United Artists Television/Summary

Logo descriptions by Jason Jones, Shadeed A. Kelly, and D.L. Chandell

Logo captures by Shadeed A. Kelly, Eric S., V of Doom, Bob Fish, and snelfu

Editions by Shadeed A. Kelly and V of Doom

Video captures courtesy of Eric S., JohnnyL80, and MattTheSaiyan

Background
United Artists Television was the television production and distribution division of United Artists that was originally formed in 1949. They distributed their parent company's film library, but by the 1950s, there was little success. United Artists Corporation acquired Associated Artists Productions in 1958 and renamed it as "United Artists Associated" and in the process, they acquired the pre-1950 Warner Bros. theatrical film library. In 1960, United Artists acquired Ziv Television Programs, forming "Ziv-United Artists" as their television production and primary distribution arm. In 1962, Ziv was phased out, causing the name to revert back to the original name. United Artists was later purchased by Transamerica Corporation in 1967. United Artists Associated was reincorporated as "United Artists Television Distribution" the following year. In 1981, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer merged with United Artists to create "MGM/UA Entertainment Co.". As a result, their respective television units combined as well, forming "MGM/UA Entertainment Co. Television" (or "MGM/UA Television") in 1982. The "United Artists Television" logo was eventually phased out around 1983 in favor of the "MGM/UA Television" banner, although the United Artists Television name was used on select television series as an in-name-only unit of MGM/UA Television until 1995. On September 22, 2014, MGM purchased a 55% interest in One Three Media and Lightworkers Media and merged the two companies to form "United Artists Media Group", with Hearst Corporation also owning a minor stake of the company until December 14, 2015, when MGM acquired the remaining 45% stake, becoming its wholly-owned subsidiary and folding it later. United Artists Media Group later became "UAMG Content, LLC". With the exceptions of Gilligan's Island (distributed by Warner Bros. Television via Turner Entertainment Co., who retains the copyright), The Fugitive (owned by CBS Television Studios through Spelling Television) and The Mothers-in-Law (owned by Desilu, Too (not to be confused with the original Desilu Productions, later Paramount Television, now CBS Television Studios), the remaining United Artists Television library is currently owned by MGM Television

1st Logo (1958-1962)
Nickname: "TV Tube"

Logo: A superimposed logo, featuring a block-type UA stacked diagonally with the company name across. The logo is bordered inside a transparent TV Tube-like field.

Ziv-UA Variant: See Ziv Television Programs for description.

FX/SFX: None or the zooming effect.

Music/Sounds: Usually the closing theme of the show.

Availability: The original is extinct. The Ziv-UA variant can be seen on Bat Masterson on ThisTV.

Editor's Note: None.

2nd Logo (1962-1967)
Nickname: "UA Stack"

Logo: It starts with the company name outlined against a gray background. There are two odd looking shapes in black on the left and right of the logo, which pan towards each other and go to opposite sides of the name, which changes to black. The two shapes pan towards each other once more, making a stop this time to stick them together. The shapes appear as a vertical UA.

Variants:


 * The color variant was yellow lettering and the UA logo in white on a blue background; was on with full animation on It's About Time and My Mother the Car.
 * A still variant with "Released by" on top of this logo was on season one episodes of The Rat Patrol and on the short-lived series Hey, Landlord.

FX/SFX: The panning of the UA.

Music/Sounds:


 * For the original 1962 version, there was a musical swell and sometimes followed by a "click" sound from the shapes when they intersected and merged. It finishes with a flourish at the end.
 * Some third season episodes of The Patty Duke Show featured their closing theme over the logo but retaining the "CLICK" sound.
 * In 1965, the music was replaced with a whimsical theme accompanied by a xylophone.
 * Other shows would carry the closing theme of the show.

Availability: Rare. It's seen on The Patty Duke Show on Antenna TV. Also available on VHS and DVD releases of the original Outer Limits and on the DVD release of the unaired pilot episode of Gilligan's Island. The version with the 2nd theme was used on O.K. Crackerby and My Mother the Car.

Editor's Note: None.

3rd Logo (1962-1967)
Nickname: "UA"

Logo: This is an in-credit logo for some of United Artists' co-productions. It is a simplified UA ident; both letters are the same shape, going upside down.

FX/SFX: None. On The Fugitive, it's the usual effects from the credits.

Music/Sounds: The closing theme of the show.

Availability: Can be found intact on all episodes of Gilligan's Island and The Fugitive on DVD, as well on The New Phil Silvers Show.

Editor's Note: None.

4th Logo (1967-1968)
Nicknames: "The UA-Transamerica Circle", "The UA Circle"

Logo: On a light blue background, we have a yellow circle and inside it has a black circle. We see the words "UNITED ARTISTS TELEVISION" in yellow lettering (appears to be in a cote-out) appearing inside a circular field. The word "TELEVISION" is under the word "RTISTS" in small lettering. The byline "A Transamerica COMPANY" is seen in small letters underneath. The word "Transamerica" is seen in a yellow Impact font. The letters "U" and the "A" are somewhat taller than the rest of the company name, and they overlap each other.

Variant: The background is sky blue and the circle and lettering is orange. The text "RELEASED BY" is seen in place of "FROM" on the upper left-hand corner.

FX/SFX: None.

Music/Sounds: The closing theme of the show.

Availability: Ultra rare. It was originally seen on S2 episodes of The Rat Patrol and S1 episodes of The Mothers-in-Law (the last UATV production to use this logo), as well on off-net syndicated reruns of classic UATV programs such as Gilligan's Island back in the late '60s. This was one of the first television syndication companies to follow that practice. Currently seen on season one of The Mothers-in-Law: The Complete Series on DVD and Me-TV.

Editor's Note: None.

5th Logo (1968-1975)
Nickname: "The Transamerica T"

Logo: It starts with two sets of blue lines going into place, all together at the same time, against a black background. One set of three lines turns to the left, the other set turns to the right. There are six lines altogether, revealing the logo of Transamerica Corporation, United Artists' former owner. The logo zooms out to the side to make room for the company name.

Byline: The name was referred to as "United Artists Television, Entertainment from Transamerica Corporation" during this time.

Opening Variant: On this variant, the animation is the same as its movie counterpart, except for the UATV text instead.

FX/SFX: The stacking of the lines.

Music/Sounds: The closing theme of the show. In other cases, it used the ending part of the movie logo theme from 1968. When plastering a 1962 United Artists Television logo, its music is heard.

Availability: Ultra rare. It was last seen on Gilligan's Island off-net repeats decades ago. Currently seen on season two of The Mothers-in-Law: The Complete Series on DVD and on Me-TV.

Editor's Note: None.

6th Logo (1975-1981)
Nickname: "The Transamerica T '75"

Logo: This one is similar to its previous logo. The re-modified name "United Artists Television" fades in, and the "Transamerica T" fades in along with the shortened phrase "A Transamerica Company".

Variant: On syndie prints of classic UA TV shows of the era, a still shot variant of the 1975 movie logo was used.

FX/SFX: The fade-in or none.

Music/Sounds: None.

Availability: Extinct.

Editor's Note: None.

7th Logo (1981-1982)
Logo: This is a shortened variant of the 1981 movie logo.

FX/SFX: None.

Music/Sounds: None.

Availability: Extinct.

Editor's Note: None.

8th Logo (1982-1983)
Nicknames: "UA Paperclip", "Turning UA (Stationary)"

Logo: Basically, it's a still shot variant of the 1982 movie logo and close up.

FX/SFX: The simple fade-in and fade-out.

Music/Sounds: An abridged four-note version of the movie logo. Sometimes, the end title music carrying over the logo or none.

Availability: Near extinction. It appeared only on three television movies: Witness for the Prosecution, I Take These Men, and I Want to Live.

Editor's Note: None. It could be off-putting considering its extreme rarity and immediate contrast to its film counterpart.

Final Note: In 2014, United Artists Media Group was formed, causing the United Artists name to return to television for the first time since 1995.