RTL Television

Background
RTL (Radio Television Luxembourg) is a company based in Cologne, Germany, launched on 2 January 1984. Prior to 1988, their headquarters were in Luxembourg.

1st Logo (1955-1984)
Logo: On a background full of compressing red and black circles, we see a symbol of a lion sticking its tongue out wearing a crown zooming in from the centre of the screen. Then from below the line, "Télé Luxembourg" in a stacked format can be viewed, slowly zooming out from the bottom of the screen, sitting in front of the lion.

Variants:
 * Older variants are in black and white.
 * There is also a variant in which the logo gets played in reverse.

Technique: 2D animation.

Music/Sounds: A majestic, orchestral render of the song "De Feierwon" by Michael Lentz.

Availability: Extinct.

2nd Logo (1984-1988)
Logo: On a space background with shooting stars, we see a rotating circuit-board-like tunnel zoom past us for about five seconds. This unfolds and creates a planal figure. There are then bursts of yellow rays in the background. Three cubes fly in from afar and land on the plane, with each cube having "R", "T", and "L", respectively appear on them with a flash. The cubes zoom past and the letters fly up to the centre of the screen. The circuit-board plane flies away. "TELEVISION" zooms in, and an outline draws itself around the logo. A trailing star outline then finally flies diagonally across the screen.

Variants:
 * There was a closedown that involved the animation sequences played backwards, with the logo zooming out at the end. There was no whooshing sound in this version.
 * A short-lived variant on the German RTL station (which was known as RTL Plus during the time) had "TELEVISION" replaced by the rounded "PLUS" below the RTL wordmark. This would last until 1985, after they changed their logo.

Technique: A complex, yet very well-executed combination of Scanimation and early CGI, especially considering that this is a small Luxembourgish television station.

Music/Sounds: A mid-tempo, partly synthesised soft rock theme. A whoosh is heard when the star flies past.

Availability: Extinct.

Legacy: Some of the animations can be a bit startling. Either way, this is a nicely-done logo.