Republic Entertainment

From the Audiovisual Identity Database, the motion graphics museum

This article is about the newer iteration of the company. For the original film company that operated from 1935 until 1967, see Republic Pictures (1935-1967). For other uses, see Republic Pictures (disambiguation).

Credits
Descriptions by
Eric S., V of Doom, indycar, Logoboy95, Henrynguye5, Michael Bass, Argus Sventon, James Fabiano, Jess Williams, Dan DeCosta, Nicholas Aczel, Kris Starring, and Cameron McCaffrey

Captures by
RSX-798, Thatvhstapeguy, Eric S. and V of Doom

Editions by
RSX-798, Mr. Logo Lord, Logoboy95, codyfinke, Eric S., V of Doom, AsdfTheRevival, Guillermo A. Martinez, Mr. Logo Lord, Ninh Nguyen, DisneyInternationalFan and Michael Kenchington

Video captures courtesy of
Eric S., Mike Stidham, KidCairbre, AtlasDVDs, Broken Saw, and MattTheSaiyan

Background

On December 28, 1984, National Telefilm Associates, who at the time held the rights to the Republic Pictures catalogue, renamed themselves as Republic Pictures Corporation. After a 25-year hiatus, Republic Pictures returned to active production with a number of movies, series for television including the CBS series Beauty and the Beast, and TV movies, although they did produce few independent theatrical films including Freeway. NTA's Home Video unit was renamed to Republic Pictures Home Video.

In January 1989, Republic formed a television unit as a joint venture with United Artists Communications (not to be confused with United Artists Pictures). The joint venture planned to produce television programming over the next five years with $60 million in start-up costs, while Republic Pictures Corporation managed the unit and distributed its programs.

In 1993, Republic won a landmark legal decision reactivating the copyright on Frank Capra's 1946 film It's a Wonderful Life (they had already owned the film's negative, music score, and the story on which it was based, "The Greatest Gift").

In 1994, Spelling Entertainment, controlled by Blockbuster Entertainment, acquired Republic and merged their Worldvision Enterprises' existing Home Video unit with Republic's. Shortly thereafter, Viacom purchased Blockbuster and Spelling consolidated its many divisions, with Republic Pictures being renamed as "Republic Entertainment, Inc." In 1996, Spelling shut down Republic Pictures' film production unit and reduced Republic to serving solely as a home video company.

In 1998, Viacom dismantled Spelling's non-television assets, and after folding Republic's home video unit, licensed the home video rights of their films to Artisan Entertainment. Under license from Paramount, Artisan, and later its successor Lionsgate, continued to use Republic Pictures' name and logo onscreen on video releases of Republic's library until 2010. A year later, Viacom acquired 100% interest in Spelling and Republic was then made an in-name-only unit of Paramount Pictures, a division of Viacom. Republic was quietly retired in 2010, and ultimately folded altogether, by Viacom, who created a new holding company called "Melange Pictures, LLC" in 2015 as the holder of the Republic film library and later signed a new video deal with Olive Films, who currently distribute their films on DVD/Blu-ray after Paramount's deal with Lionsgate expired.

As for the TV library, most of it is currently owned by Paramount Global through CBS Media Ventures and Spelling Television Inc., all of them controlled by National Amusements, Inc. The syndication rights to the theatrical library are controlled by Paramount Worldwide Television Licensing & Distribution, with U.S. broadcast syndication rights licensed to Trifecta Entertainment & Media.

On March 24, 2023, Paramount Global announced it would once again revive Republic Pictures. This iteration will serve as the company's acquisitions label, releasing titles acquired by Paramount Global Content Distribution, similar to the distribution model of, amongst other companies, Stage 6 Films or the revived American International Pictures.


Contents

1st Logo (1985?-1987) 2nd Logo (1987-1988) 3rd Logo (1988-1994) 4th Logo (1993-2010)


1st Logo (1985?-1987)


Visuals: Same as the original Republic Pictures logo, but this time, the logo is computerized, with some clouds appearing to move, and the text "REPUBLIC PICTURES" flies in from the bottom of the screen.

Variants:

  • On some movies, the word "Presents" would fade in below the logo, in a script font.
  • There is also a black and white variant.
  • There are videotaped and filmed variants.
  • There is also a variant with the text "REPUBLIC PICTURES" simply fading in. The text is in the same font, but is less-detailed.
  • On TV shows, a still shot is used, with the text reading "Distributed by REPUBLIC PICTURES" in a yellow-ish orange Roman font. A black and white version is used as well for this variant.

Technique: Computer animation.

Audio: The opening theme of the movie, or none.

Availability:

  • It appears on some movies and home video releases. The "Presents" version appears on Gun Battle at Monterey on Starz Encore Westerns and TCM UK.
  • The variant with the text fading in appears at the end of a 1995 US VHS release of It's a Wonderful Life (1946).
  • On TV shows, it appears on several episodes of Car 54, Where Are You? on Me-TV.
  • It was also seen on late 80s syndicated reruns of Press Your Luck (now owned by FremantleMedia).

2nd Logo (1987-1988)


Visuals: On a sky background, there is a redrawn version of the last logo; there are less clouds in the logo, leaving a clear blue sky in front of the eagle. The words "REPUBLIC PICTURES" fly up from behind the clouds.

Variant: There are still and B&W variants.

Technique: Computer animation. None on television shows.

Audio: None or the ending theme of the show.

Availability:

  • The animated version appears on releases from Republic Pictures Home Video from the late 1980s.
  • The still variant is seen on season 1 of the TV series Beauty and the Beast on Chiller and DVD (with the 2006 CBS Paramount Domestic Television "Eye in the Sky" logo following), while the later seasons has been plastered in favor of either the 2006 CBS Paramount Network Television "Wallpaper" or the 2007 CBS Television Distribution logos.
  • It can also be spotted on a few episodes of I Spy on RTV.
  • A B&W version also made an appearance at the end of a TCM airing of The Senator was Indiscreet (1947).

3rd Logo (1988-1994)


Visuals: Over a blue sky background, the logo starts with the bald eagle standing on a mountain with the words "REPUBLIC PICTURES", which fades in below. White clouds are also shown at the bottom.

Variants:

  • A still version of the logo exists.
  • Sometimes, a copyright date is shown below the logo.

Technique: Computer animation or none.

Audio:

  • 1990: The patriotic fanfare from the 1950s.
  • 1990-1994: A majestic fanfare is used.
  • In most cases, the opening theme of the movie, the closing theme of the show, or none.

Availability:

  • On movies, once again it appears on a few Republic Pictures Home Video releases from 1988-89, when the home video version began use, and also appeared at the beginning of a Talking Pictures TV airing of Viva Max! (1969), the end of a recent TCM UK airing of Thunder Pass (1954) and a Movies! airing of Robinson Crusoe of Mystery Island (1966).
  • On TV shows, it also tends to plaster older logos within prints from the pre-1973 NBC catalog (such as Bonanza and Little House on the Prairie (the latter premiering in 1974)), and most of the Quinn Martin produced shows; this was intact on Bonanza VHS and non-CBS DVD releases and when reran on TV Land and TVLand.com, preceding the 1995 Paramount Domestic Television logo.
  • It also appears on Me-TV's prints of Bonanza (on some episodes, others may use the Worldvision or CBS Television Distribution logos) and Get Smart, as well as the last two seasons of Beauty and the Beast.
  • It also appeared on a mid 1990s PBS broadcast of Victory at Sea (1954).

4th Logo (1993-2010)


Visuals: The sequence starts with a white cloud background. Then the sky and the clouds disperse, revealing the old view of the Republic Pictures bald eagle, redone in CGI. At the bottom-right is the rock. "REPUBLIC PICTURES", in white fades-in underneath and until 2006, the respective company byline appears below the company name.

Bylines:

  • 1993-1994, 2006-2010: Bylineless
  • 1994-1995:"A Unit of Spelling Entertainment, Inc."
  • 1995: "A UNIT OF SPELLING ENTERTAINMENT GROUP, INC."
  • 1995-2006: "A Subsidiary of Spelling Entertainment Group, Inc."

Variants:

  • There is also a "60th Anniversary" variant.
  • There is also a still variant.
  • In 1997, a shorter version which cuts the fade-in from white in the first few seconds of the logo debuted. This is used in tandem with the standard version.
  • On some television movies, a shortened animated variant without the Spelling byline is used.
  • Some Artisan DVD releases use an extremely short version that fades in when the "REPUBLIC PICTURES" text appears.

Technique: CGI.

Audio: A wind-blowing effect, followed by a dramatic string tune. The still variant uses the second half of the jingle. Both jingles were composed by David Michael Frank and Gary William Friedman.

Audio Variant: This logo plastered the Paramount logo on some 1990s-era prints of the Fleischer Brothers' animated Gulliver's Travels. On said prints, the beginning of the opening credits music plays over this logo.

Availability:

  • It was mostly used as a de-facto home video logo or as a TV logo.
  • It rarely appears on films, but such films that feature this logo include the remastered version of It's a Wonderful Life (1946), including NBC's current print of the film, and Two-Bits & Pepper.
  • You can also find it on TV movies such as Armed and Innocent.
  • VHS releases that feature this logo include The Tin Soldier, the 1997 release of Highlander (1986), and several Hallmark Hall of Fame tapes from the era, among others.
  • The 1995 byline variant can be found on the VHS release of A Lady Takes a Chance.
  • It also appeared on the Roku Channel's print of Highlander II: The Quickening (1991), which was clearly derived from a pan-and-scan master from the '90s.
  • The bylineless variant was seen on the mini-series The Stand, as well as DVD releases from Artisan Home Entertainment and Lionsgate Home Entertainment such as Freeway and Bound.
  • On television shows, it appears on shows like The High Chaparral on INSP, H&I and Decades (occasionally, although some updated prints plaster this with the 2007 CBS Television Distribution logo) and Bonanza.
  • On the DVD release of the short-lived series Kindred: The Embraced, this is seen after the 1992 Spelling Television logo; however, it was not seen on the original Fox airings.
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