Fox Film

Background
The Fox Film Corporation was an independent film production company that was formed in 1915 by the theater "chain" pioneer William Fox. Fox formed Fox Film Corporation by merging two companies he had established in 1913: Greater New York Film Rental, a distribution firm, which was part of the independents; and Fox (or "Box", depending on the source) Office Attractions Company, a production company.

After the Wall Street crash of 1929, William Fox lost control of the company in 1930, during a hostile takeover. Under new president Sidney Kent, the new owners merged the company with Twentieth Century Pictures, Inc. to form 20th Century-Fox in 1935, which would later be renamed to 20th Century Studios when Disney acquired them in 2019.

1st Logo (September 13, 1915-November 28, 1935)
Logo: The in-credit text of Fox Films. It would just say: FOX     FILM

PRESENTS

In other cases, it mentioned the name of William Fox: WILLIAM FOX

PRESENTS

Technique: The simple fade in and fade out.

Music/Sounds: Silent, or the film's opening music.

Availability: Very rare. About 75% of Fox Film's pre-1930 feature film output was completely lost in a 1937 vault fire. What is known about it's availability is that it can be seen on Sunrise (1927) and other films of the era, but most just contain a "Fox Films" notice in the credits sequences. Occasionally appears on films shown on TCM's Silent Sunday Nights or on Fox Movie Channel, but showings on the latter have been scarce to none. The logo premiered on Regeneration and made its final appearance on In Old Kentucky.

2nd Logo (September 13, 1915-1917)
rCO3C_r5S8M Logo: We see the word "COPYRIGHT" in a slightly curly serif font with two shapes on either side to make it look like a ribbon or banner. Below that, we see "WILLIAM FOX" in the same font but larger letters. Below that is an abstract "T" like shape with a diamond and the letters "WF" in a diamond shape.

Technique: None.

Music/Sounds: Silent, or the film's opening music.

Availability: Ultra rare, the video above comes from A Tale of Two Cities and it was also seen on Regeneration.

3rd Logo (1929-1933)
Logo: Over the final frame of a film, we see a long "F" wiping in. Then, "OX" appears letter-by-letter. At this point, the background fades into a black screen. Another long "F" wipes in, and "ILM" appears letter-by-letter. A trail appears behind the letters. The entire text is in an Art Deco font.

Variant:


 * A superimposed still version exists
 * There's also a variant where the logo is in a different font.
 * A French "Presents" Version exists. See Fox Film Sté Ame Française for more detail.
 * Another "Presents" screen is spotted, where "Presents" replaced "Releasing"

Technique: The wiping and appearing letters, and the changing background.

Music/Sounds: Either the ending theme to the film or none.

Availability: Ultra rare.


 * It was seen on their films from the late 1920s to early 1930s.
 * The superimposed version can be found on Hoopla.

Legacy: The first actual logo used for this company. The design resembles the Art Deco design trend of the late 20s-early 30s.

Final Note: Fox Film Corporation merged with 20th Century Pictures to form 20th Century Fox in 1935.