WNET/Summary

Logo captures by snelfu, StephenCezar15, and TheEriccorpinc Editions by mr3urious, TheMisterFree, GETENT, Ryan Froula, Shadeed A. Kelly and StephenCezar15

Background: WNET is the PBS affiliate located in New York City, New York, being the oldest of all the stations (although it joined NET in 1962). It also serves Newark, New Jersey.

(1948-1958)
Nicknames: "The Beginning of Public Television", "WATV Field"

Logo: On a sky background located at what appears to be the landscape on a farm, we see the letters "WATV" in an Avant Garde Gothic font at an oblique angle. Between "T" and "V" is a thin pole (to hold it up) with a sign on it that says "NEWARKNEW JERSEY" facing straight at the camera with "NEWARK" in a plain sans serif font and "NEW JERSEY". On top of the "T" is "13" in the Haettenschweiler font.

FX/SFX: Probably a still logo.

Music/Sounds: Possibly silent, although it may have an announcer saying "There's more to be seen on WATV Channel 13 Newark'.

Availability: Extinct. Only used as a local ID.

Editors Note: The design of this logo looks really strange, especially for its time.

(1958-1962)
Logo: On a black background, we see the words "WNTA/TV" and a large "13".


 * Their test pattern is just a variant.
 * There's a variant, where the background is a skyline (Probably Newark), the letters are lowercase, while being stacked on Newark and 13 is stacked on a sign on top of 13, that says Super Power.

FX/SFX: None, it's a still.

Music/Sounds: Possibly silent. Although it may have a announcer.

Availability: Extinct. Only used as a local ID.

Editors Note: None.

WNDT
===1st Logo (1962-1970)===

Logo:
 * Opening: On a black background, a large ring made of dark red bars appear one-by-one. They brighten up to orange as a smaller ring made with dark green bars appear by the same effect and the large ring flashes to green. A even smaller ring of bars appear in dark teal. The rings then fade through different colors for about 3 seconds as a red bar ring slides into view, along with "IN COLOR" below in grey. The rings fade out and the text "PRODUCED IN NEW YORK BY WNDT" appear below in white and stacked with each other. "IN COLOR" continues to slide along the bottom of the screen until it goes off screen.
 * Closing: On a black background, a winding path of yellow bars appear one by one, followed by a dark red path of bars behind it. They form 3 bar rings, which turn red, green, and yellow respectively, and eventually slide into each other to form a yellow ring. The yellow ring then turns into a red/green/blue ring as the same text in the opening variant appears below, with a copyright reading "(C)1970 EBC" appearing below. The ring then "spins" through its colors before fading to dark green.

Variant: On the Realities episode "Soldiers Who Search and Dissent", this is used as a still in-credit logo, in monochrome. "WNET" replaces "WNDT", and the copyright year is given as 1971.

FX/SFX: The bars appearing, the limited sliding

Music/Sounds: A funky bongo beat with an announcer either saying "Produced in New York by WNDT." or "Soul! was produced in New York by WNDT."

Availability: Extremely rare. This was used for only a short time before WNDT merged with NET to create WNET (they would also use this logo very briefly). It can be seen on the Shout Factory TV print of the March 5, 1970 episode of Soul! (incorrectly stated to be the first episode of the series, though it may have simply been the earliest Shout Factory TV could get ahold of) and appears to have been used for the third season thereof. An in-credit version appeared on the occasional episode of Realities, including "Soldiers Who Search and Dissent".

Editors Note: Not much was known about this logo's existence until very recently, when Shout Factory put up the original episodes on their Shout Factory TV service. The animation is definitely very limited, but it's also very effective. The copyright on the bottom of the logo stands for Educational Broadcasting Corporation, the holding company for WNDT now known as WNET.org as of 2009.

WNET / Thirteen
===1st Logo (1972-Spring 1973)===

Nickname: "Abstract Thirteen I"

Logo: On a greenish-gray background ,we see the words "ThiRtEEn WNET NEWARK, NJ" in white on a transparent rectangle protruding from the right. The "ThiRtEEn" is made up of some abstract, combined letter forms upper and lower-case all in it's corporate font and the other text is simply in Optima. Later, the bottom text fades to "Keeping what matters in sight" in a compressed white font aligned to the left. Several rectangles appear in the background.

FX/SFX: The text fading.

Music/Sounds: A relaxing 12-note piano tune with a few string and flute riffs thrown in.

Availability: Extinct. It was used only as a local ID.

Editors Note: None.

===10th Logo (September 9, 1987-January 27?, 1992)=== Nickname: “WNET in Space”

Logo: On a blue space background with dancing stars, “FROM” and “NEW YORK” zoom out, along with a "W", which then has an "n", an "E", and a "t" sliding out while the animation zooms out away from the viewer. “Sparks” then create parallelograms to surround “FROM” and “NEW YORK”, placed above and below the logo.

Variant:
 * An in-credit version appears at the end of 1986-1991 episodes of American Masters. The logo has "A PRESENTATION OF" above the logo and "NEW YORK" either appears in the bottom parallelogram or is under it, leaving either the top or both blank. There may be a copyright notice below.
 * In a rare exception to the general rule that station logos don't appear on co-productions between PBS stations, this and the KCET logo are played simultaneously, without any music, before Television.
 * On some programs, including Shining Time Station, the logo is slightly sped up to 30p (not 30i, 30p—the logo was originally animated at 24p) and the audio is out of proportion, or vice-versa.

FX/SFX: The letters sliding out, along with the entire logo zooming out.

Music/Sounds: Same as the “Radar” logo.

Availability: Rare. However, this logo is easier to find than the 8th logo, given the fact that it has appeared on PBS Home Video tapes of the era from WNET, including episodes of Nature and Great Performances, and even plastered the Radar logo on some Time-Life releases of the former. Both first and second-season Shining Time Station episodes (the first season being when Ringo Starr was Mr. Conductor and the second season with George Carlin as Mr. Conductor) have this logo, too. Depending on your PBS station, it was seen either at the beginning or end of an episode. It also appeared on the laser videodisc releases of the Nature episode "The Volcano Watchers" and the American Masters episode "A. Einstein: How I See the World". It is unknown if this appears on any DVD releases. Its first appearances were on The Power of Choice and I Would Be Called John: Pope John XXIII, as well as on sixth-season episodes of Nature and the 1987 rebroadcast of The Adams Chronicles.

Editors Note: Typical 1980s CGI abound here. The animation is actually pretty fast-paced.

===11th Logo (1990-1993, 1996-October 1, 1999)=== Nickname: "Abstract Thirteen II"

Logo: Tinted with the red color scheme from the Public TV For East Tennessee ident, we see various CGI/live-action-related clips (such as a train moving towards us, the window sill from the 6th PBS logo, a compass, a giant white/sea green "N" swinging in front of a running leopard, ect.) as the "ThiRtEEn" from the fifth logo zooms in very slowly towards us. As all this happens, a violet banner with "WNET NEWARK NJ" (which later changes to "NEW YORK NY") briefly appears below at the lower-right.

FX/SFX: TBA.

Music/Sounds: A pretty new-age tune with a piano, flutes and violins.

Availability: Extinct. Was only used as a Local ID.

Editors Note: None.

===12th Logo (February 9?, 1992-October 23, 1999)===

Nicknames: “The Spotlight”, "Choir"

Logo: On a black background, we see “wnet” in a thin font in a black rectangle with the letters carved out of it, and “NEW YORK” (in blue) appearing letter by letter, circling the logo counterclockwise while a spotlight shines around the logo, from right to left.

Variant: Sometimes, the logo is referred as "FROM wnet NEW YORK".

Trivia: This is a live-action logo, created by Liberty Studios (which also produced HBO's "In Space" opening from 1982) in 1991 and directed by Robert Lyons and David Bruce. An Oxberry Animation Stand Camera was used for filming of this logo, which like the 1992 PBS logo, was shot on 35mm film.

FX/SFX: The spotlight, the words appearing letter by letter.

Music/Sounds: A beatbox jingle with a choir sounder.

Music/Sound Variant: Sometimes, announcer Tom Stuart will say, "A production of WNET New York" over the jingle. This can be seen on American Masters.

Availability: Very rare. In its day, it appeared on Nature, American Masters, and Charlie Rose. Also appeared at the beginning of season 3 of Shining Time Station and later seen at the end of both the four Shining Time Station Family Specials and the short-lived spin-off Mr. Conductor's Thomas Tales. It may appear on early DVD releases of Nature.

Editors Note: The music is somewhat strange. The logo looks very impressive, however.

===13th Logo (1993-October 23, 1999)=== Nickname: "Abstract Thirteen III"

Logo: On a blue background reminiscent of TV static, we see the "ThiRtEEn" from the 9th logo, the "wnet" from the 10th logo, and a bullet wipe-in.

Variant: There's a version on a solid black background.

FX/SFX: The wipe-in effect. The black background variant is still.

Music/Sounds: A female announcer says "Local broadcast of the News Hour is made possible courtesy of Thirteen WNET." The variant uses the audio of the clip that plays before this logo.

Availability: Extinct. Was only used as a local ID.

Editors Note: None.

===14th Logo (October 24, 1999-October 31, 2006)=== Nicknames: "The Bubbles", "Skyscraper Bubbles", "Dotscrapers"

Logo: On a dodger blue background with many flashing dots (apparently arranged to look like skyscrapers), a pulse “wipes” inside the words “thirteen” with a red dot on the "I" (placed on the background as to be placed on one of the "dotscrapers" as if an antenna), and the words “WNET NEW YORK” in white in a Arial font fade in below.

FX/SFX: Nice animation.

Music/Sounds: A 5-note digital piano sounder. However, you can also hear the closing theme of a particular show over this logo (like Cyberchase, for example).

Availability: Can currently be seen on Cyberchase releases on VHS and DVD and reruns on PBS. Also appeared on 1999-2006 episodes of Nature and Charlie Rose.

Editors Note: Quite a nice looking, simple logo. The dotscrapers are sort of reminiscent to some of the ABC Yellow ID's from the period.

===15th Logo (November 1, 2006-March 27, 2015)=== Nicknames: "Thirteen in the Sky", "CGI Skyscrapers"

Logo: We see an overhead view of New York City, with the "thirteen" from the previous logo, rendered in CGI, floating overhead. The camera pans down to a 20th Century Fox-esque angle (except it's reversed), so we see the logo from below.

Variant: On Make Em' Laugh, after the 2006 WNET Thirteen logo completes, a hand bounces the red dot off the "I", in Thirteen.

FX/SFX: The pan from the overhead view. Not much on animation here, but it's not too bad either.

Music/Sounds: A held-out bass violin note, followed by a soft 5-note piano sounder with violas at the end. Sometimes it has the closing theme playing over it.

Availability: Appeared on Nature, Charlie Rose, Word World, Arthur, (plastering the WGBH logo), Barney & Friends, Cyberchase, and NOW, among others. Usually replaced with the 2009 logo, but this is still abound on most shows of the era such as reruns of Sprout's (now Universal Kids) Franny's Feet. It also appears at the start and end of recent prints of the 1976 miniseries The Adams Chronicles, accompanied by, surprisingly enough, the 1984 PBS ID (this plasters the 1987 logo from the Fall 1987 reruns). Even after it officially ended in 2009, this continued to appear on Charlie Rose's programs for some time after, with Charlie Rose: The Week using it until March 27, 2015. This logo never appeared on Super Why!

Editors Note: None.

WNET.ORG THiRTEEN
Background: WNET.ORG is the name of the organization that holds the licenses of WNET and its sister station on Long Island, WLIW.

(May 13, 2009-2021 )


Logo: We see the skyline of New York City at night. A line draws itself next to the moon, and spins several times and stops by forming a lowercase "i". "TH" slides out of the left side of the "I" and "RTEEN" slides out of the right side of the "I". All of the text is in the Gotham typeface. When that is done, and "WNET.ORG" in yellow appears above "THIRTEEN".

Variants:
 * On Worldfocus, Firing Line with Margaret Hoover, and PBS Newshour Weekend, "CREATIVE NEWS GROUP" appears in place of "THIRTEEN".
 * Since 2011, instead of "WNET.ORG", only "WNET" appears. As a result, the "i" animation is no longer used.
 * Sometimes, on some PBS shows, "THIRTEEN" does not appear at all. Without "THIRTEEN", only "WNET" appears.
 * On WLIW-produced programs, such as Front and Center, "WLIW21" appears in place of "THIRTEEN".
 * On Sprout prints of Angelina Ballerina: The Next Steps, "WNET.ORG" doesn't appear at all.
 * Sometimes on Sprout Channel Cubby prints of most episodes of Angelina Ballerina: The Next Steps, "WNET.ORG" and "THIRTEEN" doesn't appear at all. It is a rare variation.
 * Sometimes on Sprout Channel Cubby prints of most episodes of Angelina Ballerina: The Next Steps, "WNET.ORG" and "THIRTEEN" doesn't appear at all. It is a rare variation.

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FX/SFX: The light shining forming the words, the live-action scenery.

FX/SFX variants: Since 2011, the light shining forms "WNET" and "THIRTEEN".

Music/Sounds: A gracious 4-note orchestra tune. Sometimes extended with the last note.

Music/Sound Variants:


 * A re-orchestration of the previous logo's music was used a few times.
 * On some PBS shows or 2006 episodes of Arthur, the 2006 WNET Thirteen music from the previous logo is heard.

Availability: Current. Can be seen on American Masters, Arthur, Tavis Smiley, PBS News Hour Weekend, Nature, Great Performances, Charlie Rose, Charlie Rose: The Week (though no logo appears at all on most editions beginning December 18, 2015), and current episodes of Cyberchase. The original variant made its last appearance on a rebroadcast of the Nature episode "Invasion of the Giant Pythons", though it's also seen on PBS airings of Thomas and Friends (DVDs and Sprout airings do not have this logo at all). It's also seen as a 2013 Sprout print of Angelina Ballerina: The Next Steps (WNET doesn't appear at all).

Scare Factor: None to Minimal. The music can scare some viewers.

Editors Note: None.

(May 14, 2021- )


Nickname: "Media Made Possible By All Of You"

Logo: TBA

FX/SFX: TBA

Music/Sounds: A five-note synth tune.

Availability: Brand new. First seen on the May 14, 2021, edition of Firing Line. It also appears on Tulsa: The Fire and the Forgotten. Since July 9, 2021, it has also appeared on Great Performances, and since July 27, 2021, on American Masters; however, don't expect to see this on anything not mentioned in this section, which still use the previous two logos and on''PBS NewsHour Weekend in August 21, 2021.

Editor's Note: None.