Columbia TriStar Home Entertainment

Credits

Descriptions by
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Captures by
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Editions by
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Video captures courtesy of
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Background

On August 23, 1991, RCA/Columbia Pictures Home Video was renamed Columbia TriStar Home Video after Sony acquired RCA's shares from Thomson SA; that same year, CTHV moved its headquarters to 3400 Riverside Drive at Warner Bros. Studios in Burbank. In 1995, the company relocated its headquarters to the Sony Pictures Studios in Culver City.

On February 28, 1999, Universal Studios Home Video signed a multi-year deal with CTHV to allow the latter to Universal's DVD releases outside North America. That same year, Columbia TriStar Home Video was renamed to Columbia TriStar Home Entertainment; the name was made official in early 2001. On November 18, 2004, Columbia TriStar Home Entertainment was rebranded as Sony Pictures Home Entertainment.

Columbia TriStar Home Video

Contents 1st Logo (3rd logo placeholder) (December 1991-September 9, 1992, 1993 in certain countries) 2nd Logo (3rd logo placeholder) (August 26, 1992-1995) 3rd Logo (May 19, 1993-March 27, 2001) 4th Logo (1995-June 11, 1996)   5th Logo (May 14, 1996-July 22, 1997) 6th Logo (July 22, 1997-April 3, 2001) 7th Logo (November 25-December 9, 1997) 8th Logo (1999-2002, 2006 in Indonesia)

Columbia TriStar Home Entertainment

Contents 1st Logo (February 20, 2001-June 14, 2005, April 2006 in UK and Ireland) 2nd Logo (2001-2002)

Columbia TriStar Home Video

1st Logo (3rd logo placeholder) (December 1991-September 9, 1992, 1993 in certain countries)

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Visuals: On a black background, a white rectangle outline is seen split into 2 sections. On the left side, the '80s Torch Lady (print version with the sunburst intact behind her) is seen, and on the right, the TriStar "Pegasus Over Pyramid" logo (print version too, but without the word "PICTURES" at the bottom) is seen. Above it, the stacked words "COLUMBIA TRISTAR" in Bank Gothic MD BT font that's a bit stretched up by height, is seen, one above the other, and at the bottom, "HOME VIDEO" is seen in the same font.

Variants:

• Sometimes, the logo doesn't fade in or out.
• On Australian rental tapes with this logo, it would fade into the "COMING ATTRACTIONS" text seen in the RCA/Columbia/Hoyts logo.
• On releases from LK-Tel Video, the logo would coast down from the center of the LK-Tel Video logo before sliding down.

Technique: A still, digital graphic.

Audio: None.

Audio Variants:

• On international releases (except for those listed below, including Australian releases), a short guitar/bass note is heard.
• On tapes from Australia, one tape from Spain, and a Swedish VHS of A League of Their Own, the theme from the RCA/Columbia Pictures International Video logo is heard.
• At least one foreign tape (badly) loops the RCA/Columbia International music for an extended period, continuing into an anti-piracy warning.

Availability: This is a placeholder logo, created for temporary use while the next version was in development, but wasn't ready for use.

• Among the releases with this logo are original prints of My Girl, The Taking of Beverly Hills, Hook, Troll 2, and The Prince of Tides.
• City Slickers also has this with the RCA/Columbia print logo on the tape and box, although original prints do have the RCA/Columbia logo on-screen.
• The international version also appears on VHS releases outside North America, including a Spanish VHS release of In the Line of Fire.
• This also appears on many reissues of RCA/Columbia releases; some were in their original RCA/Columbia packaging, including print logos. Others were modified to varying extents. For example, a reissue of A Man for All Seasons, in print as late as 1995, features this logo on-screen, the following print logo on the box and tape, and even features the characteristic red border and text designs of RCA/Columbia releases, perhaps one of the first times a home video label had done such a thing.
• Late RCA/Columbia releases during early 1992, such as Oscar's Greatest Moments: 1971-1991 and Freddy's Dead: The Final Nightmare (released under license from New Line), as well as original prints of Return to the Blue Lagoon, Double Impact, and Bingo, also use this logo.
• One of the last new releases to include this logo was Mississippi Masala.
  • Although Columbia TriStar continued to use this as a print logo until April 7, 1993 on the packaging of titles such as Single White Female, Hero, Candyman, Born Yesterday and Husbands and Wives, the next logo appears on-screen.
• It also appears on the original VHS release of Relentless 2: Dead On (despite being an SVS/Triumph release).

2nd Logo (3rd logo placeholder) (August 26, 1992-1995)

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  Black box variant

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  Inverted Variant

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Visuals: On a white background, two boxes are seen, outlined with a black border. On the left is one featuring a newly-done Torch Lady, and on the right is a newly-done Pegasus on a Columbia-like cloud background. Above the boxes are the words "COLUMBIA TRISTAR", with each word positioned over its respective logo. "HOME VIDEO" is seen below. Everything leaves a drop shadow.

Trivia: The Columbia Torch Lady seen on the left was painted by Michael J. Deas and the TriStar Pegasus seen on the right was painted by Alan Reingold.

Variants:

• There is a variant with an inverted background. The background is black, the letters and the outlined boxes are both white, and both respective logos are a bit close up.
• A updated version of the inverted logo variant appeared on a children's video promo seen on UK VHS releases in 2000. The text is in the Bank Gothic font and both respective logos are brighter. Light rays shine on the logo when it fades in before they disappear after a second.
• On some Italian releases, the logo is boxed in square black lines.

Technique: A still, digital graphic.

Audio: None.

Availability: This is a placeholder logo, but this time they've actually designed the new logos. This is one of the first appearances of the new "Sony Logos" for each company, along with Columbia and TriStar's respective television divisions.

• Titles with this logo include A League of Their Own, The Waterdance, Mo' Money, Candyman, City of Joy, Hero, The Snowman, Married... with Children: It's a Bundyful Life, Falling From Grace, Weekend War, Single White Female, Born Yesterday and Husbands and Wives (the last tape to use this logo).
• This also appears on New Line Home Video releases such as Honeymoon in Vegas, Aces: Iron Eagle III, Mr. Saturday Night and The Lawnmower Man.
• This replaces the 1st logo on later copies of the 1992 VHS releases of Hook (also on a 2001 reissue) and My Girl (also on the 1996 Family Collection release).
• This can also be found on reissues of Two-Fisted Law, Shootfighter: Fight to the Death, Return to the Blue Lagoon, Bingo and Steel Magnolias.
• This makes an appearance on the 1995 demo VHS of the U.S.-released The Indian in the Cupboard (seen after the next logo).
• The inverted variant has been spotted on an Italian VHS of The Addams Family.
• This has also been seen on some LaserDiscs, including the 1993 Criterion release of Monty Python and the Holy Grail and The Wrecking Crew (1968).
• Among the first VHS releases to have this logo were The Lawnmower Man, Does This Mean We're Married?, and The Best of John Candy on SCTV.
• During its original run, videos with this logo used the print version of the previous logo.

3rd Logo (May 19, 1993-March 27, 2001)

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  Widescreen version

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Visuals: The logo begins by cutting to a scene full of golden clouds forming, tossing about on a blue cloudy background. Then, "COLUMBIA TRISTAR" in golden-yellow zooms out from above, and "HOME VIDEO" in the same color shrinks out from below as the clouds, which are still tossing, zoom out as part of a golden-bordered box on a blue-black gradient background. The box then splits apart to reveal the Torch Lady on the left (in the same style as before), and the Pegasus on the right (again, the same style as before), as the wording takes its position. The text shines for a few seconds after the logo is formed.

Trivia: This logo was used as the basis for the first Columbia TriStar International Television logo.

Variants:

• A still logo was found on early Columbia TriStar Home Video releases on DVD, as well as Mexican videotapes from 1997-99.
• There is also an abridged version for New Line Home Video releases.
• On a home video TV spot for Amos and Andrew, it's placed on a black background alongside the 1991 New Line Home Video logo.
• On several later tapes (mostly from 1998 to 2001), such as Universal Soldier: The Return, the 1999 Collector's Edition VHS of Taxi Driver, The 6th Day, and the first 6 VHS releases of Dragon Tales, the logo fades in.
• On some (mainly earlier) DVD releases, such as The Adventures of Milo and Otis, the logo is darker and there's a visible dot crawl on the right side of the screen.
• An variant exists where there are blue bars featuring small CTHV print logos on the sides of the logo. This version is seen on early DVDs.

Trailer Variants: Until 1996, after the animation is complete, the boxes would slide away, the CTHV text would fade out, the blue background would fade out to the moving clouds and one of the following phrases would zoom in from the center of the screen:

• COMING SOON TO A THEATRE NEAR YOU
• COMING SOON TO HOME VIDEO
• ADDITIONAL FOOTAGE (this just has the phrase zoom in over slowed-down footage of the moving clouds)

Afterward, a trailer with one of the following features would be played. If the "COMING SOON TO HOME VIDEO" bumper appears during a specific tape's preview reel (after a preview preceded by the "COMING SOON TO A THEATRE NEAR YOU" bumper), the bumper fades in on the already-formed logo. Beginning in 1997, the 6th logo's trailer variants were used instead.

On Australian tapes, the logos would fade out and one of the following phrases would slide in from the top and bottom respectively:

• COMING SOON
• NOW AVAILABLE

Weirdly, "COMING SOON" is written in the same Bank Gothic font as the logo, but "NOW AVAILABLE" is written in the Helvetica font.

Technique: CGI.

Audio: A dramatic and contemporary synth theme with beating drums and cues of a piano. The last note of the theme is held out for the rest of the logo.

Audio Variants:

• On the home video bumper variants, the brass and piano are more prominent, the last note of the theme is extended and a male announcer announces the bumper.
• On the short version of the "Coming Soon to Home Video" variant, the theme is faster-paced and shortened.
• On the "Additional Footage" variant, a different male announcer says "Columbia TrStar Home Video proudly presents, exciting behind-the-scenes footage, immediately following this feature."
• On later copies of the 1998 VHS of As Good as It Gets, the logo is silent.

Availability: Seen on the majority of VHS, LaserDiscs, and DVD releases from Columbia TriStar Home Video, starting with the May 19, 1993 home video release of A River Runs Through It.

• Among its many appearances were on films from Sony proper (e.g. In the Line of Fire, original prints of Bad Boys and Big Daddy), television series and third-party releases (including most of the pre-Sony Destination Films output).
• The abridged version can be found on most 1993-1995 New Line Home Video releases.
• This also appears on all 1997-2000 DVDs released in the US. International DVDs from the era used the 6th logo.
• The trailer variants can be seen on rental copies of Bad Boys, The Net, Jury Duty, The Pickle, Mary Shelley's Frankenstein and Immortal Beloved.
• Also appears on some prints of tapes from the Columbia TriStar Family Collection, such as Ghostbusters, The Indian in the Cupboard, Willow, The Babysitter's Club and Care Bears Movie 2: A New Generation.
• This also appears on the 2005 Special Edition VHS release of Matilda, likely due to it using a tape master from the original 1996 VHS release, and the 2003 VHS release of Annie, as well as a 2006 reprint, also because of the reuse of tape transfers.
• The last VHS tapes to use this logo (barring reprints) were Charlie's Angels (the 2000 film) and The 6th Day.
• It also makes a surprise appearance at the beginning of the 1999 Cinema Club UK VHS reissue of Men in Black (1997), due to it using the same master as the original 1998 UK VHS release.
• It also makes a surprise appearance at the end of the 2002 UK DVD release of The Very Best of The Muppet Show, due to it using the same master as the original 1999 VHS release.
  • However, the DVD release of Volume 2 removes it.
• This also appeared on international releases from 1993-1998, although it continued usage on UK VHS releases until 2001, some of the last Australian VHS tapes to use this were the 1998 Australian VHS releases of Jerry Maguire and Men in Black.
• From 1996 until 1998, this logo was retired as the standard logo on US VHS releases. However, VHS releases of (CTHV/Turner distributed) Castle Rock Entertainment titles, VHS releases of CTHV titles sold through mail order retailers such as Columbia House and AVON and LaserDisc releases continued to use this logo during this period; Castle Rock titles in particular had this at both ends of the tape.
• The trailer bumpers of the 6th logo were used in place of this on the 1998 VHS of 3 Ninjas: High Noon at Mega Mountain, and on the 1999 VHS releases of Godzilla and Baby Geniuses.
• This appears instead of the Turner Home Entertainment logo on early Turner printings of Man's Best Friend.

Legacy: This is a generally popular logo, thanks to its animation and music; its eight-year lifespan could also be a contributing factor to its popularity, being the longest used logo from the company.

4th Logo (1995-June 11, 1996)

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Visuals: It's almost the same as the 1995 Columbia TriStar Television Distribution logo, except "HOME VIDEO" replaces "TELEVISION DISTRIBUTION" and the Sony byline is intact. Plus, the cloud background in the TriStar box is replaced with a similar cloud background from the Columbia logo, but a bit shorter and darker.

Variant: On trailers and TV commercials for the Columbia TriStar Family Collection, the cloud background is replaced with an antique gold fabric background and the name and byline are white.

Technique: CGI.

Audio: A chorus singing "Take Hollywood home!" with dramatic synth music, or the opening theme of the trailer.

Availability: This was only used on trailers and TV commercials of home video releases by CTHV.

• The cloud background variant was used on trailers for Little Women (1994) and The American President, the former of which can be found on the 1995 VHS of Persuasion and the latter of which can be found on the 1996 VHS of Money Train and the demo VHS of Dracula: Dead And Loving It.
• The antique gold fabric background variant can be found on the first trailer for the Columbia TriStar Family Collection, which can be found on most 1995-96 Family Collection VHS releases.
  • It can also be found on TV commercials for the Family Collection VHS release of The Indian In The Cupboard, which aired around late 1995-early 1996.

5th Logo (May 14, 1996-July 22, 1997)

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  Widescreen version

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Visuals: On a taupe brown background, a row of gold print logos of the Torch Lady and Pegasus in boxes are seen at an angle. The Columbia and TriStar boxes (in their similar styles from the 4th logo, but this time, they are still and not animated), then lift out of two of the boxes in the center as the row of boxes tilts to look towards the screen. The 3-D words "COLUMBIA TRISTAR" and "HOME VIDEO" in gold, fade in above and below the boxes, respectively with a shining wipe effect.

Trailer Variants: Many times, after the animation is complete, the boxes would slide away, the CTHV text would fade out, and one of the following terms, in the Shelley Script font, would zoom in from the center of the logo:

• Coming Soon to a Theater Near You
• Coming Soon to Home Video
• Now Available on Home Video

Afterward, a trailer with one of the following features would be played. If more than one bumper is used on a specific release, all bumpers after the first would start with just the background; all the bumpers on Jumanji also start at this point (a commercial part of Sony's "Maximum Television" ad campaign was placed in between the short logo and the tape's first trailer bumper).

Variants:

• There is a shorter version that does not proceed into a trailer bumper.
• Just like the 3rd logo, a variant with blue bars featuring small CTHV print logos on the sides of the logo exists. This version is seen on early DVDs in Widescreen.

Technique: CGI.

Audio: A re-recorded version of the chorus singing "Take Hollywood home!" with dramatic synth music, or the opening theme of the trailer.

Audio Variants:

• On some trailers, like both versions of the Family Collection trailer, the exact same music from the last logos is used.
• On the trailer variants of this logo, a 6-note piano jingle is added at the beginning. Also, as the bumper zooms in, Tony Clarkin says the text on-screen as a brief string theme is heard.
• The 2nd version of the Family Collection trailer has a version similar to the one mentioned above, except the piano jingle is shortened to the last 4 notes.

Availability: It was used for only a year, starting with the 1996 VHS release of Jumanji.

• The last VHS releases to use this were High School High, Fools Rush In, Beverly Hills Ninja and Jerry Maguire.
• This can be found on later copies of the 1995 VHS releases of Little Women (1994), Bad Boys and The Net, and the 1996 Family Collection release of Magic in the Water.
• This can also be found on 1997 reissues of Who's Harry Crumb? and Iron Eagle.
• The shorter version mainly appeared on demo VHS tapes, early DVDs and trailers/TV commercials of home video releases, though it did make appearances on a few retail VHS releases, including the aforementioned Jumanji and Jerry Maguire.
• The widescreen version appears on the 1997 DVD releases of The Craft, Philadelphia, Little Women (1994), Legends Of The Fall, Sleepless In Seattle, Bad Boys and A League of Their Own.
• No logo appears on the 1997 DVD releases of Jerry Maguire, Last Action Hero, Bram Stoker's Dracula, Awakenings, and First Knight.

6th Logo (July 22, 1997-April 3, 2001)

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  Squished Widescreen variant

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  Home Entertainment variant

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Visuals: On an ethereal blue background, filmstrips are seen crisscrossing the screen, with each frame in each filmstrip featuring the C-T box logo. A filmstrip then starts to pan towards the center of the screen, showing the boxes in each frame and the endings of their respective movie animations playing out within them. As the final frame reaches the screen, the background turns white with several blue areas in each corner as the boxes (with the footage of the Torch Lady from the 1993 Columbia Pictures logo on the left and the footage of the Pegasus from the 1993 TriStar Pictures logo on the right) go into position. Then the words "COLUMBIA TRISTAR" and "HOME VIDEO" fade in above and below the boxes. The animation inside the boxes begins to stop as the logo ends.

Trivia: This logo was later used for the third Columbia TriStar International Television logo.

Variants:

• A squished widescreen variant exists on VCDs.
• On VHS releases that contain the "Home Entertainment" variant of the 8th logo, "HOME ENTERTAINMENT" replaces "HOME VIDEO" on the trailer variants.
• There is a variant with the music in which after the logo forms, the words "COLUMBIA TRISTAR HOME VIDEO" fade out, and the words "COMING SOON" appear on the bottom of the screen.
• On the 1999 VHS of Baby Geniuses, the "Coming Soon to Home Video" and "Now Available on Home Video" trailer bumpers are still.
• There is a short version that simply shows the boxes going into position and the text appearing. The full version, as described above, was rarely used in the United States and Canada.

Trailer Variants: Many times, after the animation is complete, the boxes would slide away, the CTHV text would fade out, and one of the following phrases, in the same font as before but in black, would zoom in from the center of the logo:

• Coming Soon to a Theater Near You
• Now Playing in Theaters.../Coming Soon to Home Video (w/ slightly different font)
• Coming Soon to Home Video
• Now Available on Home Video
• Now Available (w/ slightly different font)

Afterward, a trailer with one of the following features would be played. If more than one bumper is used on a specific release, all bumpers after the first would start with the fully-formed logo; starting in 1998, the first bumper on most tapes would start at the same point.

Technique: CGI.

Audio: None or the music from the following trailer.

Audio Variants:

• On international releases, a Madchester breakbeat accompanied by a faint choir and ending with an orchestral hit was used.
• On The Second Jungle Book: Mowgli and Baloo, it uses the music from the 5th logo (the screener VHS release used the extended jingle over the normal logo by itself, while the retail copy used the shortened version at the beginning of a promo for Annie).

Availability: Tapes with this logo include The Second Jungle Book: Mowgli and Baloo, Booty Call, Anaconda, The Fifth Element, Men in Black, My Best Friend's Wedding, and Air Force One.

• The last releases to use the full logo were the 1998 VHS releases of I Know What You Did Last Summer, Seven Years in Tibet, and early copies of As Good as It Gets.
  • The same year, the 3rd logo would be reinstated as the standard logo for US VHS releases. The trailer variants, however, continued to be used until the 1st CTHE logo's introduction in 2001.
  • The short version was used almost exclusively for trailers on VHS tapes released in the United States and Canada.
• This logo was used for most international releases during this time, and was used on international DVDs from 1998 until 2000.
• The "HOME ENTERTAINMENT" trailer variant version is rare and seen on a handful of releases, such as Blue Streak, Love Stinks, The Winslow Boy, the Special Edition VHS of Mr. Smith Goes to Washington and Grey Owl. See the availability section for the 8th logo for more information.
• The last tape to use this in general was Circus.
• The rare variant with music, in which coming soon fades in after the CTHV text fades out after the logo is formed can also be seen on the 2001 Aussie VHS Release of 28 Days.
• A snippet of this logo can be seen on the 2002 Indonesian VCD releases of Men in Black II and Kermit's Swamp Years both after the CTHE logo, likely due to a editing error.

7th Logo (November 25-December 9, 1997)

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Visuals: Up against a royal blue background with many faintly visible CTHV print logos on it (just like the 3rd and 5th logos), the standard C-T boxes are seen outlined in white with the white text "COLUMBIA TRISTAR" above and "HOME VIDEO" below the logo respectively.

Technique: A still, digital graphic.

Audio: The 1993 CTHV theme.

Availability: This was only seen on the widescreen side of the first DVD releases of The Net, The Fifth Element, Johnny Mnemonic, and Happy Birthday to Me, all but The Fifth Element were released on the same day.

8th Logo (1999-2002, 2006 in Indonesia)

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  DVD variant

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  Home Video variant

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  Home Entertainment variant

Visuals: On a screen filled with clouds, the words "COLUMBIA" spelling itself standard, and "TRISTAR" spelling itself backward letter-by-letter, handsomely done in shining silver text, tumble onto the screen, "COLUMBIA" coming from the upper right and "TRISTAR" coming from the lower left. The clouds clear, revealing a backdrop of clouds and two white, glowing boxes. As the light in the boxes die down, the Torch Lady (in her similar style from the 1993 Columbia Pictures logo) zooms in towards the camera in her left box, and the Pegasus (in its similar style from the 1993 TriStar Pictures logo over a backwards flipped Columbia-like cloud background) stretches its wings in its right box, as its wings cross over to the Columbia box. The words "COLUMBIA" and "TRISTAR" later change to gold lettering and position themselves under the boxes, and "DVD" zooms out from the top, at warp speed, landing below the C-T text, causing the phaser effect to appear around it, which suddenly disappears.

Variants: "HOME VIDEO" or "HOME ENTERTAINMENT" may replace the "DVD" text at the end.

Technique: CGI.

Audio: Whooshing sounds as the words "COLUMBIA TRISTAR" move into position. An ethereal humming noise is heard as the boxes are revealed and animate. As the TriStar Pegasus unfolds and stretches its wings, a low whoosh sound is heard. Lastly, a phaser sound plays as the bottom text moves into place, followed by faint chime sounds.

Audio Variant: There is a 5.1 Dolby Digital version that enhances the phaser sounds. It can be found on the 2000 DVD release of Look Who's Talking Too, the 2001 Collector's Edition DVD release of Close Encounters of the Third Kind, the 2001 DVD release of Snatch, and the 2002 PAL DVD release of Evolution.

Availability: It's seen on most DVD releases of the time; prior to this, they used the 3rd logo (international DVDs used the 6th logo with music before this logo debuted). It served mainly as the 3rd logo's DVD equivalent.

• The "DVD" version can be found on all 2000-2002 DVDs.
• The "HOME VIDEO" version can be found on the VHS releases of Random Hearts, The King of Masks, Crazy in Alabama, The Messenger: The Story of Joan of Arc, Gen-X Cops, Velocity Trap, Fortress 2: Re-Entry and Stuart Little.
• The "HOME ENTERTAINMENT" version can be seen on the 2000 VHS releases of Blue Streak, Love Stinks, The Winslow Boy, Grey Owl and Mr. Smith Goes to Washington.
• One of the last releases to use this was the DVD release of See No Evil, Hear No Evil.
• This logo also does not appear on international VHS releases, as they instead use the 6th logo with music while UK VHS releases mainly used the 3rd logo.

Columbia TriStar Home Entertainment

1st Logo (February 20, 2001-June 14, 2005, April 2006 in UK and Ireland)

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  VHS variant

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  VHS variant (widescreen)

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  VHS variant (scope)

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  Rare Brazilian URL variant

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  DVD variant

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  Family Fun trailer variant

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  DVD variant (widescreen)

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  The Spirits Within variant

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  Version without the "Home Entertainment" text, as seen on the trailer for "Little Secrets" (2001).

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Visuals: Over the usual cloud background, the camera pans past an extreme close-up of the Torch Lady's legs and feet (covered in the robe, of course.), then dissolve into a pan of the TriStar Pegasus (in the print artwork style except for the body and the legs, which are in the 1993 movie logo style, but in the same color as the Pegasus' face and wings) unfolding its wings. The pan then quickly dissolves into a shot from the center of the Pegasus unfolding its wings, albeit in a close-up way, and then a dissolve to the Torch Lady zooming out from her face. The logo then dissolves to reveal the Torch Lady and Pegasus side-by-side on a cloud background in their print artwork styles, with "COLUMBIA TRISTAR" slightly sliding in with "HOME ENTERTAINMENT", in a smaller font, fading in letter-by-letter and the logo disappears after two light streaks in a straight horizontal fade out completely at the end.

Trivia:

• This is notable for being the last logo using the "Columbia TriStar" brand after Columbia TriStar Domestic/International Television's rebranding in 2002.
• On the demo VHS of Kermit's Swamp Years, the logo was followed by a 2nd blue FBI Warning before the Jim Henson Home Entertainment logo. This is most likely due to an editing mistake. However, this was corrected on the release tape print.

Variants:

• On some 2002 VHS prints of Stuart Little, there is a promo for Little Secrets that features this logo without "HOME ENTERTAINMENT" below.
• The VHS version of the logo usually cuts to black or fades out at the end on U.S. and UK VHS tapes without trailers (and on demo VHS tapes after the Hi-Fi Stereo logo before the FBI Warning); this also applies to VCDs and DVDs where this variant is used. The cut to black version of the first music variant occasionally pops up before the shortened widescreen trailer version of the logo on 2004-2005 tapes, such as The Wubbulous World of Dr. Seuss video The Cat's Musical Tales. In the United Kingdom, almost every VHS tapes have the logo fading out at the end, but a few of them have the VHS logo that cuts to black; one example video is Bear in the Big Blue House: The Summer of Love. It also appears on the retail VHS of Soul Assassin (containing previews), cutting directly to the Winchester Films logo before the film.
• A short version exists seen before trailers (or after trailers on demo VHS videos) where the Torch Lady, Pegasus and words come into place.
• The short version of the first music variant is seen on demo tapes after the previews and before the FBI Warnings such as Kermit's Swamp Years.
• On the first trailer of Kermit's Swamp Years, the logo is identical to the DVD variant except that the saturation matches the VHS variant and there's a bobbing effect from the bob de-interlacing filter.
• At the beginning of the Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within DVD, the logo segues into the menu, with a circle shaped wipe into the torch lady, which then fades into the film's protagonist, Dr. Aki Ross.
• On most Columbia TriStar DVDs from 2002-2005, the logo is in warp speed.
• On VHS releases from 2004-2005, it has a shortened version of this logo with a trailer bump, but with the DVD music. Examples of where to find this variant include Spider-Man 2, 13 Going on 30 (non-reprint copies only), White Chicks, Christmas with the Kranks, The Forgotten, Left Behind: The Movie, and Fahrenheit 9/11.
• Due to a video processing error, on the demo VHS of Love and a Bullet after the HiFi Stereo logo, the beginning of the logo up to the horn section is edited out.
• There is a 2.35:1 scope version of the first music variant seen on the 2001 UK DVD release of Dirty Dancing.
• On some VCD prints, the 16:9 cropped version of the first music variant is present on the disc.
• A Brazilian website promo has a variant with a URL.

Trailer Variants: Many times, letters would appear on top of the screen via a "blurring" effect in an orange font forming the following phrases said by Greg O'Neill:

• Coming Soon to Theaters
• Now Playing In Theaters
• Coming Soon to Home Video
• Coming Soon to VHS and DVD
• Coming Soon to DVD
• Now Available on Home Video
• Now Available on VHS and DVD
• Now Available on DVD

Afterward, a trailer with one of the following features would be played. On demo VHS tapes, the letters do not fade in above the trailer version of the logo at the beginning of the tape before the trailers. If a specific tape has more than one bumper, all the bumpers after the first have their respective phrases appear over a section of the logo playing in letterbox format, with the words within the top bar ("Coming Soon to Theaters", "Now Playing In Theaters" and the "DVD" bumpers) or both bars (all other bumpers).

International Trailer Variants: On early Australian releases, the logo plays normally and in the top right of the screen letters appear spelling "COMING SOON". So far, this has been spotted on 2001 Aussie VHS releases of Charlie's Angels, Almost Famous, and Wicked.

Technique: A complex combination of digital effects and filmed elements by Montgomery/Cobb. High-res scans of both logos from the Sony Pictures High Definition Center were retouched and rotoscoped using After Effects, with the Torch Lady's face and the feathers of the Pegasus' wings being entirely reconstructed via Photoshop. The Pegasus and cloud footage were stabilized using Discrete Effect and grain was removed from the filmed elements using Cinema 4D. The walls of scrolling text were composited in to create a digital-like effect. The text wall consisted of 786 hand-placed layers of text scrolling animation. The logo was designed and animated by Ramona Clark and Marcus Garcia..

Audio: There were two variants:

• VHS (and early VCDs and DVDs): Composed by Machine Head of Venice, California, a pin drop-like sound is heard, then a majestic and emotional synthesized fanfare with horns playing throughout the logo. Mechanical sweeps and stings are also heard throughout.
• DVD (and later VCDs and VHS): A shorter acoustic guitar tune that rises into a triumphant and emotional theme with bells, strings, and a small chorus composed by the Hit House. The animation plays slightly quicker here.

Audio Variants:

• On the VHS trailer version of this logo, the pin drop sound is not heard.
• A 5.1 synthesized version of the first music variant exists. This audio variant can be heard on certain DVDs like the original UK DVD release of Charlie's Angels.
• On UK and Australian releases of Kermit's Swamp Years, along with the Jim Henson Home Entertainment logo and the film itself, the audio is high-pitched. The logo itself also appears to have been very slightly sped up.
• On Boa VS. Python, the film's opening theme plays over the logo.
• At the end of most 2002-2006 UK videotapes without previews with this logo, a split-second of the BBC Radio pips can be heard loudly accompanied by a single beep in the style of the UK VHS phone dial sound alongside the very beginning of the VHS variant's music.
• Sometimes on the short variant, an announcer says over a stock thunderclap sound effect, "From Columbia Tristar Home Entertainment."

Availability: This can be seen on VHS, VCD, and DVD releases from the era. Some of them are still in print.

• The first VHS release to have this logo was Circus, but that tape still used the Columbia TriStar Home Video trailer bumpers.
• The CTHE trailer bumpers were introduced on Finding Forrester.
• The first music variant doesn't appear on DVD releases that often, but has been seen on the R1 DVD of the Jeffrey Blitz documentary Spellbound.
  • It appears to have been used more often on R2 DVD releases from the United Kingdom, appearing on releases such as Charlie's Angels (2000), Cromwell (being one of the DVD releases to have the 16:9 version with the pin-drop noise unedited), The Princess Bride, And Now for Something Completely Different, all three volumes of the UK-exclusive The Very Best of the Muppet Show, The Hoobs: Groove's Wish and The Wombles: Orinoco & the Big Black Umbrella and other stories.
• The VHS version of the first music variant can be seen on VHS tapes from the era.
• A scope variant of the first music variant was also spotted on the 2001 UK DVD release of Dirty Dancing.
• The second music variant on VHS can be seen at the end of Jay Jay the Jet Plane VHS releases, Bear in the Big Blue House LIVE!, retail copies of Kermit's Swamp Years, later international VHS releases, such as Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines, as well as a 2005 Demo VHS release of Are We There Yet?.
• Even though it wasn't seen on the Cloud Ten Pictures DVD releases from 2004, it appeared on the 2005 reprint of Judgement.
• The website promo containing the Brazilian URL can be seen in the Brazilian VHS of The 6th Day.
• Some of the first DVD releases to use the 2002-2005 warp-speed variant were the Australian Region 4 DVD releases of Evolution and The Animal.
• On UK videotapes, titles with previews as well as the end of titles without previews have the VHS version appear before the warning screen, followed by the 2002 FACT "The Pirates are out to Get You!" PIF, while titles without previews have it afterward.
• One of the last releases with this logo is The Karate Kid: Special Edition, released shortly after the next logo's debut but still had this logo.

Legacy It's a popular logo, with many deeming it a worthy successor to the "Split Boxes" and a great finale to the Columbia TriStar name, due to the fanfare, concept and animation.

2nd Logo (2001-2002)

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Visuals: Same as the 2nd Columbia Tristar Home Video logo, but the background is black and the text is thinner, with "ENTERTAINMENT" replacing "VIDEO".

Variant: On a 2002 promo for DVD releases of TV shows in Sony's library, the background is white and the text is black.

• The home video promo for Jay Jay the Jet Plane has this variant zoom in to fill the screen.

Technique: A still, digital graphic for the standard version, and a zooming effect for the Jay Jay the Jet Plane variant.

Audio: The opening of the promo. For the 2002 variant, none or, in the case of the Jay Jay the Jet Plane variant, the promo's closing theme.

Availability: So far, it's only been known to appear on four promos: a 2001 promo for Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, a 2002 promo for DVD releases of TV shows in Sony's library, a 2002 UK home video promo for Jim Henson pre-school shows, and a home video promo for Jay Jay the Jet Plane.

References

◄ RCA/Columbia Pictures Home Video RCA/Columbia Pictures International Video RCA/Columbia Pictures/Hoyts Video Pty. Ltd. Gaumont Columbia TriStar Home Video SVS/Triumph

Columbia TriStar Home Entertainment

Sony Pictures Home Entertainment ►