20th Century Home Entertainment

Background
20th Century Fox Home Entertainment was the home entertainment division of 20th Century Fox and Fox Searchlight Pictures (now 20th Century Studios and Searchlight Pictures), a division of The Walt Disney Company. It was initially formed as Magnetic Video Corporation in 1968 by Andre Blay and based in Farmington Hills, Michigan, was the first company to release theatrical motion pictures to home video for consumers in 1976, making special deals with United Artists Corporation, Avco Embassy Pictures Corporation, ITC Entertainment Group, ABC Pictures Corporation, Viacom (later "CBS Corporation", now "ViacomCBS"), RBC Films (then an exclusive licensee of several of Charles Chaplin's films), Brut Productions, Bill Burrud Productions, American Film Theatre, and 20th Century-Fox Film Corporation (now 20th Century Studios). In 1979, Fox purchased Magnetic Video from Blay, reincorporating it as "20th Century-Fox Video" in 1981. In 1982, Fox entered into a joint venture with CBS to form "CBS/Fox Video", also launching two sub-labels; "Key Video" (later reactivated as "Key DVD" by 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment), and "Playhouse Video", which both became inactive in 1991. CBS/Fox Video was renamed "Fox Video" the same year, alternating with the CBS/Fox name until 1998, when Fox Entertainment Group acquired CBS's interest in CBS/Fox and renamed it to "20th Century Fox Home Entertainment" in 1995, alternating with the Fox Video name until 1998. The name would be retired on-screen in 2020, with the rename to 20th Century Studios and future home media releases would use the shortened version of the movie logo starting with the video release of Call of the Wild, while the 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment name is still used for copyright holding purposes.

1st Logo (January 1982-January 1983)
Nicknames: "Searchlights", "Fox Structure", "Majestic Tower", "Slanted Zero", "TCF VoiceTower"

Logo: It's basically the 1953 20th Century-Fox logo with no video indicator whatsoever.

Variant: On the 1982 VHS of Sergeant York, as well as the original rental-only version of A Fistful of Dollars, the 1981 20th Century-Fox logo is used instead. There also exists a black and white version of this variant.

FX/SFX: Same as the 1953/1981 20th Century-Fox logo.

Music/Sounds: The 1979 20th Century-Fox fanfare, accompanied by a male announcer, different from the Magnetic Video announcer, on non-Fox releases, indicating the studio:
 * On United Artists releases, the voice-over said "The following United Artists feature is brought to you by 20th Century-Fox Video".
 * On ABC, ITC, Avco Embassy, Viacom, and other non-Fox releases (including concert videos, Bruce Lee films, and The Amazing Spider-Man episodes), the voice-over said "The following feature is brought to you by 20th Century-Fox Video".
 * On the double-feature release of The Making of Star Wars/SP FX: The Empire Strikes Back, the voice-over says "The following special presentation is brought to you by 20th Century-Fox Video".
 * On UK tapes with this logo, a British announcer says "20th Century Fox Video presents".
 * Sometimes, this would plaster the film's original Fox logo (or if no logo is shown at the start, be added to the start) on a few Fox titles such as the 1982 reissues of Silver Streak, The Omen, and The Turning Point. Here, there is no voiceover.

Availability: Ultra rare. It's actually harder to find than most Magnetic titles; however, the regular variant can be seen on The Howling, Scanners, On Golden Pond, Griffon and Phoenix, The Grissom Gang, Capricorn One, The Return of the Pink Panther, and Moses, while the United Artists variant is seen on United Artists releases such as A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum, Goldfinger, the first two Rocky films, The Pink Panther Strikes Again, For Your Eyes Only, The French Lieutenant's Woman, The Return of a Man Called Horse, and Thunderbolt and Lightfoot. Most releases are in over-sized drawer-like boxes, colloquially known as the "Fox Box" due to its association with the company. Strangely, most (if not all) Fox releases, such as Quest for Fire, do not have this logo, instead skipping straight to the standard 20th Century-Fox logo of the era or a custom variation there of created for the film. This was also seen rarely on re-prints of post-1981 Magnetic titles, such as The Boys from Brazil and Carrie. The very first releases in this incarnation, such as the Video Rental Library release of Dr. No, tend to use the Magnetic logo instead. Later releases, such as Revenge of the Pink Panther (despite showing the print logo on the box and labels), use the first CBS/Fox Video logo. In addition, sometimes the reverse is true -- the 1984 CBS/Fox Video release of The Pink Panther Strikes Again has the CBS/Fox labeling, but has the old 20th Century Fox Video logo on the tape itself! The logo remained in use on laser videodiscs until January 1983.

Editor's Note: This is likely a placeholder logo, as CBS/Fox Video began releasing about a month after this logo was discontinued.

2nd Logo (Australian Variant) (1982)
Nickname: "Print Searchlights" "TCF Prints"

Logo: One by one, four white squares zoom in by flipping. These show the print 20th Century Fox logo in blue with the word "VIDEO" underneath. After the fourth square finishes moving into place, the logos are moved downwards by a cube effect and are replaced by a full screen version of the 20th Century Fox Video logo.

Variant: A still variant containing just the finished logo also exists.

FX/SFX: The four squares flipping and then the final cube effect. All Scanimate effects.

Music/Sounds: The original 1954 CinemaScope extension of the TCF fanfare. Sometimes during the second half of the fanfare, a male voice-over says: "The following feature is brought to you by 20th Century-Fox Video".

Availability: Ultra rare. This logo was only used in Australia. Some examples include a Betamax copy of High Anxiety and VHS copies of Norma Rae and Omen III: The Final Conflict. It was also spotted on a VHS copy of The Domino Principle, which was originally released by ITC Entertainment. One tape that had the still variant was Star Wars. These videos are easy to spot, with a big blue or orange label containing the print logo on the top of the front and back of the video case.

Editor's Note: While this is a rather simple logo, at least the Australian division made a proper home video logo.

3rd Logo (German Variant) (1982)
Logo: On a black background, we see the white text "Twentieth Century-Fox Video zeigt".

FX/SFX: None.

Music/Sounds: The 1935 TCF fanfare.

Availability: Only seen on a German Laserdisc of Alien in the place of the normal TCF logo.

Editor's Note: This is another effortless logo that seems like a placeholder.

1st Logo (November 1982-July 1983)
Nickname: "Stacking Lines", Inexperienced (for Educational variant)

Logo: Over a white background, we see before us a dual set of violet lines stacking upward and downward. Then, six long objects pop in at the top and bottom of the segmented lines, revealing the words:

Impact Impact

then each letter of the word "VIDEO" pops in one by one below "Impact".

Variants:
 * A still logo was found on the original release of Sophie's Choice.
 * A special animated version was used on PAL releases. Two segmented white curved squares and one segmented red square zoom in and out from the screen. The words "Impact", letter by letter, zoom in to the left side of the screen as another segmented white parallelogram zooms in. As it curves, it fills the screen, and the segments of the CBS/Fox logo zoom out from the top and bottom of the screen, while the word "VIDEO" zooms out from the bottom.
 * There is also an alternate variant for educational releases. On a blue-red gradient background, a light blue star flashes, and the text "Times New Roman" fades in. The words stay for several seconds, and then zoom away inward. While this happens, sets of white lines stack upon each other and form the CBS/Fox logo. A white flash below this forms the word "VIDEO".
 * There is a black and white variant. This is seen on the 1982 VHS of The Diary of Anne Frank and the 1983 VHS of Modern Times.
 * There is an Australian variant where the logo appears in the corner and Australian television and radio announcer Pete Smith (most famous for his announcing of the Australian version of Sale of the Century) introduces the film.

FX/SFX: The lines stacking up and down. On the Learning Experience variant, one of the segments disappears while the logo is forming and suddenly reappears when the logo is complete.

Music/Sounds: None.

Music/Sounds Variants:
 * On PAL releases, a high-pitched variant of the original 1954 CinemaScope extension of the TCF fanfare was used.
 * On the "Learning Experience" variant, a female voice-over says: "This has been a CBS/Fox Video Learning Experience".
 * Pete Smith says in his variant, "Hello there, congratulations on your choice of a great CBS/Fox film. Before settling back, here are scenes from two films available from the vast CBS/Fox Video catalog".

Availability: Extremely rare. It's been seen on the original VHS releases of Knife in the Water (The Young Lover), Grand Illusion, Still of the Night, The Taking of Pelham One Two Three, and the M*A*S*H series finale. First seen on Rocky III, Barbarosa, and reissues of The Boys in the Band, The Billion Dollar Hobo, and Cruising, among others. The "Learning Experience" variant can be found on videos that begin with The CBS/Fox Guide, which have been out of print for some time now, such as The CBS/Fox Guide to Home Videography and The CBS/Fox Guide to Complete Dog Care, among others. The PAL variant was seen on PAL releases from the era, one example is a Betamax tape of Chariots of Fire. It also appears on reissues of Modern Times and Chitty Chitty Bang Bang that are packaged in Magnetic Video boxes (and sometimes even have Magnetic labels). The Pete Smith variant was presumably seen on select Australian releases from this era by the company. One of the last releases to use this logo was a 1983 reissue of Rude Boy.

Editor's Note: Those familiar with the later CBS/Fox logos might not expect this, but it's nothing that's too out of place. The PAL variant definitely has a lot more effort put into it, though.

2nd Logo (September 1982, July 1983-November 13, 1984)
Nickname: "The Cutting Lines", "The Grids"

Logo: On a blue background, two grids are moving from the top and bottom of the screen converging in the center of the screen. "CBS" comes from the top at an angle, with "FOX" coming from the bottom at an angle. The background has an orange flash, in which "CBS" and "FOX" are cut in a segmented line font as it moves toward the flash, and "CBS" and "FOX" right themselves in the center of the screen. The letters of the word "VIDEO" fly in from the bottom center of the screen one at a time. Then the trademark symbol fades in on the right/bottom corner of the logo.

Variants:
 * There is a still version found at the end of some UK promos.
 * There is a black and white variant. This can be seen on the 1983 VHS of The Pride of the Yankees and many other films in said colors.
 * There is a variant with the text "THE HIT LIST" in red appearing. The variant has a different transition at the beginning.

FX/SFX: The converging of the two grids and the logo, the Scanimate orange flash (a la the WGBH logo), and the flying of the "VIDEO" letters.

Music/Sounds: A triumphant 25-note horn march fanfare, sampled from the Bruton Music library track "National Trust" composed by Keith Mansfield.

Music/Sounds Trivia: When Bruton reissued the track on CD, they removed the prologue section from which the CBS/Fox music came. Perhaps it was because it became so associated with the CBS/Fox logo?

Music/Sounds Variant: A closing variant was used at the end of most Australian PAL releases carrying this logo, featuring a voice-over reminding the viewer to "Don't forget to rewind this tape before returning it to your video library."

Availability: Rare. Most videos that may have used this logo were issued in the same oversized boxes that were used by 20th Century-Fox Video. It possibly first appeared on the 1982 US retail VHS of Star Wars as a prototype logo. Videos that feature this logo include the 1983 release of the aforementioned Star Wars, Romancing the Stone, Eating Raoul, Romantic Comedy, Yentl, Porky's II: The Next Day, War Games, Scrooge, Heart Like a Wheel, Table for Five, Dot and the Bunny, Alphabet City, ''Oh! Heavenly Dog, The Black Stallion Returns, and Max Dugan Returns''. It also appears on reissues of Inside Moves, All About Eve, and The Charlie Daniels Band: The Saratoga Concert, in a similar fashion to what was described in the first logo. One of the last releases to use this logo was the 1984 VHS/Betamax/Laserdisc release of The Empire Strikes Back. The "THE HIT LIST" variant can be seen on a promo/trailer tape from the era.

Editor's Note: Again, those familiar with the next logo might not be expecting the simpler animation. However, they certainly will recognize the iconic music.

3rd Logo (December 1984-2000)
Nicknames: "Stairways", "Bleachers", "CBS/Fox Bleachers"

Logo: On a black background, we see a mirrored, twin stair-like texture that shines a lot. The "stairs" rotate counter-clockwise and turn out to be the following text in blue with a segmented line between the two words on a black marble background:

Impact Impact

Then the word "VIDEO" shines in below "Impact", and the whole logo shines with pride.

Trivia:


 * This logo is referenced in a scene in the music video for the song "DVNO" by Justice. Said scene references both this logo and the Universal Pictures logo at the same time.
 * This logo was made by Compugraph on a Bosch FGS-4000 CGI machine.

Variants: There are a few variations of this logo:


 * A variation was seen in black and white. This was shown on re-releases of 1940s, 1950s and 1960s films.
 * On widescreen releases, the logo would zoom out to a screen with two rectangles, one on the left and one on the right, on an almond-staged orange/purple background, and the two rectangles on the sides would expand, and "SPECIAL WIDESCREEN EDITION" is below the screen on the stage.
 * There may be either the words "STEREO", "STEREO SURROUND", the Dolby Surround logo, the Ultra-Stereo logo or the Chace Surround Stereo logo appearing in the bottom left corner.
 * On late 1989-early 1990 prints, from just before CBS/Fox started printing their tapes at Rank Video Services America, during the FBI Warning screen, which appears on the beginning of such tapes at that time, a still version of this logo appears a couple of times, staying on the screen for about five seconds before cutting back to the warning. This has been spotted on prints of License to Kill, Iron Eagle (the 1989 re-print), Die Hard, Magic Memories on Ice, The Mighty Quinn, The January Man, Buying Time, The Abyss, Commando (the 1989 re-print), and In Like Flint from the time period.
 * Memories of Me has an almost still logo where the logo shines.
 * On the 1984 VHS of The Good, The Bad and The Ugly, there is a still version where the logo does not shine at all. The entire logo fades in, stays on-screen for a couple of seconds, and then fades out.
 * The standard version (matted to widescreen) makes a strange appearance on the 2000 Image Entertainment DVD of The Twelve Chairs.

FX/SFX: "CBS-FOX" rotating, "VIDEO" fading. This is pretty advanced stuff for the 1980s, and it still holds up moderately well today--which probably explains its staggering 16-year lifespan.

Music/Sounds: Same as the 2nd logo, but the mixing (most noticeably with the opening horns) is slightly different.

Music/Sounds Variants:


 * On the widescreen variant, a big "WHOOSH" sound is heard at the beginning (if listening under stereo, the whoosh pans from right to left), then another whoosh when the side rectangles expand, then a "Boom!" at the end (also if listening under stereo, the "Boom!" pans from the left side to the right).
 * On the 1990 VHS of The Sound of Music, this logo is silent.
 * At the end of PAL tapes in Australia, there is a variant with a voice-over from Channel Seven's Don Rainsford, who says "Please rewind this cassette before returning it to your video library" at the end.
 * Another variant used Chelsea Brown saying "Could you please rewind your cassette before returning it to your video library?".
 * The completely still variant seen on the 1984 VHS of The Good, The Bad and The Ugly has no music at all.

Availability: Very common. This logo lasted for 16 years and was used on a massive variety of releases, so it should be easy to find on VHS tapes available in second-hand shops, charity shops and on Amazon and eBay.


 * Can also be seen on early-to-mid 1991 Media Home Entertainment releases and BBC Video releases.
 * The widescreen version can be found on the first prints of the widescreen editions of The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi (preceded on both tapes by the widescreen version of the 1991 Fox Video logo) and all the DVDs from Bruce Lee's "Master Collection" box set, except Bruce Lee: The Legend.
 * The Dolby Surround variant can be found on the original VHS releases of Die Hard, The Abyss, The War of the Roses, Vital Signs, The Adventures of Ford Fairlane, Young Guns II, Die Hard 2, Pacific Heights, Marked for Death, Predator 2, and Edward Scissorhands.
 * The Chace Surround Stereo variant is extremely rare and can be found on the original VHS release of State Fair and a 1990 VHS of Planet of the Apes.
 * The last releases to use this were FernGully 2: The Magical Rescue, Our Friend Martin and Walking with Dinosaurs.
 * The "STEREO" text version can be seen on the 1995 Hong Kong laserdisc of Return of the Jedi (plastering the 1981 20th Century Fox logo).
 * This is retained on the 1994 UK VHS releases of the Star Wars trilogy, but not the 1992 or 1995 US VHS trilogies, despite showing the logo on the covers and labels of The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi. However, their laserdisc counterparts actually use this logo.
 * The Ultra Stereo version is rare and can be found on the VHS releases of Satisfaction, Mindgames, Survival Quest, and Frankenstein Unbound.
 * A rare post-1991 solo appearance happens on the 1992 VHS of Doctor Who: An Unearthly Child, where it's not even accompanied by the BBC Video logo.
 * Strangely, this does not appear on the 1998 VHS of Rusty: The Great Rescue, despite the print logo appearing on the packaging and tape label.
 * Also seen on Media Home Entertainment releases from the early part of 1991 such as The Applegates and Sonny Boy, among others.
 * Strangely, it appears on a Canadian Malofilm Video release of Ambition, while the U.S. Media/Fox VHS used the first Fox Video logo instead.

Editor's Note: This is considered one of the most memorable logos ever made, especially thanks to the epic music, great CGI for the time, and its lengthy lifespan.

4th Logo (Argentinian Version) (1980s)


Logo: On a black space background with a moon on the lower-left of the screen and a planet below that (a widescreen shot of the opening in Star Wars: Episode IV - A New Hope after the title crawl, stretched to fit a 4:3 screen), two hands are clasped together. They move away from the top and bottom respectively, revealing a super-imposed CBS FOX VIDEO logo with an explosion inside it. Then clips from various movies (such as Star Wars) play inside the logo. Then, after a few seconds, "GATIVIDEO S.A." (in its company font) appears below, then that itself disappears after a few moments.

FX/SFX: The hands (live action), and the clips playing inside the logo.

Music/Sounds: A disco theme.

Availability: Seen on VHS tapes in Argentina distributed by Gativideo.

Editor's Note: None.

5th Logo (1998)


Logo: On a black background, we see a white version of the CBS/Fox Video logo.

FX/SFX: Still.

Music/Sounds: None.

Availability: Ultra rare. Its only known appearance is on the UK and Australian VHS releases of FernGully 2: The Magical Rescue.

Editor's Note: None.

(1989?-Early 1990s?)
Logo:


 * Opening: The CBS/Fox Video logo in silver is inside of a black box with a white outline zooms up and has three black lines (each one getting larger further down) come up with it. "ALL TIME GREATS" then zooms and it has a larger line with an upside down triangle on it. This all happens against a blue background.
 * Closing: The same as the opening version, only "YOURS TO KEEP FOREVER" appears under it.

FX/SFX: The box, lines and text sliding up.

Music/Sounds:


 * The CBS/Fox Video theme from the previous logos.
 * On the closing version, a male British announcer says, "All Time Greats from CBS/Fox Video, favorite films to keep and enjoy, forever".

Availability: Rare. Can be seen on promos for films released under this label on other releases under this label.

Editor's Note: None.

1st Logo (July 11, 1991-May 5, 1993, 1991-1995 (Australia))
Nicknames: "The CGI Shining Searchlights", "Gold Tower", "Fox Structure", "Golden Fox Structure", "FV Tower"

Logo: A still shot of the famous 20th Century Fox structure, from a slightly different angle, gold color against a simple blue background. The wording on the structure now says "FOX VIDEO", with an extra gap where "FOX" would be in the movie logo. The logo "shimmers" as bars of light move through a la the Touchstone logo.

Variants:
 * There is a letterboxed "Scope" version on widescreen releases. The logo was the same, but was matted (or cropped) to widescreen.
 * A black and white variant exists. This can be seen on some black and white films released on home video, such as the 1991 VHS releases of the original Miracle on 34th Street and Sink the Bismarck! The B&W version in widescreen letterbox can also be seen on the Laserdisc version of the latter film.
 * On some Media Home Entertainment releases, such as Scanners II: The New Order, the words "DISTRIBUTED BY" appear above the logo. In this case, no announcer spiel was used.
 * For the 1993 UK rental VHS of Home Alone 2: Lost in New York, the animation was slowed down, to fit the full extended TCF fanfare mentioned below.
 * A special version was seen on UK Widescreen VHS releases. The logo plays as normal, then it zooms out towards the middle of the screen and turns 3-D and it expands with movie scenes appears behind the background (all resembling the letterbox format). The word "WIDESCREEN" (arched upwards and downwards with blue shadow effects underneath) pan past the screen vertically, then turns horizontal and rests in front of the Fox Video logo).
 * On the Fox Video Sentimental promo, which can be found on the 1992 Demo VHS of My Cousin Vinny, the logo is still and zoomed out on a black background with the text "Available from FoxVideo" shown on the bottom.

FX/SFX: The "shimmer".

Music/Sounds: None.

Music/Sounds Variants:


 * The 1979 TCF fanfare can be heard on PAL and French SÉCAM releases, as well as a few NTSC releases, such as the widescreen Laserdisc of Die Hard and a rental copy of Point Break.
 * The UK rental VHS of Home Alone 2: Lost in New York uses the extended TCF fanfare.
 * The Widescreen version has an abridged version of the extended TCF theme that starts when the logo zooms out and an energetic whoosh sound when the logo expands.
 * On some tapes, only the drums from the opening of the fanfare are heard.
 * On Media Home Entertainment releases, the announcer for the Media and Fox Video logos says "Distributed by Fox Video".
 * There was a closing variant seen on some Australian PAL tapes (mainly rental tapes) which had the same voice-over from the CBS/Fox PAL closing variant, sometimes with the 1979 TCF fanfare preceding it.

Availability: Rare. It's seen on all Fox videos from that period. The best way to find this is to look for a Fox Video print logo that is a simple 2D drawing with no color. Again, this will be easy to find in second-hand video shops, charity shops and on eBay.
 * This logo first appeared on the 1991 original print of Robin Hood (1991 20th Century Fox film) and can be seen on movies such as Sleeping with the Enemy, Home Alone, Class Action, Only the Lonely, Point Break, Hot Shots!, For the Boys, White Men Can't Jump, FernGully: The Last Rainforest, My Cousin Vinny, Alien 3, The Last of the Mohicans, The Simpsons Christmas Special and the 1992 Star Wars trilogy box set (pan and scan), as well as the UK VHS of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II: The Secret of the Ooze.
 * A letterboxed version in a scope aspect ratio appears on the special letterbox collector's edition of the Star Wars trilogy.
 * It can also be found on BBC Video tapes from 1991-1993, but those aren't as easy to find. It also appeared, surprisingly enough indeed, on the 1998 UK VHS of Edward Scissorhands (which is probably a reprint from 1991, according to the previews on it).
 * In Australia, this logo was used until 1995. One such example of this being used on a post-1993 tape is the 1994 Australian VHS of Mrs. Doubtfire.
 * It also appeared on a 2001 VHS of Demetrius and the Gladiators (most likely a reprint itself).
 * Also seen on tapes from Media Home Entertainment released from mid-to-late 1991 until 1993, such as Paris Trout, Nails, and Prospero's Books.
 * Among the last tapes to use this were Love Potion #9, the 1993 Studio Classics VHS of A Letter to Three Wives, and the first 10 volumes of The Honeymooners: The Classic 39.
 * The Widescreen version is seen on the UK Special Edition VHS of The Abyss (which also uses the next logo).
 * It strangely appeared on some early '90s reprints of earlier CBS/Fox titles with CBS/Fox packaging and labels, including My Bodyguard and Short Circuit.

Editor's Note: None.

2nd Logo (May 26, 1993-November 21, 1995)
Nicknames: "Rotating Tower", "The Ugly Tower", "Fox Structure II", "FV Tower II"

Logo: On a dark teal background, we see a gold/purple Fox structure, from an extreme upper-left angle. We move down and pan around the structure (and a light shines through it as we do that), saying "FOX VIDEO" like in the 1st logo, before settling into the familiar angle we usually see Fox logos from, with clouds moving behind the structure at a slow rate.

Variants:
 * There is a black and white variant. This can be found on the 1993 VHS of Young Frankenstein.
 * A shortened version exists where the logo fades in as the lights shine and the logo moves to its final angle. This was seen on the 1995 20th Century Fox Selections releases of Young Guns II and Dutch.
 * A short version with far more vibrant colors than usual appears on the promo for the VHS of Mrs. Doubtfire on the 1994 VHS of Speed.

FX/SFX: The computer animation, which is a variation of the movie's animation.

Music/Sounds: None.

Music/Sounds Variants:


 * Occasionally, the 1979 TCF fanfare was used, mainly on PAL releases including the UK rental VHS releases of Used People, Jack the Bear, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles III, and The Vanishing.
 * On a promo for The X-Files found on the 1995 Hong Kong laserdisc of Star Wars: Episode VI: Return of the Jedi and the French SECAM VHS release of Highlander III, a deep synth score is heard.
 * On Media Home Entertainment releases, the announcer for the Media and Fox Video logos says "Distributed by Fox Video".

Availability:


 * First appeared on Used People, Toys, and Hoffa, with the same 2D print logo. This can be seen on all 1993-1995 Fox Video releases such as My Neighbor Totoro, Doctor Dolittle, Frozen Assets, Home Alone 2: Lost in New York, Once Upon a Forest, The Sandlot (including a 2000 VHS reprint, in print as late as 2004), Mrs. Doubtfire, True Lies, Speed, Baby's Day Out, The Pagemaster, Far from Home: The Adventures of Yellow Dog, The Scout, Nell, all 1995 20th Century Fox Selections VHS releases such as Big, Pacific Heights, Shining Through and Only the Lonely, and some BBC Video releases from that era, including Wallace and Gromit: The Wrong Trousers and Wallace and Gromit: A Grand Day Out.
 * Was also seen on tapes released by Media Home Entertainment from 1993, including Scam, shortly before Media Home Entertainment went out of business.
 * This also appears on the Star Wars Trilogy: The Definitive Collection Laserdisc box set from 1993.
 * The last tapes to use this were the John Hughes remake of Miracle on 34th Street and Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: The Movie.
 * Strangely, this logo doesn't appear on the 1995 Star Wars trilogy VHS box set, despite showing the 1994 full color print logo on the cover. However, the 1995 Laserdisc of Star Wars: A New Hope actually uses this, while the 1995 Laserdiscs of The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi use the 1984 CBS/Fox Video logo instead.

Editor's Note: Many consider this to be an ugly logo, due to its weird, dull colors and off-model appearance.

3rd Logo (1994-1995)
Nicknames: "Print Searchlights", "Fox Structure III", "Print Fox Structure", "FV Tower III"

Logo: It's basically the full color Fox Video print logo of the time, which is the 20th Century Fox logo from 1953 with "FOX VIDEO" replacing the text. It begins by taking up the whole screen, but zooms out until it is in a box in the center of the screen.

Variant: On the Rodgers & Hammerstein Golden Anniversary Collection trailer, the words "from Fox Video" are seen below the logo.

FX/SFX: The zooming out of the logo.

Music/Sounds:
 * The end theme of the trailer, combined with a female voice saying "From Fox Video".
 * On the Rodgers & Hammerstein Golden Anniversary Collection trailer, it's silent.

Availability: Rare. It's seen on the trailer for the Shirley Temple Collection VHS box set that can be found on the VHS releases of Mrs. Doubtfire, The Little Princess, The Blue Bird, and the John Hughes remake of Miracle on 34th Street. Was also seen at the end of the Rodgers & Hammerstein Golden Anniversary Collection trailer, which can be found on the 1994 VHS releases of State Fair (1945) and The Sound of Music.

Editor's Note: None.

4th Logo (December 19, 1995-March 1998)
Nicknames: "Fox Structure IV", "FV Tower IV"

Logo: Against the Los Angeles skyline around sunset, we see a spotlight and then pan across the "FOX VIDEO" structure, now redone so that it looks a lot better and all of it is set in Futura Extra Bold (so it still doesn't quite match the TCF logo). We zoom out until we reach the comfortable Fox logo distance.

Variant: A slightly longer version appears on the original 1995 VHS release of Die Hard with a Vengeance.

FX/SFX: Very good computer animation, and a massive improvement over its predecessors.

Music/Sounds: Usually none.

Availability: Fairly common. This logo always came after the logo below.


 * Seen on releases of the era such as Die Hard with a Vengeance (VHS only; the Laserdisc uses the 1993 logo), Broken Arrow, Independence Day, Jingle All the Way, Turbo: A Power Rangers Movie, Goosebumps: The Haunted Mask (including the UK VHS release, in which this makes a surprise appearance after the 1995 international and domestic TCFHE logos), the 1996 VHS of The Sound of Music, and the 1997 Star Wars Trilogy Special Edition box set (the VHS versions only; the Laserdisc version only uses the 1995 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment logo).
 * Seen on all 20th Century Fox Selections titles released between 1995 and 1997 such as Raising Arizona, The Super, Big Trouble in Little China, The Abyss, Hoffa, Short Circuit, The Omen (1976 version), The Good Son, Young Frankenstein, Bill Cosby Himself, Enemy Mine, History of the World: Part I, Porky's, Commando, The Fly (1986 remake) and Better Off Dead.
 * This was also used on most Premiere Series releases from 1996 and 1997 such as Mrs. Doubtfire, My Cousin Vinny, That Thing You Do!, Sleeping with the Enemy and Predator.
 * Strangely, this doesn't appear on The Best of The Simpsons VHS box set from 1997 (despite the logo appearing on the packaging of the individual tapes and the box itself) or the 1996 Premiere Series releases of A Walk in the Clouds, Nine Months, and The Truth About Cats and Dogs (though all three use the 1991 full color print logo on their spines).
 * The Laserdisc of Volcano (which didn't show the Fox Video logo on the cover) featured both this logo and the 1995-2008 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment logo.
 * Look for a screencap of this logo used on the packaging of most 1997 releases (all 1995-1996 releases use the 1991 full color print logo).
 * One of the last releases to use this were very early prints of Anastasia.
 * A shorter version of the logo appeared on some video commercials up until 1999.

Editor's Note: This is often seen as the best of the Fox Video logos. It has very nice animation for the time, the concept of which can be seen as a precursor to the Fox Searchlight Pictures logo.

1st Logo (August 29, 1995-October 2008)
Nicknames: "Box Structure", "Majestic Tower", "Futuristic Structure", "TCF BoxTower"

Logo: We see the end of the 1994-2010 Fox logo, with neither the News Corporation byline nor the registered trademark symbol. We then zoom out, to reveal that it is in a box. The box is in a larger box colored cadet blue, and next to the Fox logo box are the words "Garamond" in Latin 725 font, spanning across three lines.

Trivia: The version of the Fox logo used in this logo is an unedited render of the logo from Flip Your Lid Animation, before it was transferred to film.

Variants:


 * On some releases, the logo faded in from black rather than cutting in from black.
 * The first releases with this logo had the logo cut to black at the end of the animation.
 * There exists a black and white variant. This can be found on the 2001 Fox War Classics VHS release of The Desert Rats.
 * A 16:9 version of the logo was spotted on the widescreen DVD release of Thumbelina.
 * On 1996 VHS tapes that have the Widescreen Series video promo, the logo fades in and then fades out later right after the animation freezes at the final frame.
 * A shorter version exists where the logo begins halfway through the animation. This has been spotted on the 2005 DVD of Pet Alien: Atomic Tommy as well as VHS releases of Strawberry Shortcake.
 * On the 1995 retail VHS of Bushwhacked, the logo cuts to the green MPAA rating screen for the Down Periscope trailer.
 * On some tapes with the Premiere Series promo, the logo is shortened and the text on the right from the logo is replaced with "Impact".

FX/SFX: A simple, smooth zoom-out. The box animates at the same framerate as the Fox logo itself.

Music/Sounds: None.

Music/Sounds Variant: On the tapes with the Widescreen Series promo, announcer Don LaFontaine says "Presenting the Widescreen Series from Fox Video" halfway through the animation.

Availability: Common on VHS, DVD, and Laserdisc releases from the period.


 * Appears on releases such as the John Hughes remake of Miracle on 34th Street, Independence Day, Casper: A Spirited Beginning, Turbo: A Power Rangers Movie, The Crucible, King Kong Lives, Tai-Pan, Pelle the Conqueror, Maximum Overdrive, Crimes of the Heart, Titan A.E., Silent Trigger, Raw Deal, Jingle All the Way and Goosebumps videos, as well as some prints of Wallace and Gromit tapes (namely A Close Shave), the Best of the Simpsons VHS tapes, and the 2002 DVD release of My Neighbor Totoro.
 * Outside the USA and Canada, this logo can be seen on video releases and television broadcasts of Casper: A Spirited Beginning and Casper Meets Wendy. It made a surprise appearance on the UK VHS release of Goosebumps: The Haunted Mask after the 1995 international version of the TCFHE logo and before the 1995 Fox Video logo. Also appears before the rare CBS Fox Video logo on the UK VHS release of FernGully 2: The Magical Rescue.
 * The last titles to have this logo were American Dad! Volume 3 and the 2008 DVD release of Babes in Toyland (1934).
 * The version without the fade-out appears on VHS and Laserdiscs of the 1995 Star Wars Trilogy. This variant can also be seen on some home video releases by the company such as The Towering Inferno (without previews), the 1995 VHS of Snoopy Come Home, Bye Bye Love, Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: The Movie, The Last Winter, Nutcracker on Ice, the 1995 Laserdisc releases of Die Hard, Die Hard with a Vengeance, Aliens, the 1995 Canadian VHS print of Bachelor Party, the John Hughes remake of Miracle on 34th Street, and the 1995 VHS of A Christmas Carol. It is unknown which DVDs used this version as most used the standard version with the fade-out.
 * The version that fades in at the beginning and cuts out at the end of the logo is on the original 1996 VHS of Nine Months.
 * The version where the logo faded in from black can be seen on the VHS releases of 1998's Dr. Dolittle, Rusty: The Great Rescue (a.k.a. Rusty: A Dog's Tale), and Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones.
 * Appears at the end of Casper Meets Wendy on Disney Channel and ABC Family (now Freeform).
 * While it does appear at the end of the last few HiT Entertainment DVDs that they released, it doesn't appear at the beginning of any of them.

Editor's Note: This isn't anything too memorable, but it isn't a completely awful logo, either. It's a simple but effective logo design.

2nd Logo (2004-2009)
Nicknames: "Box Structure II", "Majestic Tower II", "Futuristic Structure II", "TCF BoxTower II"

Logo: Same as the previous logo, except the box is now grey with a gold border, the company name set in ITC Garamond, and the Fox logo is the filmed version, and has the News Corporation byline and registered trademark symbol. Basically, an enhanced version of the first logo.

Variants:


 * At first, there is a 16:9 widescreen version, seen on widescreen edition DVDs. Later on, a full-screen version was made and can be seen on DVD releases of TV shows and full-screen films.
 * On the Blu-ray Discs of Ice Age: The Meltdown, Chain Reaction and Alien vs. Predator, the logo is still except for the Fox logo, which is now the corporate version with the rear searchlights re-animated to match the standard version of the 1994 logo, but also reverses at a certain point, a la the 1981 Fox logo's long version. Also, the entire sky (including the clouds and the stars) pan to the right.

FX/SFX: The zoom-out and the fade-in of the News Corporation byline. None for the Ice Age: The Meltdown variant except for the searchlights and the clouds.

Music/Sounds: None.

Availability: Common. It first appeared on D-Theater D-VHS releases of TCF films, including Alien. The only known VHS release to have this logo is the 2004 VHS of Garden State. It has also appeared on PSP UMD TCF releases. It can also be seen on every TCF release on DVD from late 2006 to 2009, such as Ice Age: The Meltdown (widescreen edition only; the full screen edition used the previous logo), Garfield: A Tail of Two Kitties, X-Men: The Last Stand, Borat, The Devil Wears Prada, Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer, The Simpsons Movie, Horton Hears a Who, Alvin and the Chipmunks, What Happens in Vegas, and 2006-2009 MGM Home Entertainment releases such as Valkyrie and Quantum of Solace, among other releases. It also appeared on the DVD release of FernGully 2: The Magical Rescue, the extended cut DVD of Commando, and the "Family Fun Edition" DVDs of Home Alone, The Pebble and The Penguin, and Jingle All the Way. Some of the last releases to have this logo were The Rocker and Marley & Me. Strangely, this logo appears on the French R2 DVD of Thumbelina, plastering the Warner Bros. Family Entertainment logo. This also appears on the Blu-Ray of Speed.

Editor's Note: This is a downgrade from the previous logo; because the logo is set in the same frame rate as the filmed Fox logo, it's significantly choppier as a result, and overall it looks cheaper too.

3rd Logo (2009-2010)
Nicknames: "Majestic Tower III", "Futuristic Structure III", "Pre-Ultra Majestic Tower" "TCF, Tower"

Logo: It's the same as the 20th Century Fox Blu-ray Disc logo, but the ending animation is cut.

FX/SFX: Same as the 20th Century Fox Blu-ray Disc logo.

Music/Sounds: Same as the 20th Century Fox Blu-ray Disc logo.

Availability: Short-lived, yet common. It can be seen on every TCF release on DVD until November 2010. Notable releases that have this are Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs, Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian, Whip It, Aliens in the Attic, Fantastic Mr. Fox, Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel, Crazy Heart, Avatar, Diary of a Wimpy Kid and post-2009 MGM Home Entertainment releases, among others. It also appears on the 2010 repackaged DVD copies of FernGully: The Last Rainforest and Thumbelina. Along with the Blu-ray variant of this logo, it made a surprise re-appearance on the 2015 re-release of The Sound of Music.

Editor's Note: This is a significant improvement over the previous logo.

4th Logo (November 2010-April 14, 2020)
Nicknames: "Ultra Majestic Tower", "CGI City Skyline Searchlights", "Enhanced City Skyline Searchlights", "Majestic Tower IV", "Futuristic Structure IV" "TCFHE, Tower"

Logo: Same as the 2009-2020 20th Century Fox logo except that, at the end, the structure pans back farther than usual to reveal the stacked words "HOME ENTERTAINMENT" on the right of the Fox structure with "HOME" set in Neutraface No. 2. Once the logo is fully revealed, the News Corporation byline fades in at the bottom of the screen (on pre-2013 releases). The registered trademark sign fades in as well.

Trivia: This logo is a throwback to the That's Hollywood! logo; a series from 20th Century Fox Television.

Variants:
 * Newer releases, starting with The Croods, have this logo cut-short to the middle.
 * A 4:3 variant exists, but is used only for full screen DVDs and Blu-ray Discs, such as the DVD and Blu-ray releases of seasons 16 and 17 of The Simpsons and the 2012 DVD of Mr. Scoutmaster. It is also cropped to 2.35.1 as a letterbox widescreen logo. There is a widescreen version of the open matte logo expanded to 16:9 with the Hor+ screen scaling method.
 * Starting with the releases of Turbo and Enough Said on November 12, 2013 and January 28, 2014, the News Corporation byline is excluded and the logo is bylineless for the first time since the 1995 logo, due to the aforementioned split on June 28, 2013.

FX/SFX: Same as the current 20th Century Fox logo.

Music/Sounds: The 1997 Fox fanfare arrangement. A short version is used on newer releases.

Music/Sounds Variants: DVD releases of The Simpsons Seasons 16 and 17 use the audio of Ralph Wiggum 'singing along' to the second half of the fanfare from The Simpsons Movie, whilst season 18 uses the standard 1997 fanfare, with Fat Tony saying 'Fuggedaboutit...' on the last note.

Availability: Seen on 20th Century Fox, Fox Searchlight and MGM releases from November 2010 up until January 2020, such as Avatar (collector's edition), The A-Team, Machete, Vampires Suck, Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Rodrick Rules, X-Men: First Class, Rio, Margaret, Alvin and the Chipmunks: Chipwrecked, Ice Age: Continental Drift, Epic, Hitchcock, Prometheus, Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Dog Days, Stoker, The Croods, Turbo (although reprints for The Croods and Turbo use the Universal Pictures logo), The Counselor, Free Birds, The East, and Don Jon, among others. The last releases to use this logo with the News Corporation byline were The Internship and The Way Way Back, both released on October 22, 2013. Underwater was the final home video release to use this logo before it was handed over to Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment (under Buena Vista Home Entertainment) as the new home video distributor for future 20th Century Studios movies and TV shows. But its name still exists as the copyright holder used by Disney themselves.

Editor's Note: None.

1st Logo (1995-2002)
Nicknames: Box Structure III, "Ultra Majestic Tower II", "CGI City Skyline Searchlights II", "Enhanced City Skyline Searchlights II", "Majestic Tower V", "Futuristic Structure V", "TCF BoxTower III"

Logo: Here are the versions used on VHS/LD and DVD:


 * VHS/LD: We see the 1994 Fox logo animate as normal until, about 13 seconds in, it zooms out, revealing the logo inside an inner box, itself contained inside an outer box on a blue-violet background with blurry searchlights, and "HOME ENTERTAINMENT" zooms out from the bottom of the screen, stopping at the bottom of the inside of the outer box underneath the inner box containing the Fox logo (without the News Corporation byline).
 * DVDs cut to the Fox logo being revealed inside the box.

FX/SFX: The usual CGI used in the Fox logo, coupled with the zoom out of the text below.

Music/Sounds: The 1994 Fox fanfare arrangement (VHS and LD only); silent on the DVDs.

Availability: With the exception of a few Canadian releases such as the 2000 VHS of Thunder and Lightning, you won't find it anywhere in North America. However, it's easy to find if you are in another country such as the UK. Strangely, this logo does not appear on the 1998 UK rental VHS of Edward Scissorhands, which features the Fox Video logo. The DVD version can be seen on early UK DVD releases including the original Miracle on 34th Street. Also seen on the 1995 Hong Kong Laserdisc of Star Wars: Episode VI - Return of the Jedi. It also made a surprise appearance on the 2012 release of The Simpsons Season 1 Region 4 DVD set (due to being a reprint of the 2001 release). The DVD variant also appears on the 2001 Australian DVD releases of Titan A.E. and Romancing the Stone.

Editor's Note: None.

2nd Logo (1999-2010)
Nicknames: "Ultra Majestic Tower III", "CGI City Skyline Searchlights III", "Enhanced City Skyline Searchlights III", "Majestic Tower VI", "Futuristic Structure VI", "The Tower of Streaks", "TCF StreakTower"

Logo: The standard 20th Century Fox logo which animates in a faster rate, but there are many circular streaks of orange and blue placed over it, which animate on and off the screen. When the logo is done, blue and purple gradient bars on top and bottom wipe in and the logo's sky background dissolves into a different cloud background, and "HOME ENTERTAINMENT" (in the same fonts as before) appears via folding effect below the logo, and then fades out via blur effect after a few seconds leaving just the logo, which then fades out.

Variant:


 * On an international home video trailer for Ice Age, the logo is in blue on a sky background with snow around it and a crack on it.
 * On an international home video trailer for Futurama releases, the "30th" part seen in the variant for the 20th Century Fox Television logo used on the show slams down onto the "20th" and crushes it.

FX/SFX: The usual Fox tower animation coupled with the CGI "streaks".

Music/Sounds: Early releases and VHS tapes had the standard tone 1994 Fox fanfare arrangement (which is strange for PAL releases), while later releases had the high tone 1997 fanfare arrangement (which is normal for PAL releases).

Availability: Like with the previous logo, this was only used outside North America, except on a few Canadian releases. Examples include the UK release of Ice Age and various Simpsons VHS's and DVD's. It also appears on post-2006 European MGM DVD releases as well. However, it doesn't appear on any UK Pathé releases as they just use their own logo. Also appears on the Japanese Laserdisc of Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace (with the 1994 fanfare). The standard tone 1994 Fox fanfare arrangement music variant strangely appears on the 2004 Region 4 DVD release of Family Guy: Season Two. This also makes surprising appearances on the US DVD releases of Season 1 of Modern Family, Glee Season 5 and Season 5 of Bones (Disc 5 only). Don't expect to see this on their Australian VHS releases of The Magic School Bus.

Editor's Note: It's pretty much the same as the movie logo. Nothing too special.

3rd Logo (2006?-2010)


Nicknames: "TCF StreakTower II"

Logo: Same as the 2nd logo, but when the 1994 logo is formed, the words "HOME ENTERTAINMENT" in metallic gold zoom out below the logo (without the News Corporation byline), and the streaks of orange and blue all disappear at the end.

FX/SFX: Same as the 2nd logo. Little effort is put into this logo aside from the 1994 Fox logo itself.

Music/Sounds: The 1997 fanfare arrangement.

Availability: Extremely Rare. This is more difficult to find than the last one. The only known release to use this was the 2006 European Blu-Ray of Ice Age 2: The Meltdown. Like before, this was also used on a few Canadian releases like Diary of a Wimpy Kid.

Editor's Note: None.

Final Note: Current international releases use the 4th domestic logo.

(2000-2002)
Nickname: "Metallic Fox Structure", "Fox Storm"

Logo:


 * Opening: A metallic structure that says "FOX DVD VIDEO" (with "FOX" on top of "DVD" and "VIDEO" in an oval) zooms in. A light then highlights the logo and moves from right to left (also getting the background). The structure is gradually turning and zooms toward the screen, with the viewer going through the "O" in "FOX", revealing a trailer or promo.
 * Closing: The same logo as before, only the background is moving around and is blue.

FX/SFX: The zooming in and out and turning of the structure.

Music/Sounds:


 * On the opening version, there is a quick beat with a male announcer asking, "Are you ready for Fox DVD Video?".
 * The closing version has a static noise. Both versions have a "whoosh" noise when the logo moves.

Availability: Rare. This was actually meant for a promo on VHS and early Fox DVD releases from the era talking about DVD and its features. Can be seen on most if not all 2000-2002 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment DVD releases such as X-Men, Silent Trigger, Fight Club, Nine Months, Where the Heart Is, Titan A.E., Airheads, the "Five Star Collection" releases of Speed and Independence Day, the 10th Anniversary Edition of Edward Scissorhands and the Die Hard: Ultimate Collection box set. Don't expect to see this on the 2001 DVD releases of The Simpsons: The Complete First Season or Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace.

Editor's Note: None.

(2006-November 2010)
Nicknames: "Blu-ray Tower", "Majestic Tower V", "Futuristic Structure V", "TCFBRD Tower"

Logo: We see the 20th Century Fox logo zooming in slowly, with the words HOME ENTERTAINMENT in gold at the bottom, shining. Then a blue streak changes the text to the "Blu-ray Disc" logo, leaving behind a "swoosh" shape as it does this.

FX/SFX: The zooming in, the shining, and the words changing.

Music/Sounds: A calm, majestic fanfare, followed by a slight laser sound for the blue flash.

Music/Sounds Trivia: The title screen of the Wii version of Netflix (released in 2010) uses a theme that sounds extremely similar to this logo's theme.

Availability: Common. It can be seen on every TCF and MGM Home Entertainment release on Blu-ray disc until November 2010, and appears on European releases as well. It appeared on releases such as Die Hard, Fight Club, Ice Age, Australia, and The Day the Earth Stood Still. It can also be seen on MGM Home Entertainment releases on Blu-ray Disc, including Valkyrie, and Hot Tub Time Machine, among others. Along with the original version of this logo, it made a surprise re-appearance on the 2013 re-releases of the Die Hard films, the 2015 re-release of The Sound of Music, and the re-release of Home Alone 2: Lost in New York as in the 2015 5-film collection set.

Editor's Note: None.