Nelvana

Background
Nelvana was founded in 1971 in Canada by Michael Hirsh (now in the directory of WildBrain Ltd. (formerly DHX Media)), Patrick Loubert, and Clive A. Smith to produce and distribute children's animated shows and movies originally. The original specials the company produced (from 1977 until 1980) were distributed by Viacom Enterprises. Until 1985, the company did not have an animated logo separate from the credits at the end of their shows, instead using an in-credit version of its logo. Today, it's a subsidiary of Corus Entertainment.

The company's name originally came from a female Canadian comic book superhero from the 1940s named Nelvana of the Northern Lights, but the three decided to use a polar bear instead for a logo in order to avoid confusion.

1st Logo (December 6, 1977- )
Logo: It's only in-credit text that reads: "A Nelvana Limited Production". For co-produced shows and TV specials, the name of the company is seen below the Nelvana text.

Variant(s):


 * On A Cosmic Christmas, the text "in association with the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation" appears below "production", "Nelvana Ltd.", and the copyright info.

FX/SFX: None.

Music/Sounds: The closing theme of the show.

Availability: Common. Seen on Nelvana shows and TV specials, starting with A Cosmic Christmas.

Editor's Note: None.

2nd Logo (October 15, 1978-April 2, 1988)
Nickname: "The Polar Bear"

Logo: On a black background, we see an in-credit version of the Polar Bear looking up at the star, as seen on Nelvana shows from 1985-2004, either with or without an arch. "NELVANA", "NELVANA LIMITED", or "A NELVANA PRODUCTION" is seen below, sometimes with copyright info below.

Variants:


 * On the workprint of Rock and Rule (1983), the logo is yellow rather than the blue color of the theatrical version.

FX/SFX: None.

Music/Sounds: Either the beginning or the ending theme of the movie, probably silence, or probably the ending theme of the show.

Availability: Appeared at the beginning or end of Nelvana-produced films from the '70s and '80s, beginning with The Devil and Daniel Mouse. This was also seen on Rock & Rule, The Care Bears Movie, The Wild Puffalumps, and Care Bears Movie II: A New Generation. Also seen on the Star Wars: Droids cartoon show, the live-action series The Edison Twins, and early '80s prints of Nelvana's early animated TV specials (A Cosmic Christmas didn't feature the logo, nor did the Strawberry Shortcake specials or other co-productions with Those Characters from Cleveland). This was used in tandem with the next logo until 1988.

Editor's Note: None.

3rd Logo (September 14, 1985-November 7, 2003)
Nicknames: "The Polar Bear II", "Neon Polar Bear"

Logo: On a black background, a blue square with a red outline and a white star in the center flies from the top right of the screen, gradually enlarging and turning counterclockwise to fit the screen as the star multiplies into a seven star semicircle outline. The text "NELVANA" appears below the semicircle in red. The star outline shines from left to right, and the pinnacle star sends a shower of light (which starts off neon yellow, but turns neon blue ) down the center of the semicircle. "NELVANA" lights up in orange, and the shower of light unfolds to the left, turning into a neon blue polar bear looking up.

Variants:
 * There are filmed and videotaped versions.
 * The short version, which is more common, starts off with the stars shining and the "shower of light" animation. This plays in warp speed on Eek! the Cat before the compressed or split-screen credits. This is slowed down on some episodes of Babar, The Adventures of Tintin, and Beetlejuice.
 * A longer version was seen on some theatrical releases of the era, including Babar: The Movie and Care Bears: Adventure in Wonderland. After the logo forms, the polar bear stands on its hind legs for a second before assuming its normal position, then all seven stars disappear. Depending on the film, the background will either be the usual blue (as seen on Babar: The Movie), or black (as seen on Care Bears: Adventure in Wonderland).
 * The 1988 TV special Clifford the Big Red Dog has a rare gradient background variant with the logo rotating on screen from the center. Some episodes of Care Bears have this shortened.
 * Later episodes of T and T had the logo quickly rotating to the left to reveal the Qintex Entertainment logo (current prints as seen on the YTV Direct YouTube channel have this variant plastered by the 6th logo).
 * On Fievel's American Tails, a long version of the logo is shown on the top right corner along with the 1991 Amblin Television logo on the top left and the short 1991-2006 Universal Cartoon Studios logo on the bottom center.
 * On Family Dog, this logo was shown on the left alongside with the 1991 Amblin Television logo on the right (without the switch-off part).
 * On the German dub of the 1993 animated special The Incredible Crash Dummies, this logo was shown on the left alongside the Lamb & Company logo.
 * On some episodes of Blazing Dragons, this logo was shown on the left, alongside with the Ellipse Programme logo on the right.
 * On season 4 episodes of Eek! Stravaganza (episodes with Klutter), this logo is shown in split screen on the left alongside with the 1989-1998 Film Roman logo on the right.
 * The restored HD prints of The Adventures of Tintin seen on the series' foreign Blu-ray release feature a bizarre variant of the "slowed-down" short version; here, the image has been shrunk down to the center of the screen (presumably a side effect of not having the logo's original negatives or tape to restore from and the series' conversion to widescreen).
 * On a promo for The Adventures of Tintin, the logo was shown on the right, alongside with the Ellipse Programme logo on the left. Here, the polar bear and stars are white, and the “NELVANA” text is green.

FX/SFX: The light effects and the polar bear moving.

Music/Sounds: An ascending whoosh and a dramatic synth theme, followed by a thunderclap and a humming noise sounding similar to a lightsaber from Star Wars as "NELVANA" lights up. For most of Nelvana's '90s shows, the end theme played over it, it was silent, or (rarely) the standard theme played.

Music/Sounds Variants:


 * The gradient background variant used a mystical twinkling sound with a thunderclap. Some specials, and shows distributed outside Canada and the U.S. used this variant, although the original broadcasts of My Pet Monster had this version's music playing over the standard logo.
 * On Care Bears: Adventure in Wonderland, some whooshing sounds with wind chimes and a dreamy synth theme plays.
 * On Babar: The Movie, a "WHOOSH" sound plays, followed by some haunting "chime" sounds, then a second "WHOOSH", but it is muted on the VHS release for some reason.

Availability: Uncommon. Plastering with the 2004 logo has made it not nearly as common, but it's still easy to find.
 * The short version can still be seen on 1995-2002 episodes of Little Bear and early episodes of Franklin on Nick Jr., Eek! Stravaganza (whenever reran, usually on foreign Disney networks), VHS and Netflix releases of The Magic School Bus, and on VHS and DVD releases of the Nelvana version of Care Bears.
 * The theatrical version can be seen on the DVD release of Babar: The Movie (albeit silent for some reason). * Also found on all episodes of Beetlejuice (including the Shout! Factory boxset), and the pilot episode of Donkey Kong Country called "I Spy With My Hairy Eye".
 * Netflix's prints of The Adventures of Tintin retain this logo, as well as the 2006 DVD releases of said show; depending on the region, the Blu-ray release will either feature the normal "slowed-down" variant, or the shrunken-down version.
 * When Fox Kids reran The Magic School Bus from 1998 to 2002, this logo was strangely omitted.

Editor's Note: This is favorite of many, especially ones that grew up with children's programming during this time.

Final Note: Most shows had this logo until 1997 (after being used in tandem with the 4th logo below) when they then switched to the next logo. However, even though the logo retired in 1996, Little Bear continued to use the logo until its end in 2002, and earlier episodes of Franklin used this logo from its debut in 1997, until sometime in 1999.

4th Logo (December 2, 1995-July 30, 2005)
Nicknames: "The Polar Bear III", "Space Polar Bear", "CGI Polar Bear"

Logo: On a space background, there is a flash of light and the Nelvana logo appears in CGI on the background looking similar to the 1st logo, with some exceptions: the seven star semicircle has a blue chrome outline, as does the polar bear and the "NELVANA" text. A multicolored comet flies from the right, and as it passes the pinnacle star and the 2nd star to the left in the semicircle, each star lights up.

Variants:
 * There is an extended version of this logo which has a more delayed zoom-out. It ends with the logo animating backwards, but without the animation of the comet. It can be found on Cardcaptors: The Movie.
 * An even shorter version of the logo starting from when the comet flies from the right exists. Sometimes this is played in slow/delayed motion.
 * Some episodes of Donkey Kong Country have a still shot of this logo.
 * Starting in 2002, the byline "Nelvana is a C O r U s Entertainment Company" was added (with " C O r U s " written in its corporate font), and the logo animation was shifted up from the zoom-out.
 * For international distribution, it's on a black BG and "Distributed By" and "INTERNATIONAL" (or, very rarely, "International") were chyroned in above and below the logo, respectively. A Corus Entertainment byline was added in 2002.
 * The URL "www.nelvana.com" was sometimes added below or above the logo, starting in 1997.
 * There is a theatrical variant. A five-pointed star flashes in the distance on a much cleaner-looking starfield and the Nelvana logo (which looks more metallic and the stars around the arch aren't as visible), which is turned on its side, flies toward the screen and flips upright. A variant on the 3rd logo's polar bear animation (with it standing on its' hind legs briefly) plays while it flips toward us. The logo sparkles a bit in the end. It was seen on two movies; 1997's Pippi Longstocking, and 1999's Babar: King of the Elephants.
 * An in-credit version has appeared on Tales From the Crypt on the final episode (and the only animated one), "The Third Pig". It also appears on the 1997 Pippi Longstocking series with the AB Svensk Filmindustri, TaurusFilm, and TFC Trickompany Filmproduktion GmbH logos.
 * On the Japanese dub of Donkey Kong Country, the bylineless version appears in-credit and animated in the custom ending theme.

FX/SFX: Excellent use of CGI on the starry background, blue chrome color scheme, and the comet flying.

Music/Sounds: The end theme of a show, the generic network theme, or silence. In 2002, the haunting theme from the theatrical variant of the previous logo was used. Sometimes, only the first "WHOOSH" was used, or the last "WHOOSH" would be cut out. This was mainly used on the extended variant of the logo, but the third variant was also used on the standard long version on a 2004 Nicktoons airing of Pelswick.

Music/Sounds Variants: On the trailer for Care Bears: Journey to Joke-a-lot, we hear what sounds like a shooting star passing by in time with the comet flying. The version used here is the one that starts with the comet flying by.

Availability: Uncommon, once again, due to plastering with the 2004 logo, but it's still easy to find.
 * First seen on The NeverEnding Story: The Animated Adventures of Bastian Balthazar Bux.
 * It can be seen on the second season of Cyberchase, Rolie Polie Olie, the first two seasons of Max and Ruby, post-1999 episodes of Franklin, and international prints of the first four seasons of The Fairly OddParents, among others.
 * The first 4 shows can be found on VHS and DVD. Also found on their Canadian/American/U.K. dub of the anime Cardcaptor Sakura, known initially as Cardcaptors in those regions, as well as All New Tales from the Cryptkeeper.
 * It was also seen on Braceface, last seen on Disney Channel and ABC Family in the United States. Beyblade G-Revolution kept this logo until its end in 2005. On Tubi, the Braceface episode Up in Smoke retains the Corus Entertainment version.
 * This was also seen when Nickelodeon aired My Dad the Rock Star for a brief time in 2005, but Nicktoons airings and current prints has the 6th logo instead.

Editor's Note: Another popular logo seen on kids programming of the time period.

5th Logo (2001-2004)
Nicknames: "The Polar Bear IV", "Still Polar Bear", "Polar Bear of Boredom"

Logo: On a white background, we see the seven star semicircle, polar bear, and "NELVANA" text as from the previous logo but with a dark blue outline. Underneath the "NELVANA" is the URL "www.nelvana.com", and underneath that is the byline "A CORUS™ Entertainment Company". Sometimes the byline will instead be stylized as "A CORUS Entertainment Company" in non-italics).

FX/SFX: None.

Music/Sounds: None. In other cases, the end theme of a show or the generic network theme.

Availability: Rare. This was used as an alternate logo between 2001 and 2004.
 * It appears on the first season of Cyberchase, Maggie and the Ferocious Beast (Nick Jr reruns kept the logo intact, but on Qubo, this logo was deleted) and some international episodes of The Fairly OddParents.
 * The version with normal font byline appeared on the GBA game Beyblade V-Force.

Editor's Note: None.

6th Logo (September 7, 2004-September 24, 2018)
Nicknames: "The Polar Bear V", "Aurora Polar Bear"

Logo: On a black background, we see the text "NELVANA" with a byline underneath it. A white polar bear then swims onto the screen and then stops onto the text. It bumps a star onto the screen, which twinkles, and a white haze of light forms and dissipates behind the logo. The logo looks similar to the in-credit logo seen before 1985.

Bylines:
 * 2004-2018 : The byline reads "A CORUS™ ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY", all in capital letters, and in the same font used in the alternate 2003 logo.
 * Alternate Variant, 2004-2018 : Because of parent company Corus Entertainment Inc.'s "growth" in its company (hence the "Inc." for incorporated), the byline reads "A Corus™ Entertainment Inc. Company" (exactly like that).

Variants:
 * A more common variant begins with the star already on the screen and the polar bear bumping it.
 * Sometimes, no haze is shown for the standard logo.
 * A variant exists with the words "A NELVANA PRODUCTION" above the polar bear. No haze is shown.
 * On Grossology, there is a version in which the polar bear gets slimed. This variant was only seen on international and Qubo airings of said show, and no haze is shown.
 * There is a variation where "INTERNATIONAL", in a rounded rectangle, is sandwiched in between the company name and the byline. A superimposed version of this variant can be found on the credits for Franklin and the Turtle Lake Treasure.
 * A still version of the logo exists, which was seen on the original U.S. airings of Grossology on Discovery Kids/The Hub (now Discovery Family).
 * There is an extremely rare still variant without the star, and it appears on current prints of the first episode of Committed.
 * Some reruns of Corduroy have the logo starting after the star is bumped.
 * There's a superimposed variant with the in-credit text  Distributed by Nelvana Enterprises Inc.  above it. No haze is shown. Sometimes, it shares the screen with the Treehouse logo.
 * On Handy Manny, it uses the "A NELVANA PRODUCTION" text over the logo, except the haze does appear as usual. The 2004 byline is also seen under the logo.
 * On My Friend Rabbit, the logo "stalls" a bit, where the polar bear does not bump the star exactly when first seen, after that, the animation is seen as usual. The 2004 byline is seen here, also.
 * Starting with season 5 episodes of Cyberchase, the logo starts when the polar bear walks forward right after jumping onto the logo.
 * The logo appeared on Beyblade G-Revolution, the game for GBA. The bear is placed to the left, and there's an "INTERNATIONAL" plate below. Another game, Bakugan: Rise of the Resistance, shows the logo in outlines.
 * Sometimes, the logo is bylineless.
 * Occasionally, the 2004 byline is in grey.
 * On Life With Boys, the logo has smoother animation. There is also no haze in it.
 * An in-credit version appears on some shows.
 * On season 1 of Horrid Henry, "IN ASSOCIATION WITH" is above the logo.
 * There is a strange filmed variant of the full logo that was spotted on a Polish 35mm print of Franklin and the Turtle Lake Treasure.
 * On Nickelodeon/Nicktoons Network airings of Wayside, the logo is shifted upwards.
 * On Wishfart, the text "Produced in Association with" is seen on the upper left side of the logo, and when the polar bear bumps the star, a rainbow comes out of it. It zooms across the screen, transitioning to the Bejuba Entertainment logo. No haze is shown.
 * On Lucky Duck, there is a bubble transition to the logo. No haze is shown.
 * At the end of a trailer for Care Bears: Journey to Joke-a-lot, there is a very short version which starts at the last part of the logo with the haze disappearing.

FX/SFX: Appears to be a combination of Flash animation and 2D computer graphics.

Music/Sounds: Usually, the end theme of a show or the generic network theme plays over, but sometimes this logo has its own music, a nice guitar theme composed by Neil Parfitt, sounding more like the theme to Elinor Wonders Why, with a child laughing (presumably voiced by Sarah Gadon, Brianna Gentilella or Tara Strong) towards the end.

Music/Sounds Variants:
 * Shows plastering the 1985 logo may use the dramatic synth theme or the mystical twinkling theme instead of the normal music. This appears on newer prints of T and T and My Pet Monster.
 * For the Grossology variant, the first two notes of the guitar theme is heard, but it's interrupted by the sound of slime splashing and dripping.
 * In some cases, the logo is silent.
 * For the Care Bears: Journey to Joke-a-lot trailer variant, we hear the audio variant of the 4th logo.
 * Sometimes, the child's laughter is absent.
 * The music is sped up without the laughter on The Adventures of Chuck and Friends.
 * On The Stanley Dynamic and Bubble Guppies, the last part of the music plays without the laughter. On the latter show's episode "The Arctic Life!", we hear this music along with the finishing of the song "This is the Arctic Life".

Availability: Very common.
 * Seen on Nelvana shows from the time, such as The Backyardigans and Miss Spider's Sunny Patch Friends on Nick Jr., Grossology when last seen on Hub Network (now Discovery Family), Babar and the Adventures of Badou and Handy Manny on Disney Junior (formerly Playhouse Disney) and Wayside on DVD (and last seen on Nicktoons).
 * It also appears tacked onto the end of some shows that had older Nelvana logos, such as Babar on Qubo, Bob and Margaret on Showtime Women, DVD releases of Tales from the Cryptkeeper, the now-discontinued Funimation DVD of WildC.A.T.S., and the Shout! Factory DVD releases of The Adventures of Tintin.
 * The “IN ASSOCIATION WITH” variant appears on season 1 of Horrid Henry. The bylineless logo can be found on Being Ian and Class of the Titans. This logo also plasters the 3rd logo on The Magic School Bus: The Complete Series DVD box set, released in 2012. All the episodes in the box set have the logo plastered, except for "Ups and Downs", which retains the 3rd logo. It can be also seen on 2014 issued printed episodes of the 1986 Care Bears cartoon on YouTube. It also appears at the end of recent prints of A Cosmic Christmas, after the Viacom "V of Doom" logo.
 * Uploads of Nelvana shows on the "YTV Direct" (which originally began as "Nelvana Retro") and "Treehouse Direct" YouTube channels tend to have this logo plastered over the previous ones, sometimes with odd results (the first episode of T and T has the short version ending before the music of the 1985 logo does; all other episodes have the long version to sync with the music). It also appears on some DVDs of The Fairly OddParents (one example is the "Superhero Spectacle" DVD).
 * The in-credit variant appears on some shows, such as Horrid Henry (CITV airings only).
 * It was used in tandem with the 8th logo until 2018.
 * The superimposed variant appeared on season 3 of Max and Rudy, since the company wasn't involved as much producing the series along with seasons 4-5, but by the sixth season, the regular version of this logo was used, considering that the company had more involvement in production after both Silver Lining Entertainment and Chorion close their doors in 2012, with Atomic Cartoons co-producing in addition.
 * When Nicktoons Network aired My Dad the Rock Star from late 2005 to early 2008, this plastered the 4th logo, as does Tubi and DVD releases of the show.
 * After the new and current logo debut; This logo last used for the first 3 seasons of Ranger Rob, Seasons 6-7 of Max and Ruby and The ZhuZhus (Also known as Polly and the ZhuZhu Pets in the USA).

Editor's Note: It's an okay and cute logo, but it's considered annoying by some due to its omnipresence. Nevertheless, those that grew up with this logo may consider this memorable.

7th Logo (2004-2013)
Nicknames: "The Polar Bear VI", "Cheesy Polar Bear", "Space Polar Bear Wannabe"

Logo: On a starry background in which the stars move about, we see the polar bear from before with the words "NELVANA" also in the same font as before. A shooting star comes from near-lower left side of the screen and it goes by the polar bear, leaving a shiny star, which reveals itself to be the one in the previous logo. During all this, the byline " A CORUS™ ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY " is seen below.

Variants:
 * There exists an extended version that animates just like the 4th logo's extended version, but cheaper looking and having the text move into place.
 * There is a still in-credit version with the bear and star shifted slightly to the left.

FX/SFX: The starry background, the shooting star, and the shiny star.

Music/Sounds: Same as the 4th logo. In some cases, it can be the end theme of the show.

Availability: Rare. This was recently discovered on the 2005 DVD release of Braceface: Turning 13 (plastering the 4th logo), a 2004 compilation DVD called Nelvana's Friendship Collection: Making New Friends, and on a 2004 VHS release (and possibly DVD) of Beyblade G-Revolution called "Beginning of the End?", all from Funimation Entertainment. It's currently unknown if this was on Nelvana's other home media releases. The in-credit version can be found on seasons 4-5 of Max & Ruby.

Editor's Note: None.

8th Logo (June 25, 2017- )
Nicknames: "The Polar Bear VII", "New Polar Bear"

Logo: On a blue background (later white), we see the polar bear in blue with a white outline and the new "nelvana" text in the 2016 Corus Entertainment logo's font, in white being drawn out. The star is at the bottom of the bear, jumps up and spins, then lands. The polar bear bumps it, causing the colors to reverse. Then the text at the bottom middle of the polar bear changes from white to blue. A tiny, registered trademark symbol appears next to the company's name right at the bottom as well.

Variants:


 * A shorter version exists, with or without a Corus byline.
 * A still version exists as well, with or without a Corus byline.
 * An in-credit version exists.
 * A French version has the byline translated in "Une compagnie de Corus". This can be found on the French dub of season 7 episodes of Max & Ruby (and possibly others).

FX/SFX: The star jumping, spinning, the bump, and the invert, which are nicely done.

Music/Sounds: A dreamy synth tune or the end theme of the show.

Music/Sounds Variant: On the welcome intro of Nelvana's official YouTube channel (Nelvana Digital Network), a tune is altered.

Availability: Current. Was first seen on their website, and made its official debut on Hotel Transylvania: The Series. Also appears on newer TV shows by the company like Bravest Warriors, Mysticons, Go Away Unicorn!, Corn & Peg, Agent Binky: Pets of the Universe, The Dog & Pony Show, Ollie's Pack and as well on other contents of shows. The full logo was first seen on Zhu's News - Pumped Up Zhus, which can be seen on YTV's official YouTube channel. Was also seen on the final season of Max & Ruby, and the second season of Ranger Rob.

Editor's Note: It is certainly one of the many "simplified" logos of recent times. It is nicer than most, however.