts off her hands as Dash looks in awe at her structure. Then we fade to the circular PBS Kids logo.

10th logo: We start out by seeing two halves of the screen separated by a black line with what appears to be a button in its center. Dash is on the left side of the screen, while Dot is on the right side of the screen. Dot is shown as a shadow. She then presses the button, turning Dash into a shadow of a chicken, then Dash presses the button, turning Dot into an umbrella. Then the two keep pressing the button, transforming Dash into a flower, a bear, and an arrow, as well as transforming Dot into a hammer and a rabbit. Then the two keep pressing the button rapidly back and forth until they both turn into shadows of things (Dash is a ball while Dot is a fly). When this happens, the screen is no longer separated, the shadows are on a yellow background, and the circular PBS Kids logo is at the top of the screen and is smaller than usual. We then fade out.

11th logo: We see the words "THIS PROGRAM WAS PARTIALLY FUNDED BY" with PBS Kids (with Kids above, not in the logo) logo above.

12th logo: The logo shows Dot and Dash doing a certain activity, before the PBS Kids circular logo is shown.

Variants[]

Here are some of the variations of the activities included:

Telescopes
Fireflies
Rock climbing
Picnics
Gardens
Magnets
Fireworks
Swimming
Ants
Daffodil
Balloon
Sandbox
Camera
Carrots
(UNUSED) Footprint
There are also two rare Valentine's Day variants used in 2009. Dash's version has him blowing up a pink balloon and Dot's version has her receiving Valentine's cards in the mailbox. Both versions end with the PBS Kids circle logo on a hot magenta/cerise-textured BG while hearts are cascading in the BG.

13th logo: In the same purpose as the previous logo, the logo shows a redesigned Dot, along with two new characters, Dee and Del, replacing Dash, doing a certain activity, but this time much more cartoonish and often dangerous activities before the PBS Kids circular logo is shown, but Dash is in the 1999 design. Also, Dash's PBS Kids logo is seen on every variation, meaning that the Dot version has been retired.

Variants[]

Like the previous logo, here are some of the variations of the activities included:

Zipline
Beehive
Forest Run
Magnet
Moonwalk
Ping Pong
Power of 10
Cave
Band Parade
Trampoline
Yo-yo
Lemonade
France
Bubbles
Rockstar
Piano
Frisbee
There is also a variant seen on episodes of Let's Go Luna where a colorful yoyo is seen spinning on a light blue background. Suddenly, the yoyo's string disappears and the yoyo morphs into the PBS Kids circular logo with Dash in it.

Music/Sounds[]

1st logo: A techno-pop tune with drums and a bass and the P-Pals singing "This is, PBS! Woooo!". The "Surprise!" variation just has loud party horns and cheering, but the long version has giggling and a door creaking.

2nd logo: A catchy drum beat, with an announcer calling out each letter as they appear.

3rd logo: A catchy 4-note acappella tune sung by a specific gender of kids, depending on each variant; the Dot variation has a chorus sung by young girls, and the Dash version is sung by young boys. At the end of both (and other variants) idents, a "doink" sound is heard and they all end up eventually singing "PBS Kids!". None or the closing theme of the respective show for the International "Produced In Association With" variant.

Music/Sound Variants[]

There are variants with bongo drums beating, children whispering, or a kid giggling.
For the "kidsvideo" version of the Dash variant, the music from the Dot variant is used for some reason, most likely due to an audio error.
Another variant has the Dot variant using the music from the Dash variant, most likely for the same reason as the previous one.
Another version of Dash's "kidsvideo" variant used the right music (meaning that it used the music from Dash's own variant).
On a Maya & Miguel DVD the international variant uses the PBS Kids GO music.

4th logo: Depends on the variant.

5th logo: Some kids softly scatting the music from the 1999 logo at first accompanied by a synthesizer, then a weird bubbling-up-like rocket ship sound effect, something that suspiciously sounds more like "DOY!" than "doink!" (strangely only heard on the Dot ident), and then the kids singing "PBS Kids!" in a higher tone than the previous one. None or the respective show's closing theme for the international variant.

6th logo: A whimsical 10-note vibraphone tune (the last four notes are PBS Kids' jingle, possibly spoofing C E. Levy's "Skater's Waltz" but in F major) accompanied by jingle bells for the snow variant and no music for the fish variant. The fish variant has some bubbling sounds followed by a boy scatting the 1999 jingle circle-lipped, as if to imitate a fish. Both idents end with the "doink" sound and the kids saying the company name. The "PBS Kids!" chant sounds less like singing and more like a simple yell, followed by a girl's laughter. If you listen closely, you can also hear the "PBS Kids" chant from the Dot variant of the 1999 logo. Sightly different bubbling sounds in the background and extra kids saying the company name are heard chanting the company name are heard for the native 16:9 variant of the fish bumper.

Music/Sound Variants[]

On the 2nd season of Jakers! The Adventures of Piggley Winks, early 2008 episodes of Sid The Science Kid (in mono) and Lomax: The Hound of Music (which uses the normal fishbowl audio and is in mono), there are more bubbling sounds, and it ends with a quiet doink sound as if a boy scats the 1999 jingle circle-lipped, as if to imitate a fish.

7th logo: Same as the 2nd logo's Dot variant. At the end, we hear a crowd cheering.

8th logo: Same as before with no other sound effects.

9th logo: Same as before.

10th logo: As the button is pressed, we hear "Doink!" noises. When the button is pressed rapidly, the "Doink!" noise is also rapidly heard until we hear a laser-like noise which brings us to Dot and Dash both turning into many shadows of different things. We then hear the 4 notes of the PBS Kids jingle being played by a bubbly synth, followed by the "PBS Kids!" part of the jingle, which is scatted by synchronized "Doink!" noises.

11th logo: The closing theme of the show.

12th logo: The 2nd ident's jingle once again, but this time, without the kids chanting at the end. Often a single kid simply says "PBS Kids." The musical instruments these variants are played with vary depending on the activity, exactly like the 9th PBS Ident. The VD variants however have totally different music, ending with a group of kids yelling "Happy Valentine's Day!", then a single kid says "From PBS Kids."

Sandbox has a bassoon, vibraphone, synth-organ and a tuba.
Daffodil has a vibraphone and tuba.
Fireflies has a synth-bassoon.
Camera has a slit drum and marimba.
Fireworks has a hang, timpani, snare drum and bass violin.
Carrots has a synth-organ.
Sheep has a banjo.
Balloon has a mandobass and percussion.
Dash's Valentine's Day variant has a jazzy bass violin pizzicato tune with drums beating. Dot's VD variant has a South American-style folk dance tune with conga drums, piano and acoustic guitar.

13th logo: The music from the 2nd logo is used again, but without the kids chanting or the kid saying "PBS Kids" at the end. Like the previous logo, the musical instruments these variants are played with vary depending on the activity, exactly like the 9th PBS Ident. Also, the 2nd logo's theme can be heard in different pitches. The Let's Go Luna variant basically just has the ending theme of the show.

Scare Factor[]

1st logo: Depending on the variant:

Normal Versions: Low. This is a cute logo.
"Surprise!" Variants: Medium. The P-pals saying "Surprise!" loudly accompanied by cameraman going through the door can frighten some children, but it is not too bad when compared to other jumpscare logos.

2nd logo: Low to medium. Those used to seeing the 1989 PBS logo or the P-Pals may be surprised to see this one.

3rd logo: None to low. Most viewers may find the music and visuals fun and entertaining, or even nostalgic. However, older viewers who preferred the older logos may find these kind of boring or also annoying. However, some viewers have stated that Dot running at them frightened them when they where younger children.

4th logo: Depends on the variant, it can range from none to medium.

5th logo: None to low for the animated versions, and none for the still versions. Some people may be scared of the animated versions, but they're quite harmless, though some may find this logo rather annoying.

6th logo: Same as the 4th logo.

7th logo: Same as the 2nd logo.

8th logo: Same as before.

9th logo: Same as the last two logos.

10th logo: Low to medium. The logo has quick flashing that can induce some seizures, especially little children. It's minimal to low if you aren't prone to epilepsy.

11th logo: None. It's tamer and is less crazy than the previous logo.

12th logo: None. Many will find these logos nostalgic and they are much tamer than any of the previous ones.

13th logo: None to low. Older viewers who are used to the previous design of the characters may find these kind of annoying. Others have found that the faster pace and cartoonish nature of these logos to be a bit stressful. A few have found some of the activities, such as cooking food in a volcano to be a bit disturbing and dangerous, but it is still mostly tame.