JOAX-TV (Nippon Television)

(1953-2001, July 24, 2011)
NOTE: The final closedown variant appears at the end of this video. NOTE: To see all closedown variants, click this

Nicknames: "Japanese Birdcage", "Japanese LED Letters Logo"

Logo: On a black background, we see a transparent-looking N, with the letters T and V spaced out in the sides of the letter. The words "JOAX-TV" are seen on the bottom of the logo. After a few seconds, we fade in to three doves, each representing the three television networks in Japan at the time (NHK, TBS, and NTV). The doves begin to fly off one by one, and eventually, only one dove remains: the one representing Nippon Television. The rest of the logo is TBD.

Variants: The logo originally aired in black and white. Just before midnight on July 24 2011, the date when Japanese analog television switched off in most regions, the original (color) version of the logo was broadcast on NTV's analog signal in Tokyo, with the addition of "58年間ありがとうございました" (Thank you for 58 years) somewhere on the NTV logo screen.

FX/SFX: Very nicely executed 2D animation in here! The quality of the animation would hold up until the end of the 90s, when most of the recent Japanese animation was starting to become computerized.

Music/Sounds: A custom-made orchestra piece (composed by Shirō Fukai), that had been slightly reorchestrated over the years.

Availability: Extinct. This was only seen on sign-offs and sign-ons on JOAX-TV.

Editor's Note: This logo was a trademark of 60s Japanese television, given it's professional animation.