Thorn EMI/HBO Video

Logo descriptions by James Fabiano and Matt Williams.

(July 1985-July 1986)

Logo: On a black background, two "walls" of purple lights open up from the middle. The words "THORN" and "EMI" fly from the top and bottom of the screen towards the top. A shiny purple "HBO" logo appears, and we see a close-up of its logo first (through the hole). It joins a white rectangle that has appeared in the middle of the logo. The word "VIDEO" drops from the bottom of the rectangle, the "O" in the "HBO" logo gets the circle in its hole, and two white "comets" streak past the top and bottom of the logo, leaving two white lines. The background then turns a blackberry color.

Variant: A earlier prototype version exists where the HBO logo's animation is much faster and plainer-looking, being a flat shade of sky blue, and as a result delays the "VIDEO" text appearing. The logo is also notably brighter and the streaks are faster. It should also be noted that a registered trademark symbol appears with the HBO logo before disappearing.

FX:SFX: The "flying" words.

Music/Sounds: Same as the 1982 Thorn EMI Video logo.

Availability: Extremely rare. Appears on later collections of Ready, Steady, Go, the first release of Rambo: First Blood Part II, and the last few editions of the cartoon series mentioned on the Thorn EMI Video page. Also distributed HBO's original programming, as well as Tri-Star, Thames, and Orion material. The first releases to use this logo were The Sleeping Beauty and Manon Lescaut, both of which still used the Thorn EMI print logo on the labels and packaging; the first tape to use the print logo, The Mean Season, was released two weeks later. The prototype version, so far, only appears on Duran Duran: Arena, and the two previously aforementioned first two titles to show this logo,The Sleeping Beauty and Manon Lescaut. Among the last releases to use this was F/X, but later copies of that title show the HBO/Cannon Video logo instead.

Editor's Note: Not a whole lot of work was put into this logo, especially since the earlier version had a more-rushed looking "HBO" animation.