Logos[]
1st logo (1979-Summer 1980)[]
On a navy blue background, they see "Paramount" in the famous script, and "HOME VIDEO" below that in a wide Microgramma Bold font in between two lines, one above and one below. To the right of that, there is the 1968 Paramount print logo to the right, complete with the Gulf+Western byline. A moment later, a warning screen (also on a navy blue background) fades over this logo.
2nd logo (October 1980-January 1981)[]
On a blue background, they zoom out on a silhouette of a mountain. After they zoom out to a comfortable distance, a bright flash occurs behind the mountain, and white "stars" (they look like circles or lens flares) appear, as well as "Paramount" (in a school bus yellow script, but closer to the pre-1975 logos). A saffron-colored trapezoidal trail zooms out from the base, and "HOME VIDEO" (set in the same font as the previous logo) zooms out soon after, tacked onto the saffron-colored trail. As that happens, the blue background gets extremely dark (looking like federal blue). The end result looks like the pre-1967 print logo.
Variant[]
On Race for Your Life, Charlie Brown!, the logo cuts to the last half of the film's Paramount logo.
3rd logo (1983-March 1987)[]
On a black background, there is the abstract mountain logo, with "Paramount" in black script in the light blue circle like the other Paramount logos, and the "A Gulf + Western Company" byline at the bottom in light blue. It begins to zoom up on us, as the stars (which are followed by light trail-streaks) and byline zoom past, and both the mountain and circle grow bigger until you are literally right on top of the peak of the mountain, with "Paramount" centering in, filling the middle of the screen. When the peak hits the bottom and "Paramount" fits the center, "Paramount" begins to shine, then there is a very bright flash, and it dies down to reveal the Paramount script logo (in blue) and a small "VIDEO" (shining a bit) between two blue lines.
Variants[]
- A black and white variant exists.
- At the end of an April 1998 Sci-Fi Channel (now Syfy) airing of The Devonsville Terror, the animation is slowed down but plays as normal until all there is is "Paramount" and the mountain, when the logo freezes in place and the rest of the music is heard. It's unknown if this was used on any home media releases of the film, or any others.
4th logo (April 1987-January 2007)[]
It's the 1986 Paramount Pictures logo with no video indicator whatsoever. The difference here from the theatrical version is that the picture quality is sharper and the color scheme is brighter than normal (or in short, videotaped). On occasion, the logo begins much earlier than the theatrical variant.
Bylines[]
- April 1987-1989: "A Gulf + Western Company". 1987 releases used the 75th Anniversary variant, while 1988-89 releases used the standard version.
- 1989-1995: "A Paramount Communications Company" with a line above the byline fades in. 1989-90 releases had the byline and line above it in gold, while 1990-95 releases had them in white.
- 1995-February 4, 2003: "A VIACOM COMPANY" (in the 1990 \/|/\CO/\/\ "Wigga Wigga" font) with a line above the byline fades in, again, in white.
5th logo (December 1993)[]
On a black background with blue filmstrips, "Paramount" is seen being written in a gold color in its trademark font. As this is occurring, the background is opening up in segments to reveal the 1986 Paramount logo, without a byline and the stars in a light gold color.
6th logo (May 7, 2002-October 24, 2006)[]
Same as the 2002 movie logo, but it's videotaped and zoomed out (also known as open-matte). Releases from 2002 to 2003 used the 90th Anniversary logo, while releases from 2003 onward use the standard one.
Variant[]
There is a shorter version which stars with the stars zooming down in the clouds.
7th logo (May 6, 2003-March 5, 2019)[]
It starts off with the 2002 Paramount logo animation with the stars flying through the clouds, the zoom out of the "Paramount" script, and the stars coming in and circling around the mountain. When the camera is at a comfortable distance, a DVD disc flies in from the bottom, A bright light in the sky swoops by as the dvd disc glides and settles behind the summit and the Paramount script. Then, a bright flash underneath the peak brings forth "DVD" with a line below it, and the Viacom byline (in the same font as the 1990 Viacom logo) below the line. The background fades to black, and a white laser scans the disc in a downward motion, turning the entire DVD Paramountain silver. The finished product almost resembles the Paramount DVD print logo.
Variant[]
At the end of the logo, a menu would appear with two selections which are "PREVIEWS" and "MAIN MENU", both of which would take you there. When either one was selected, the selection would turn blue and yellow. After you press it, the Paramount logo fades out, with the selections disappearing a second afterward. This was seen on 2003-2004 releases. Also seen on some CBS DVDs from 2006, like the Season 1 DVD of NCIS.
8th logo (2006-March 5, 2019)[]
They first see the effect of a television being switched on, zooming out from one of the stars and transitioning to the middle of the 2002 Paramount logo in poor image quality. When the star reaches the mountain's peak, two white lines appear and move across the picture vertically from the center, sharpening the picture and forming the silver text "HIGH DEFINITION" which zooms out into place. The Viacom byline (without the line) from the previous three logos fades in below and the HD text shines.
Music/Sounds[]
1st logo[]
None.
2nd logo[]
A pounding backbeat as the mountain zooms out, then a synth chord mixed with a brief explosion sound and synthesized sizzling.
3rd logo[]
A building set of synthesized strings, ending in a new-age synthesizer tune composed by Richard J. Krizman, which sounds somewhat similar to the "Meet George Jetson" portion of the Jetsons theme.
Music/Sounds Variant[]
On the 1983 RCA CED videodisc release of An Evening with Robin Williams, this follows the RCA SelectaVision logo, but is silent.
4th logo[]
None; although some films will have the beginning credits music played over it.
5th logo[]
A male announcer says, "Paramount Pictures, bringing you the best in holiday entertainment, and the best of the new year". All of this is said against a bombastic fanfare, an excerpt from The Untouchables soundtrack composed by Ennio Morricone.
6th logo[]
None.
7th logo[]
It starts off silent, but when the stars fly by some whooshing sounds are heard, culminating in a synthesized explosion effect with a thunderclap. As the white laser scans down, a humming sound can be heard. On the post-menu selections a soft "bong" is heard when the Paramount logo fades out followed by a whirling sound when the selections disappear.
8th logo[]
Some television static sound effects and a few loud whooshes and shining sounds.
Scare Factor[]
1st logo[]
None. This one's boring, but harmless. The same can't be said for the next logo, however.
2nd logo[]
Medium to nightmare. The ominous nature of the silhouette mountain combined with the flashing effects and music might not sit well with some people. For those who are used to it, this may even satisfy them if they find or own a tape with this logo, considering how rare it is.
3rd logo[]
Low. It's much tamer than the 2nd logo. The soothing music mitigates any scares that could be caused by the flash and zooming mountain.
4th logo[]
Same as the 1986 Paramount Pictures logo.
5th logo[]
None to medium. It depends on what you think of the transition effect and the announcer. Regardless, this one is a popular logo.
6th logo[]
Same as its movie counterpart.
7th logo[]
Same as Paramount DVD (low). This is another favorite of many, and while it is fairly popular, it may not be as popular as the 5th VHS logo.
8th logo[]
Low. The static and the lines may startle a few, but this is tamer than the 2nd logo.
Photos[]
.png "Paramount Home Video (1995).png (871 KB)")
.png "Paramount Home Video (2002).png (1.24 MB)")
Video[]
Paramount Home Video Logo