Anchor Bay Entertainment (1995-2006)
Kris Starring, Muzzarino, EnormousRat and Nameless_Guy
Captures by
Logoarto, 20thcenturystudios33 and Camenati
Video captures courtesy of
SiameseTwins, LogicSmash, EnormousRat, retroVHStrailers, 4R Geo and TGNL
Background
Anchor Bay Entertainment was a home video and production company originally formed in May 1995, when both Video Treasures and Starmaker were purchased by the Handleman Company and merged into Anchor Bay.
It remained a part of Handleman until 2003, when it was sold to IDT Entertainment.
In 2006, IDT was purchased by Liberty Media (the owner of the Starz cable network), and IDT became Starz Media (now Starz Distribution); the following year, Anchor Bay was renamed to "Starz Home Entertainment".
1st Logo (1997)
Visuals: A part of the opening of Anchor Bay's Animated Video Treasures tapes. There is a still framed picture of a navy blue sailboat on a light blue body of water under a yellow sky with blue tinted clouds floating by. Above the frame are the words "ANCHOR BAY", and "ENTERTAINMENT" appears at the bottom.
Trivia: This had been used as a print logo since May 1995, but this is its earliest known on-screen appearance.
Technique: Computer effects.
Audio: The music of the program.
Availability: Appears on Anchor Bay's Animated Video Treasures tapes, in which this logo is intact on DVD. Even though the logo was shown on the box art of their earliest tapes, the 1987 Video Treasures logo appears on-screen instead.
2nd Logo (1998-2007)
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Visuals: An animated version of the last logo. There are abstract drawings of a light blue body of water under a yellow sky with blue tinted clouds floating by. The same navy blue sailboat from the previous logo moves toward the camera. When the boat is at a comfortable distance, the screen fades to white with a framed picture of the sailboat on the water in the center of the screen. The company name then appears, taking on the appearance of the print identity seen in the first logo. The words wave in place as if they were seen underwater before taking on a normal appearance.
Variant: A still version of this logo with a Starz byline can be seen on the film Behind the Mask: The Rise of Leslie Vernon and the Blu-ray of Masters of Horror.
Technique: 2D computer animation. None for the still version.
Audio: Usually silent, but early VHS releases like Zombie, The Velveteen Rabbit, Paula Abdul Cardio Workout, Extreme Dinosaurs volumes, the Thomas the Tank Engine releases "Thomas and his Friends Get Along", "Thomas Comes to Breakfast" and "A Big Day for Thomas", among other VHS releases, and the DVD release of Scars of Dracula use a coastal theme consisting of seagulls and waves crashing ashore, combined with a cymbal crash as the white fades in, followed by some dreamy, "underwater" new-age synth notes.
Availability:
- It appears on Anchor Bay releases of the time, which included a few video nasties (most of which were originally released on Betamax and VHS by Wizard Video), re-releases of ABC Pictures International/ABC Motion Pictures films, some pre-1991 Media Home Entertainment titles, Video Treasures/Starmaker content and Thomas the Tank Engine.
- Also seen on a few Disney releases on VHS and DVD from the late 1990s licensed to the company, including The Black Hole, The Happiest Millionaire, and The Devil and Max Devlin. It can be seen on Malevolence too.
- Also seen on a few DiC Entertainment titles in the UK.
3rd Logo (2003-2008)
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2007-2008 Starz version
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Divimax Series version
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Visuals: On a majorelle blue water background, there is a big explosion which causes 0's and 1's to shower down the screen, accompanied by orange flashes. The previous logo then appears via an iris-in effect and plays (except the top flag is not waving). The background fades into a box like in the previous logo while the sequence goes back to the same background. Finally, the words "ANCHOR BAY" and "ENTERTAINMENT" appear respectively above and below the box, both in the same font as the previous two logos.
Variants:
- There is also a Divimax series variant of the logo. At the end of the logo which is in widescreen, the sailboat fades out and yellow sparkles horizontally wipe in the Divimax series logo.
- From 2007 to 2008, the animation was altered.
- The sparks have been removed.
- The "0's" and "1's" fade out sooner and are more smoothly animated.
- The box fades in sooner.
- The top flag moves again, albeit differently.
- The logo now zooms onto a white square that wipes in. To accommodate this, the "ANCHOR BAY ENTERTAINMENT" text is now black.
- Yellow sparkles make the byline "a STARZ company" appear in the extra space below the logo.
- On Hatchet, a short version in black and white appears before the movie; the 2008 Anchor Bay logo is used before the previews.
Technique: 2D computer animation.
Audio: Whooshing noises combined with synth notes and a rising synth sound. Starting in 2007, chime sounds were added at the end.
Audio Variant: On the Divimax series variant, an extended version of the fanfare and a whoosh are heard.
Availability:
- This can be seen on many Anchor Bay DVDs, such as Hell of the Living Dead, The Seduction, Re-Animator, Dawn of the Dead, The Evil Dead, Near Dark, Creepshow 2, and Thomas & Friends DVDs from 2003 to 2007, among others.
- Despite the rebranding to Starz Home Entertainment, all Thomas & Friends DVDs that were released in 2007 (with a few exceptions) still had this logo until 2008.
Legacy: This logo is well-remembered among those that grew-up with Thomas & Friends DVDs and B-Movie fans alike during the lifespan of this logo.
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Anchor Bay Entertainment (1995-2006) |
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