KCPT

Not to be confused with Los Angeles-based KCET.

Background
KCPT (abbreviated "Kansas City Public Television") is a PBS affiliate located in Kansas City, Missouri. It went on the air on March 29, 1961 as KCSD, and became KCPT in 1972.

1st (known) Logo (1980)


Logo: On a blue background, we see the text "kcpt kansas city" displayed eight times in a column. The text is in a lowercase Annonce font with "kcpt" in yellow and "kansas city" in light blue. The fourth "kcpt kansas city" disappears to make room for the word "PRESENTS" (in all caps), which slowly slides in from the right until it faces the center.

Technique: Primitive computer animation.

Music/Sounds: A classic rock tune, which might be the opening of the program.

Availability: Was spotted at the beginning of a local program from 1980 called Songwriters Showcase. Check old recordings for this logo.

2nd Logo (1983)


Logo: On a background, we see a silhouette of a large sycamore tree (without leaves) on the left side of the screen. About a second later, an glow illuminates the tree from behind. Following this, the KCPT logo with a rounded-edge box with a "19" cutout beside it and "KANSAS CITY" underneath appears on the lower right of the screen.

Technique: Simple computer animation.

Music/Sounds: The voice of former KCPT president Robert Fuzy says, "KCPT Kansas City -- Channel 19".

Availability: Extinct. Was only used as the local ID.

3rd Logo (1983-1984)
Logo: On a //yellow gradient background, we see the KCPT logo in a fancy-cut font with "KANSAS CITY" below it. To the right of the logo is the same "19" box, but with a segmented "1" and a partially segmented "9". The entire logo is colored with a metallic teal/white gradient. Below the logo is a dark teal- field with light blue intersecting lines (straight and diagonal) that form a dodecahedron-like grid.

Technique: None.

Music/Sounds: The voice of former KCPT president Robert Fuzy says, "This is Kansas City Public Television -- KCPT Kansas City, Missouri -- Channel 19". There is no music.

Availability: Extinct. Used as the local station identification, but might show up on old recordings of KCPT produced shows.

4th Logo (1984-1985)


Logo: On a dark blue background of patterned white dots, we see the KCPT logo in chrome gold.

Technique: None.

Music/Sounds: A relaxing six-note tune (comprised of synthesizers) that ends with a piano chord. The voice of Robert Fuzy says, "This is Kansas City Public Television -- KCPT Kansas City, Missouri -- Channel 19".

Availability: Extinct. Used as a station ID.

5th Logo (January 1, 1984-1985)
Logo: On a background with a white grid on it, we see the shiny text:

KCPT/19 Kansas City

in the center. The outlined word "PRESENTS" fades in shortly after.

Technique: Simple animation.

Music/Sounds: None.

Availability: Ultra rare. Seen on a few episodes of Kansas City Illustrated available on the American Archive of Public Broadcasting.

6th Logo (1985-1989)
Logo: On a shady blue background, a CGI rectangle (in a glossy purple color) flies in from the top of the screen that bares this logo:

Serif

The letters are in a chrome lavender Book Antiqua font with the plain text "PUBLIC TELEVISION" below it. As the rectangle flies in, it rotates counter-clockwise until it faces the viewer head-on. The KCPT letters shimmer as they appear, and a reflection of the logo is visible while all this is happening.

Variants:
 * A variant with the words "KANSAS CITY" replacing "PUBLIC TELEVISION", and the word "PRESENTS" seen below exists.
 * A still variant exists.

Technique: Early computer animation.

Music/Sounds: There are a few variants:
 * The main ID features the same music from the 1984 logo. Once again, the voice of Robert Fuzy says, "This is Kansas City Public Television -- KCPT Kansas City, Missouri -- Channel 19".
 * The still variant has no music, and a different announcer says, "You're watching KCPT: Kansas City Public Television".
 * As an opener for KCPT produced shows, the music was a light synth tune followed by a soft "woosh" sound effect.
 * The "TV Worth Watching" jingle, with mention of "KCPT" in place of "Public TV". Sometimes the announcer says "KCPT--Kansas City--Channel 19".
 * Another local variant has a news like synth with the announcer saying "You're watching member supported public television in Kansas City--KCPT, channel 19--serving eastern Kansas and western Missouri.
 * For the "KANSAS CITY" variant, an 8 note synth bell is used.

Availability: Uncommon. Old tapes of the series Kansas City Illustrated plus PBS specials (produced by KCPT), pledge drives, and auctions from that period should have this logo. The variant with the 1984 A music was used as a local station ID. The "KANSAS CITY" variant is seen on the 1988 Missouri Governor Candidates Debate, which can be found here.

7th Logo (1989-1998)
Logo: On a black background we see a blueprint-like sketch formation of the KCPT logo with each letter in a different font. We start at a close angle, then pan across as each letter gets "painted" or "marked" a different color. The "K" is in a thin lavender sans-serif font, the "C" is in a brushstroke font, the "Serif" is in a light teal-blue serif font, and the "Impact" is in a thick yellow Helvetian font. Once the logo pans out to a comfortable distance, the text "PUBLIC TELEVISION 19" fades in below.

Variant: Beginning in 1992, this logo was animated over a purple marble background.

Technique: CGI.

Music/Sounds: There are also a few variations:
 * The first variant of the main ID (from 1989) had a light piano/synth chord and a new male announcer (from the 5th logo) that says, "You're watching KCPT -- Kansas City's home for the best in viewer-supported public television".
 * The second variant of the main ID (from 1992) had a majestic orchestral theme, which sounds similar to the 1990 Universal Pictures theme. A different announcer says, "The best of adventure, drama, mystery, and nature. It's all yours on television worth watching -- KCPT Channel 19: Kansas City's viewer-supported public television".
 * The same synth tune from the 1985 logo (with the "woosh" sound effect) was also used with this logo as an opener for KCPT produced shows until around 1992.

Availability: Uncommon. Should be seen on programs from the era.

8th Logo (1992-2000s)
Logo:


 * Opening: We see the KCPT logo (the "C" is embossed) with "PUBLIC TELEVISION 19" underneath. Below that is the word "Times New Roman" in an italic Times New Roman font.
 * Closing: We see the text "A Production of" with the KCPT logo below the text and "Kansas City" below the logo. At the bottom is a copyright disclaimer.

Technique: None.

Music/Sounds: None for the opening version, but the closing version has the end credits music played over it.

Availability: Seen at the beginning and end of KCPT produced programs from that period, such as Kansas City Week in Review and Ruckus. Also seen on the hard-to-find local produced documentaries Remember Me and Whizzo, Ol' Gus, and Me, both of which were released on VHS.

9th Logo (1998-2000)


Logo: Against a letterboxed view of Kansas City's skyline (the letterbox bars have the light blue and white light trails from the PBS ident used at the time), we see the same KCPT logo from the previous logo with "PUBLIC TELEVISION 19" underneath. Surrounding the logo are two circular rows of text, the inner row containing the slogan "Impact" and the outer row containing the station's name "KCPT KANSAS CITY" and the website domain "WWW.KCPT.ORG". Both rows of text rotate as the KCPT logo slowly approaches the frame.

Variant: A shortened version of the logo features a view of Bartle Hall's rooftop structure. The announcer says, "KCPT Kansas City".

Technique: Simple computer animation coupled with live action.

Music/Sounds: A funky contemporary jazz tune with percussions and bass guitars. The second male announcer from the 5th logo says, "You're Watching KCPT -- The Best Television on Television".

Availability: Extinct. It was only used as the local ID.

10th Logo (2000-2002)
Logo: To the left, we see a light red column with animated circles (and outlined circles) moving in and out on the inside. The KCPT logo is completely black with the PBS "P-Head" on a circle (the 1998-2019 logo) to the right of it. Below that is the text "CHANNEL 19 Kansas City, MO" and toward the bottom is the website domain name "kcpt.org". The column is suspended a bit to fit the width of the KCPT and PBS logos, and there's a dark red border on the outside of the column (with a view of the nighttime skyline inside of that). The remaining right side of the screen is a view of the city's skyline (viewed from the Missouri River) at sunset.

Technique: 2D animation and live action.

Music/Sounds: Usually a light jazz tune or an acoustic guitar/violin melody; although the music would randomize at times. An announcer (male or female) says, "You're watching KCPT -- Kansas City Public Television".

Availability: Extinct. Another station ID that was only used locally.

11th Logo (2002-2006)
Logo: On a /purple/ ethereal background of vertical light streaks (similar to that of the 2002 Corporation for Public Broadcasting logo), we see the KCPT logo with the PBS "P-Head" and the text "KANSAS CITY" in all white. On the bottom of the screen is a small white and navy blue bar with thin lines forming parallel outlines above the white half. Inside the bar are the various town and region names of the city's metropolitan area with the text "KCPT" next to each name. The bottom text in the white half is navy blue and the colors invert as it scrolls slowly from left to right.

Technique: Simple animation.

Music/Sounds: A female announcer that says "You're watching KCPT -- Kansas City Public Television".

Availability: Extinct. It was only used as a local ID.

12th Logo (2002-2011)
Logo: On a black background, we see the KCPT logo with "KANSAS CITY" below that. A second later, neon outlines of the KCPT letters zoom out one-by-one from the base of each letter and blur out of focus.

Technique: Simple animation.

Music/Sounds: None.

Availability: Seen at the beginning of KCPT produced programs from that period.

13th Logo (2006-2012)
Logo: A large circle (with footage of a statue, monument, or building representing a part of the city) takes up a good portion of the screen, and is bordered by a background of animated circles (usually in bright red, but sometimes in different colors such as, purple, or yellow). Near the lower right-hand corner is the PBS "P-Head" logo in a black circle, which expands and fades to a white circle baring the KCPT logo (with the PBS "P-Head" beside it). The text "KANSAS CITY" wipes across underneath the logo.

Variant: There are several variants of this logo. The generic ID (pictured here) has no announcer, but other IDs that represent the different towns or regions of the metropolitan area has a female announcer that says, "You're watching (REGION NAME)'s public television -- KCPT Kansas City".

Technique: Live-action coupled with 2D computer animation.

Music/Sounds: Usually a soft violin and/or acoustic guitar melody, but the music is somewhat randomized.

Availability: Extinct. It was only used as the local ID.

14th Logo (2011-2016)
Logo: On a background of a magenta/ color mesh and /pink clouds blended together, we see a CGI rendering of various buildings in Kansas City. This includes the Bartle Hall rooftop structure, the Power & Light building, plus the Sprint Center among others. A bunch of yellow lines forming a grid appear below the buildings (to represent Kansas City's intersecting downtown streets). We then zoom out to reveal each letter of the KCPT logo rotating one-by-one in unison (along with the PBS "P-Head" on the right in a chrome black circle). Right above that, each letter of the text "A PRODUCTION OF" quickly appear one-by-one in a black Bank Gothic font with a shine.

Technique: CGI.

Music/Sounds: A three-note acoustic guitar sounder.

Availability: Was seen at the beginning of The Local Show, available on KCPT's YouTube channel.

15th Logo (2012-2016)
Logo: Unknown

Technique: Unknown

Music/Sounds: Unknown

Availability: Extinct. It was only used as a local ID.

16th Logo (2016-)
Logo: Unknown

Technique: Unknown

Music/Sounds: Unknown

Availability: Current. It can be seen at the beginning of The Local Show, available on KCPT's YouTube channel.