CBS Special Presentation

1st Logo (1970?-1974)


Nicknames: "CBS Starburst", "CBS Explosion"

Logo: On a black background, the text "A CBS SPECIAL PRESENTATION" is shown in a white Futura Thin font aligned to the left. Then, the "A" in "PRESENTATION" flies off like a Rocket, being replaced by a yellow, red, pink, and grey starburst/explosion that increases in size.

Trivia: The animation was done by Computer Image Corporation, which can be seen on their 1975 demo reel here

FX/SFX: The "A" flying away, the starburst/explosion, done with Scanimate.

Music/Sounds: A four-note horn fanfare that is synced to the starburst's animations. The theme is lifted from "So Old, So Young" by Morton Steves, which was used as the theme to CBS' special movie presentation bumpers of the time.

Availability: Ultra rare. It's long gone from television, but it can be seen on Original airings of The Lily Tomlin Special - Vol. 1, as well as Ed Sullivan Presents The TV Comedy Years and It’s a Mystery, Charlie Brown.

Editor's Note: A pretty strange logo that isn’t as memorable as the next one.

2nd Logo (1973-1992)
Nicknames: "Classic Special", "Shadow Special", "A CBS Special Presentation", "The Charlie Brown Logo", "It's Christmas Special Time!", "The Grammy Awards Logo"

Logo: On a black background, we see the word "SPECIAL" (in the Avant Garde font) spinning toward the camera with a yellow, orange, pink, and blue "trailing" effect. As we zoom inside the "C" in "SPECIAL", the word "SPECIAL" in white zooms out, and then turns neon pink when it stops zooming. As this happens, the words "A CBS" and "PRESENTATION" appear suddenly, above and below "SPECIAL" respectively.

Trivia: This was parodied on some special episodes of Animaniacs in 1993-1996, with "ANIMANIACS" in place of "SPECIAL" spinning towards the camera, and the finished phrase reading "AN ANIMANIACS SPECIAL PRESENTATION", with "ANIMANIACS" in yellow and the rest of the text in red. The music heard is a different bongo-driven orchestral fanfare.

FX/SFX: The effects of the trailing "SPECIAL" text.

Music/Sounds: A series of bongo drums, leading into a jazzy horn fanfare. The music is an abridged version of "Call to Danger", composed by Morton Stevens for the soundtrack of the original Hawaii Five-O series.

Availability: Rare.
 * This appeared on special programs and especially many holiday specials that were broadcast annually during this period, including the Garfield TV specials, A Charlie Brown Christmas (back when CBS held the broadcast rights before ABC acquired them), Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer, every Grammy Awards ceremony until 1990 and the Star Wars Holiday Special. As such, if you have old tapes of CBS from this period, this should probably be an easy find considering this intro's longevity.
 * Outside of off-air recordings, it can be seen on The Making of The Deep on the U.S Blu-ray of The Deep. It was also seen on Hulu prints of the 1971 TV special The Cat In the Hat and The Lorax (preceded by the 1995 Paramount logo).

Editor's Note: One of the most famous and most popular logos on television, thanks to the music and longevity. The effects are dated nowadays, though most agree this adds to its charm.

3rd Logo (February 20?, 1991-1993)
Nickname: "The Space Special"

Logo: On a space background, we shift to a rippled blue pane of glass (that kind of looks like a washboard), and the word "Impact" in yellow-orange goes through the rippled glass. The glass zooms out to a computer animated gray/white gradient BG, and the word "Impact" in red appears on it, with "Impact" in yellow settling above it, and "P R E S E N T A T I O N" in white sliding in below it. Finally, a black CBS Eye logo zooms out from the top of the screen next to "Impact".

Trivia: This logo is patterned after CBS's "The Look of America" campaign used in 1991-92.

FX/SFX: Nice CGI effects.

Music/Sounds: Starts out with a roll up, then a 14-note fanfare, then a dramatic 6-note loud fanfare, ending with an echo gliss. Composed by Non-Stop Music.

Music/Sounds Variants:
 * One version used the music from the CBS Mini-Series intro; apparently this was used on the second special if there were two broadcast in a row.
 * An announcer may speak over the music.

'Availability: Extinct. Check your old tapes. Early appearances of this logo can be seen on specials such as The 33rd Annual Grammy Awards.

'Editor's Note: While not as well remembered as the last logo, this intro still boasts some cool CGI for the time as well as a neat design.

4th Logo (1992-1996)
Note: This logo is based off of the ID CBS used in this era.

Nicknames: "This is CBS", "That Logo from the CBS Movie"

Logo: On a dark background, we see a blue CBS Eye logo, and many light streaks (including one that goes through the eye) appear as we zoom in. Then we fly through the interior of the eye and see that it's made of several stacked lines. Then, we shift up and zoom out as the words "CBS SPECIAL", also made of lines, float over the blue CBS eye at an angle, with a blue light projected through the eye.

Variant: A variant with the text "CBS SPECIAL MOVIE" exists. This appeared in promos for Simon & Simon in Trouble Again, possibly among others.

FX/SFX: CGI effects done by Pittard Sullivan.

Music/Sounds: A dramatic synthesized tune, then the CBS jingle.

Availability: Extinct. Programs that used this were "Hallmark Hall of Fame" movies and "CBS Soap Break", among others.

Editor's Note: None.

5th Logo (1994-1997)
Nickname: "Flaming Eyemark"

Logo: On a white background, the CBS eye logo slowly fades in, as an image of flames appears inside it. "Times New Roman" floats across it, and several copies of the text "Times New Roman" appear, with each copy descending and fading away. As the gold words "Times New Roman" float across the screen, a black CBS eye eclipses the background, and a smaller one eclipses the flaming CBS eye, casting a glow. As all this happens, the following 3D text zooms out and places itself in front of the Eyemark:

Times New Roman

Trivia: This logo is patterned after CBS's "Everyday People" idents used in 1994-95.

FX/SFX: Very cool computer effects.

Music/Sounds: An "epic" orchestral fanfare with the CBS jingle at the end. Like before, an announcer may speak over the music.

Availability: Rare. This appeared in front of some shows, such as holiday specials and TV movies.

Editor's Note: None.

6th Logo (1997-1999)
Nicknames: "Welcome Home", "Fireworks and Lights Special", "CBS Goes Pyrotechnical"

Logo: We start out traveling through the doors of the CBS Television City with several people walking by. As the doors are opened by two red-uniformed ushers standing on both sides, we see the CBS eye, and then fireworks shoot out. The fireworks reveal the words "Times New Roman" in the Didot font on a yellow light CBS eye. We finally zoom out.

FX/SFX: A combination of live-action and CGI, done by Pittard Sullivan once again.

Music/Sounds: The music used during CBS's "Welcome Home" era, which was composed by Cue11.

Availability: Extinct.

Editor's Note: None.

7th Logo (2000-2001)
Note: The logo was used during the "Address is CBS" era.

Nickname: "CBS 2000"

Logo: TBA.

Variant: On Good Grief, Charlie Brown: A Tribute To Charles Schulz, we hear a remixed version of "Linus and Lucy" which was followed by Charlie Brown saying: "Regularly scheduled program will not be seen tonight. Now a special presentation, Charlie Brown here! Join me and the gang for our tribute to our creator Charles Schulz. CBS Next!" it features clips from various Peanuts specials like A Charlie Brown Christmas and It's The Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown.

FX/SFX: Nice CGI graphics.

Music/Sounds: TBA.

Availability: Extinct.

Editor's Note: TBA.

8th Logo (2001-2002)
Logo: We see a 2001 CBS graphics, then has a CBS, then the sliding the letters SPECIAL PRESENTATION, then the logo was light glowing, then has zooms in.

FX/SFX: TBA

Music/Sounds: An instrumental version the 2000 CBS "It's All Here" jingle.

Availability: At the start the Hallmark Hall of Fame movies and CBS specials.

Editor's Note: TBA

9th Logo (2002-2003)
Logo: TBA

FX/SFX: TBA

Music/Sounds: TBA

Availability: TBA

Editor's Note: TBA

10th Logo (2004-2005)
Logo: TBA

FX/SFX: TBA

Music/Sounds: TBA

Availability: TBA

Editor's Note: TBA

11th Logo (2005-2006)
Logo: TBA

FX/SFX: TBA

Music/Sounds: TBA

Availability: TBA

Editor's Note: TBA

12th Logo (March 11, 2021-)
Nickname: "Classic Special Redux"

Logo: On a starry black background, we see the glowing purple text "SPECIAL", and much like the beloved 1973 opener, it spins toward the camera, leaving multiple orange and blue trails. As we zoom through the "C", the screen grows bright and then dies down, and we see the white text "CBS" zoom out. Then, to the tune of the 2020 CBS jingle by Antfood, "CBS" shifts to the right to make way for "A", then they both move up to make room for "SPECIAL", and then "PRESENTATION" appears underneath. The final product shines and zooms back a bit.

Trivia: Alongside the unveiling of this logo, CID created three remixes of the 2020 CBS jingle by Antfood, mixed with the classic "This is CBS" voiceover from the 1950s CBS News opening, collectively known as "This is CBS Remixed". While the audio version of all three remixes can be heard here, the visual video version of the second of three remixes, entitled "Unum Oculum", which is also heard in the 2021 CBS Fall Preview special, based on the album cover, can be viewed here. A behind the scenes video can be viewed here.

Variant: A short version exists where the logo starts on the fourth drum beat.

FX/SFX: Same as the 1973 logo, but updated in modern CGI.

Music/Sounds: The first note of the 2020 CBS jingle by Antfood and a jazzy drum break not unlike "Call to Danger", then the full jingle.

Music/Sounds Trivia: According to Antfood's case study, they want to unify the CBS brand by creating a five note melody based on the classic "This is CBS" voiceover. They used CBS manufactured instruments including a Rhodes piano and Fender guitars.

Availability: Brand new. It was first unveiled online on March 11, 2021, and made its television debut before CBS's broadcast of the 2021 Grammy Awards.

Editor's Note: A neat upgrade and welcome return to the iconic 1973 CBS opener. This is to further expand CBS' brand unity.