Ubu Productions

Background
Ubu Productions was an independent company founded in 1982 by television producer Gary David Goldberg, who was notable for creating the 1980s sitcom Family Ties. It was named after Ubu Roi, Goldberg's "campus dog", who died in 1984. Goldberg himself died on June 22, 2013 at the age of 68 from a brain tumor, 11 years after his company closed down in 2002.

Logo (April 5, 1982-April 30, 2002)


Visuals: There is a black Labrador retriever (Ubu) holding a Frisbee in his mouth in the middle of a city park. Text reading "UBU PRODUCTIONS" in white with a drop shadow (set in Morris Fuller Benton's Hobo typeface) is at the bottom.

Trivia: This picture was taken in the Tuileries Garden, close to the Louvre Museum in Paris, France. Gary David Goldberg subsequently traveled the world with Ubu while he was in college. Originally, the logo was to be of an animated dog sitting; however, it became too expensive, so it was scrapped.

Variant: On original ABC airings of Champs, "in association with" is seen below. The logo transitions to the DreamWorks Television logo.

Technique: None.

Audio: Goldberg saying "Sit, Ubu, sit! Good dog.", followed by Ubu barking, all in very low cassette-like quality. ABC airings of Spin City starting in 1998, as well as NBC airings of Battery Park used a generic theme.

Audio Trivia: At first, the voiceover was done by a hired actor. However, Goldberg did not like the way it sounded, so he re-recorded the line himself. The bark at the end is also not that of Ubu himself, but of a sound engineer that was thrown in at the last minute.

Availability: It can be found on Goldberg's produced shows such as Family Ties on its CBS DVD release, Brooklyn Bridge on Decades, Day by Day, The Art of Being Nick, and Spin City on Pluto TV.

Legacy: This is a favorite of many closing logo fans, as well as a frequent subject of parody.