Live Entertainment

Credits

Descriptions by
Jess Williams

Captures by
Eric S., Logophile, EnormousRat, SubparMario63, GETENT, and zman1997

Editions by
Eric S., Logophile, EnormousRat, GETENT, DannyTheMuppetMan and zman1997

Video captures courtesy of
MachineryNoise, DudeThatLogo, osdatabase, Joseph Sobora (TheRedBaron1985), FanCentralNetwork, laughingduck1000, Sagan Blob, retro VHS trailers, LogicSmash, Peakpasha and Cesar Blanco

Background

In 1988, video distributor International Video Entertainment merged with store publisher Lieberman to form LIVE Entertainment. Family Home Entertainment and International Video Entertainment became subsidiaries of LIVE Entertainment, and had a partnership with Carolco Pictures to start its home video label Carolco Home Video. In 1990, the IVE name was dropped and it was renamed to LIVE Home Video, with LIVE International established as an international subsidiary.

In 1991, it bought out the assets of Vestron Video, while launching the budget label Avid Home Entertainment at the same time. LIVE Entertainment would expand and grow to produce movies, namely Reservoir Dogs. In 1993, it became a distributor for Pioneer Entertainment with its anime titles. In 1993, after a failed merger attempt, Carolco sold its shares in the company.

In 1997, it was sold to Bain Capital, and in April 1998, they rebranded the company as Artisan Entertainment.

Contents
1st Logo (October 4, 1990-December 21, 1994)	2nd Logo (October 19, 1994-April 14, 1998)

1st Logo (October 4, 1990-December 21, 1994)

• 

  Normal

• 

  "Exclusively Distributed by"

• 

  International

Visuals: On a black background, a small grey triangle is seen at the top center of the screen, segmented and a smaller triangle-shaped piece cut out of it, forming a large L shape. Below, the stacked text "LIVE HOME VIDEO" is seen. Everything has a shiny bevel effect to it.

Variants:

• On mainly Carolco Home Video releases, this logo appears with "Exclusively Distributed By" above it, and below is a byline reading "A Division of LIVE Entertainment" or "A LIVE Entertainment Company". The logo is also smaller.
• An alternate version exists for Live International. The colors are swapped and in lighter shades, so the triangle is now light blue and the text in white. "LIVE" is now in a different font, and a Live Entertainment byline is present.

Technique: A digital graphic.

Audio: None or (in the case of The Palermo Connection) the closing theme.

Availability:

• The "Exclusively Distributed By" variation appears on Carolco releases such as Basic Instinct, Jacob's Ladder, L.A. Story, Total Recall, Terminator 2: Judgment Day (theatrical version), and Universal Solider. It always follows the Carolco Home Video logo, appearing after it.
• The normal version is on regular Live Home Video releases such as Howling VI: The Freaks, Glengarry Glen Ross, Waxwork II: Lost in Time, Drop Dead Fred and Reservoir Dogs.
• It makes surprise appearances at both the beginning and end of the Lionsgate DVD of Raise the Titanic (double feature with Man Friday), the 2001 Artisan DVD of Extreme Prejudice, Hulu prints of Frauds, a Showtime Extreme airing of the 1990 film Heaven and Earth (Ten to Chi), and on the promotional trailer for Terminator 2: Judgment Day - Special Edition, which in turn can be found on the Ultimate Edition DVD of T2.
• The "Exclusively Distributed By" variant, along with the Carolco Home Video logo makes a surprise appearance on The Terminator: A Retrospective which can be found on the MGM Blu-ray releases of The Terminator.
• This has been known to plaster the IVE logos on post-1990 prints of some tapes, including Rambo III and Drugstore Cowboy, though a 1991 printing of First Blood preserves the 2nd IVE logo. This also appears on the Laserdisc release of The Last of the Mohicans, starring Randolph Scott.
• The logo debuted on History of the PGA Tour (which retained it as late as 1999) and Wayne Gretzky: Above and Beyond (which also ends with the debut of the "Exclusively Distributed By" variant); its first major appearance was on Total Recall, followed by Silent Night, Deadly Night 4: Initiation and Short Time.
• Its last known appearance was on the Laserdisc release of Wagons East! (the VHS release uses the next logo), and the last videocassettes to use this logo include The Young Americans and At Home with the Webbers, both released on September 7, 1994, and Beyond the Law, released on September 21, 1994.

2nd Logo (October 19, 1994-April 14, 1998)

• 

  Home Video version

• 

  The formed product

• 

  The finished product

• 

  Early filmed version

• 

  DVD version

• 

  International version

• 

  With trademark

• 

  Normal

• 

  Purple

• 

  Suicide Kings

Visuals: On a black background, several sets of prismatic triangles, laid at a 90-degree angle, come onto the screen from opposite directions. They then spin around a few times, as the camera pulls back, revealing more sets of triangles spinning, and the words "LIVE ENTERTAINMENT" at a 90-degree angle. The text then does a 90-degree turn to face the camera, while the triangles form the Live logo (segmented triangle with a smaller one cut out on the upper-right). All are light steel blue, until two searchlights crisscross the logo, making the triangle logo brighter, turning "LIVE" blue, and "ENTERTAINMENT" white. "LIVE" shines, and a white sparkle appears on the side of the "E".

Variants:

• For the first few months of this logo's existence, the text "HOME VIDEO" was used; the L pyramid had a different shine effect, and the text does not sparkle at the end. This can be seen on Wagons East! and Pumpkinhead II.
• Earlier versions, including the "Home Video" version, have brighter triangles, almost looking like glass, a wiping shine effect making the text darker, and a different sparkle; the logo is filmed.
• In 1996, a registered trademark symbol "®" was added.
• Sometimes, "INTERNATIONAL" in white would appear below the "L", which is also white. This is silent and uses the tail end of the normal logo (the "searchlights" part), though it also exists as a full logo. This full logo variant was recently sighted on an Amazon Prime Video print of Marked Man (1996).
• On Live DVD releases, the logo is extended. After the searchlights, the sparkle is instead replaced with a flash, revealing a purple spark that fizzes constantly, which also turns the entire logo purple and removes "ENTERTAINMENT". The logo then starts to zoom in, with the spark moving up and into the pyramid itself, centering in the middle of the screen before it fizzles out at the end of the pyramid. This reveals a revolving version of the logo, with both "LIVE" and "DVD" on adjacent sides, and continues to spin throughout the rest of the runtime.
• Beginning in late 1995/early 1996, the tail end would be used as a closing variant.
• Some movies produced by Live have the logo placed at the end of the closing credits. These can vary in color and size, but continue to use the 1991-era font for the Live Entertainment text.

Technique: CGI.

Audio:

• Summer 1995-1997: A semi-ominous synth theme that turns more triumphant at the end, with slow-to-fast ascending sounds. This was composed by Matthew Kajcienski.
• Summer-1997-1998: A uplifting orchestral fanfare. An abridged version is used for the short version. This was composed by Robert J. Walsh.

Audio Variants:

• The early variants of this logo, as well as some videos with the "ENTERTAINMENT" version (including Baywatch the Movie: Forbidden Paradise, Killing Zoe, Forbidden Choices, Night Train to Venice, and Stargate), were silent. The first fanfare didn't debut until the summer of 1995.
• The DVD variant begins with descending whooshing sounds and rumbles, a shining sound, then a cling when the spark appears, another descending whoosh when the screen zooms through the Live logo, and finally when the Live DVD logo appears, a quiet orchestral rendition of the 1994 fanfare.

Availability:

• It was on all Live releases from 1994 to 1998, when the company became Artisan. However, like Live before it, Artisan reissued Live/F.H.E. videos in their original packaging, but plastered all evidence of Live and F.H.E. logos with Artisan logos in their place. DVDs from Live, even with Artisan's logo on the cover, should have this logo, however.
• Also seen on films from 1994-1998 ending with Wishmaster.
• It's preserved on the DVD releases of South Beach Academy, released as a double feature with Rock 'N' Roll High School Forever and Kickboxer 4: The Aggressor, released as a double feature with Kickboxer III: The Art of War.
• Can also be found on Hulu prints of Only You (1992) and Night Train to Venice, and VUDU prints of Extreme Prejudice.
• Re-releases of The Young Americans, Chicago Joe and the Showgirl, Bad Lieutenant, and others issued as part of later Super-7 promotional markdown releases also have this, as do the company's first releases in its regular lineup of letterboxed cassettes.
• Most DVD releases had both the DVD variant before the menu and the regular 1997 music variant when the feature is played (the DVD of Terminator 2: Judgment Day only has the closing variant for the latter, though).
• It is unknown if this appeared on The Invader, one of the last releases to be branded as Live Entertainment on the packaging.
• It first appeared on Army of One, Temptation, Pumpkinhead II: Blood Wings, and a double-feature screener for Killing Zoe and ...And God Spoke. The identification as "Live Entertainment" first appeared on the retail versions of Killing Zoe and ...And God Spoke.
• The first fanfare debuted on a demo tape of Top Dog.
• The final use of this logo was on the 1998 AC-3 LaserDisc of Terminator 2: Judgment Day, released shortly before or immediately after the company rebranded themselves as Artisan.
• This doesn't appear on Family Home Entertainment releases from the era.

◄ International Video Entertainment

Live Entertainment

Artisan Entertainment ►