Empire Today

Background
Empire Today is a home improvement servicing company based in Chicago, Illinois. It was founded by Seymour Cohen in 1959 as Empire Plastic Covers, then expanded to home servicing in 1965, removing "Plastic Covers" from its name. In 2002, the company was sold, and then in January 2003, renamed itself to its current name, "Empire Today", after the slogan "Empire today, carpet tomorrow". In 2016, the company was sold to H.I.G. Capital, a private equity firm, for an undisclosed amount.

1st Tag (1979-1984)
(1979)=

(1980-1984)=

Special/Superimposed Variants=

Visuals: Over a background, we see a stylized crown. Below is the text: Arial

Variants:
 * For early variants, the logo is smaller, "CALL" is seen to the left of it, and "HOME SERVICE, INC." is seen under "EMPIRE"..
 * "CALL" can be omitted, or placed above the number instead.
 * Additionally, "DAY OR NIGHT" can be seen above said text in some commercials.
 * The crown can also appear a few seconds into the end tag, with a "ding!" sound. This is prominent in commercials between 1980-1981.
 * Some versions have the text in the wrong place and with slightly different scaling.
 * A "window" of the commercial at the corner of the screen could also appear.
 * One variant appears on "What's the Name?": the logo appears over a black background and is squeezed to the bottom of the screen, below the commercial window. The crown also appears after a few seconds.
 * Another variant exists where "588-2300" is simply superimposed onto the commercial with no additional text. This was seen on "Empire Carpet Commercial #15".
 * Starting in 1980, credit card logos for MasterCard, Visa and American Express appear on the end tag.
 * The endtag is sometimes superimposed onto the commercial. One commercial exists where it also fades, and another where the logo is blue.
 * A version appears on "Diner": this version does not have the crown, the logo is squeezed to the bottom, and "EMPIRE" fades in later, as the number was the only text visible at first.
 * A similar superimposed version exists, but everything fades in at the same time.

Technique: None.

Audio: The Empire jingle: a barbershop quartet singing "five-eight-eight, two-three-hundred, Empire!" with the last note held out. Audio Variants:
 * Sometimes, the jingle doesn't finish. Usually this happens when Elmer Lynn Hauldren, the spokesperson for the commercials (known as the Empire Carpet Man), is announcing something else.
 * Sometimes, a ding sound can be heard as the logo appears, or when the crown appears in some variants.
 * Starting in 1982, the chorus is re-recorded, now sounding jollier.
 * Specific variants for some commercials:
 * "Yea! Boo!": The chorus is different and they cheer at the end.
 * "Kiddie Look-Alike": A group of kids sing the jingle.
 * "Piano": The first few notes are played on a piano, but the 1982 "Empire!" is played at the end.
 * Some 1983 adverts: A woman sings the jingle, over a pop-style instrumental.
 * The chorus was altered in 1983 and the jingle now includes a drum beat and an electric bass note at the end, derived from the above variant.

2nd Tag (1984-1986)
Regular=

Special Variants=

Visuals: Over a cartoon Chicago city environment, a carpet rolls in, carrying the yellow numbers "Arial". As the carpet moves throughout the city, it becomes nighttime, as a large gold "EMPIRE " monument stands between two skyscrapers (Sears Tower, now Willis Tower, and the John Hancock Center) and illuminates. The carpet then fully unrolls and settles below it, as the monument shines.

Variants:
 * There is a variant specific to the "Dynamite Sale" commercials where the tag is squeezed into a smaller box over a smoke background, and text advertising a "DYNAMITE CARPET SALE" appears below.
 * Similarly, another version exists where the logo squeezed into a split-screen with the said text below over a black background.
 * Some commercials have the logo shrunk down somewhere on the screen, to make room for advertising an additional benefit.
 * Like the previous tag, a version exists with credit card logos.
 * The commercial "Speed Up!" has the end tag played in warp speed, with the audio sounding chipmunk-like.
 * On some shorter commercials, similar to the first superimposed variant of the 1979 tag, the carpet number animation is superimposed onto the commercial with no "EMPIRE" indicator.
 * In some commercials, the logo is still.

Technique: Cel/Scanimate animation.

Audio: The 1983 Empire jingle.

Audio Variant: In some commercials, the Empire Man can say something else after the jingle had been sung. Examples include; "Empire today, carpet tomorrow." or simply announcing a sale.

Availability: Its first known appearance was in 1984 commercial "5 Years" in still form.

3rd Tag (1986-1989)
Visuals: Same as the last logo, but the logo now takes place in a starry night background with Chicago's skylines. At the center, a rainbow merges and forms, which reveal falling stars that form the "EMPIRE " monument from before. The camera stops, the carpet disappears with the phone number changing to a different font (Helvetica Bold), and the monument shines. Credit card logos appear below.

Variants:
 * There are some commercials where the logo is entirely still.
 * A short version exists where it starts when the rainbow forms. The jingle does not finish; the Empire Man just says "Empire." at the end after the number is sung.
 * A copyright notice may also appear.
 * Starting in 1988, " Arial " is sometimes chyroned in.
 * In some commercials, the credit card logos are arranged as Visa, MasterCard, American Express, and Discover.

Technique: Cel/Scanimate animation.

Audio: The 1983 Empire jingle.

Audio Variants:
 * Like the last tag, the Empire Man can also announce something else after the jingle.
 * A variant exists where the jingle is replaced with a barbershop quartet singing "Why are you waiting?"
 * Another rare variant without the jingle exists where a violin/piano piece plays over the end part of the animation.

Availability: Seen at the end of commercials from the time. Although not really known where its first appearance was, the 312 version first appeared in 1988 for the "Is Time Running Out On You?" commercial, the "Why are you waiting?" variant appeared on "Get A Free Football With Order", and the piano variant appeared on "Messing With That New York Company".

4th Tag (1989-May 1991)
Visuals: On a black background, we see the silver numbers "588-2300" slide one-by-one, onto the top half of the screen. A few seconds later, the silver word "EMPIRE" zooms out and rotates into view. As a rainbow forms in the background, a chyroned "(312)" (in Futura Bold) fades in on top of the number, and the text: Empire today... Carpet tomorrow fades in below the logo. The logo shines. Credit card logos appear, in the same place as usual.

Variants:
 * In some cases, the rainbow, the additional text, and the credit cards don't appear. Additionally, "(312)" simply appears on screen, in a different font (Helvetica).
 * Some commercials with this variant will have the text "24-hour phones" fade in at the bottom.
 * On some 10-second commercials, the first half of the tag is cut off.

Technique: CGI.

Audio: The 1983 Empire jingle.

Audio Variant: On some 10-second commercials, the first half of the jingle is omitted. Usually, this is replaced by synth bells playing the "588-2300" part during the commercial before the shortened tag plays.

Availability: Its first known use was "Warehouse Sale Late 1980's", and the version without the rainbow first appeared on "Carpet for the Holidays".

Tag (May 1991-August 2004)
Empire (May 1991-January 2003)=

Empire Today (January 2003-Fall 2004)=

Visuals: The entire end tag is a cartoon sequence. We start over a shot of a telephone, on top of a night stand. A woman picks it up and dials it. We zoom out to reveal an apartment room, with each of the furniture having no color and with sad faces drawn on them. An cat is sitting next to the woman. As the camera settles, a colored Empire Man busts through the door holding a carpet. He tosses it down, making everything in the room bounce and become colored as well. In addition, all of the sad faces turn happy. As that happens, inside the carpet is a white "EMPIRE", bouncing into the screen. Throughout the duration of the tag, a blue "588-2300" flies in one-by-one to the jingle, coming from the telephone. At the end, a line rotates to the left of the number, and expands to reveal "(312)".

Variants:
 * A short version exists where it begins with the second half of the tag.
 * Another short version exists where the animation is replaced by a still shot of the telephone, the text is already formed and "EMPIRE" is in blue.
 * The logo can sometimes be in warp-speed.
 * A variant simply has the "(312)" cheaply rotate in.
 * Starting in 1994, the "(312)" is replaced with "(800)", which rotates in at the start of the end tag.
 * A rare early version has "1-800" animate instead, similar to how the (312) animates.
 * Some commercials starting in 1995 have the "EMPIRE" text slide up to make room for "TOLL FREE 24 HOUR PHONE SERVICE".
 * Starting in 1996, a URL may sometimes appear. It would then fade out to make room for the EMPIRE text.
 * In 2002, the text below "EMPIRE" was changed to "CARPET AND WINDOW TREATMENTS". A URL is also shown below.
 * The above text may be in a different font and "AND" is replaced with an ampersand.
 * The text could sometimes say "HOME SERVICES, LLC" instead.
 * Starting in 2003, "EMPIRE" is replaced with a computer-animated "EMPIRE TODAY" that simply slides in.
 * The text that appears under can vary.
 * "Carpet - Window Treatments"
 * "Custom Windows - Vinyl Siding"
 * "Laminate - Hardwood - Ceramic"
 * The text could appear in Spanish.
 * A URL could just appear below.

Technique: Traditional animation.

Audio: There were many different variants of the jingle:
 * May 1991-1995: The 1983 Empire jingle.
 * 1995-2003: A different sounding chorus sings "800..." before segueing into the 1983 jingle. This recording would later be recycled for the current Empire Today jingle.
 * An early version exists, with an off-key, fast-tempo chorus.
 * Later, the 1983 jingle was sped up to compensate for the "800" part.
 * March-June 2003: To coincide with the company rename, a short-lived jingle was recorded with an entirely different chorus that is fast-paced. The chorus sings "eight-hundred, five-eight-eight, two-three-hundred, Empire Today!"
 * June 2003-August 2004: The 1995 recording was recycled, but this time used in full. Hauldren then says "Today!" at the end, and a bass note plays along with a bass drum and a hi-hat.

Audio Variant: On the "Rainbow Window Sheet Couple" commercial, "Call for windows and siding in a week, too!" is added after the jingle.

Availability: The earliest known usage of this logo was in "Wilson Basketball", which aired around May of 1991.

6th Tag (Late 2002-August 2004)
Visuals: On a blue curtain background, we see a image of a blue house in a box at the left side of the screen, next to the box is "Vinyl Siding & Windows in a Week", underneath both of them is "EMPIRE HOME SERVICES, LLC" along with an url, on top of them are "800-588-2300", which first begins with a shine and then fades in one-by-one to the jingle.

Variant: In 2003, "EMPIRE HOME SERVICES, LLC" is replaced with "EMPIRE TODAY" along with the url, "Vinyl Siding & Windows in a Week" is also replaced with "Custom Windows & Siding in a Week" as well.

Technique: Computer animation.

Audio: The 1995, March 2003, and June 2003 jingles.

Availability: Used in commercials that promoted windows and gutters, used in tandem with the last logo and the next logo.

1st Tag (August 2003-August 2004)
Visuals: It's the same concept as the previous logo, except with the following differences:


 * The logo is in a cloudy background with a brown carpet at the center of the screen.
 * The blue house picture is removed and is replaced with 2 pictures of several workers installing windows and gutters.
 * "800-588-2300" is in a different font and slightly larger, which they appear by flashing one-by-one to the jingle. The hyphens are also replaced with bullets.
 * "EMPIRE TODAY" is in blue, underneath it is "Custom Windows & Siding", with the URL appearing at the bottom.

Variant: In 2004, the logo was reworked, "800-588-2300" is already in place before it flashes to blue one-by-one to the jingle, the workers images were removed, in which "Custom Windows & Siding" appears in the center of the screen, now larger and updated to say "Custom Windows Vinyl Siding", and lastly, "EMPIRE TODAY" and the URL aren't in the logo until the ending bit of the jingle.

Technique: Computer animation.

Audio: The March 2003 Empire Today logo.

Availability: This one was also used in Empire Today commercials that promoted windows and gutters, used in tandem with the last logo and the fifth logo.

2nd Tag (August 2004-August 2015)
Visuals: It depends on the variant. On all animations, "800-588-2300" pop in one-by-one to the jingle, then it slides down to make way for "EMPIRE TODAY", as an animated Empire Man slides from the left of the screen, holding a suitcase reading the company name. He then says "Today!" as he raises his arm, syncing with the end of the jingle.
 * Flooring (May 2005-2015): An animated Empire Man is seen holding a carpet. He then drops it down, and it unrolls onto the ground. As he shakes off his hands, another worker is seen installing window blinds. Then, the first worker grabs a large hardwood floor from the left and pulls it towards the carpet, with a couch on top of it. A cat then jumps on top of it, as the first worker sits back onto the ground and extends his arms, and the second closes the blinds. This is the most popular version.
 * Windows & Gutters (2005-2007): Three workers are working on the exterior of a 2-story house. One is installing gutters, another installing windows, a third installing wood siding.
 * All Services (August 2004-2007): It starts out as an inverted and faster version of Flooring's animation, but then the camera zooms out to reveal that it takes place inside of the 2-story house from the previous animation. Two men are seen working outside.

Technique: CGI, done by Joe Doll Animation.

Audio: The June 2003 Empire Today jingle. A version adding piano jazz drum music when the chorus sings "Empire!", was used from 2005 until mid-2008, when it reverted to the previous version.

Availability: Rather common on many commercials from the time period, as well as Empire's official upload of the tag itself. Check your recordings from the time period for this one.

Legacy: By far Empire's most well-known end tag, it has seen numerous memes involving the jingle and end tag, even from outside the logo community, and even after it got replaced in 2015.

3rd Tag (August 2015-)


Visuals: It's the same concept as the Flooring animation of the previous logo, except with the following differences: The animated Empire Man at the end walks up with the suitcase and jumps, transforming into a 2D version as "EMPIRE" slides in from the left next to the text. A smaller "TODAY" slides in from the right of it and flashes. A URL and website information appear below.
 * The logo now takes place in a larger model house that now has a kitchen.
 * The animation is noticeably simpler.
 * The Empire Man now has brown hair instead of blonde.
 * The phone number is black and fully 2D.

Technique: CGI.

Audio: The June 2003 Empire Today jingle.

Availability: Empire first introduced this tag in their Half Price Sale commercials which first aired in August of 2015, then uploading it standalone on November 4, 2015. It has since seen common use on television and numerous informational videos, such as "Why Empire?", to this day.