EMI Films (UK)

Background: This company was the former Associated British Corporation (best known for producing The Avengers). Associated British went bankrupt in 1968 and its assets (Associated British Film Distributors, Elstree Studios, the ABC Cinemas movie theater chain and Thames Television) were purchased by EMI Records. They later bought Anglo-Amalgamated in 1971 and British Lion Films in 1976, the latter being folded it into the company. Also, EMI opened its American subsidiary in 1977, with a television division and its own distribution unit, but in 1979, the distribution unit was closed and they went through ITC's Associated Film Distribution unit for its theatrical releases. Currently, the rights to their films are with StudioCanal.

1st Logo (1968-1971)

Nicknames: "Black Monument", "The Black Tombstone"

Logo: On a black screen, we see the company name stacked in a "castellar" font, not unlike that carved into monuments, positioned near the upper-right of the screen. The placement is like this:

EMI
FILM
PRODUCTIONS LIMITED

FX/SFX: None.

Music/Sounds: None.

Availability: Extremely rare. Not widely seen in the U.S. due to replacement with American distributors' logos. It was found on Scars of Dracula (which is retained on the 1990s Republic Pictures Home Video VHS release), as well as The Breaking of Bumbo and The Railway Children.

Editor's Note: This one is boring and rather unremarkable.

2nd Logo (1970)

Nicknames: "The Rectangle Outlines", "The EMI Block", "Blue EMI"

Logo: On a black background we see multiple rectangle outlines zoom forward bringing forth a blue rectangle. The text "EMI" in its corporate font appears. The text fades out and we zoom into the blue rectangle bringing forth either the 3rd Associated British Productions logo or the Anglo-Amalgamated Film Distributors logo.

FX/SFX: The zooming of the logo.

Music/Sounds: None.

Availability: Can be found on earlier EMI films from 1970, such as those made by Associated British and Anglo Amalgamated like The Man Who Haunted Himself and All the Way Up. Strangely, it appears on some prints of To a Devil... a Daughter (released over half a decade after this logo was retired) in place of the 5th logo.

Editor's Note: Better effort, but once again, it is rather simple.

3rd Logo (1970-1971)

Logo: On a black background, we see the text "NAT COHEN PRESENTS FOR" in the same font as the 4th and 5th Anglo-Amalgamated logos in orange. Below it is "Anglo-EMI Film Distributors Ltd." in the same color, and in a different font and below it is the byline "A Member of the EMI Group" with "EMI" in the byline having its own logo.

FX/SFX: None.

Music/Sounds: None.

Availability: Extremely rare. Seen on Up Pompeii! and Percy.

Editor's Note This one is just as boring as the 1st logo.

4th Logo (1971-1974)

Nicknames: "The Filmreels", "Extreme Fast Letters"

Logo: On a black background, We see the words "EMI" zoom back as red and blue lines come from the top of screen to form a spinning film reel. The camera zooms on the red reel and letters spin around it quickly and fly from it which say "NAT COHEN" in the computerized font, then some letters fly in from the top of the screen to the right to form "PRESENTS FOR ANGLO-EMI FILM DISTRIBUTORS LTD." below "NAT COHEN" in the same computerized font. The letters on the reel disappears when it's almost formed.

FX/SFX: The filmreels, and the text moving.

Music/Sounds: On Demons of the Mind, a loud, dramatic music composition. Otherwise, none or the opening theme of the movie.

Availability: Extremely rare in the U.S due to replacement with other distributors logos, while bordering on rare to uncommon in international territories. The easiest place to find were the Steptoe and Son movies and Demons of the Mind. It also may have appeared on the UK theatrical release of Dougal and the Blue Cat, but current prints delete the logo.

Editor's Note: Much better effort than what we have seen, but the fanfare could scare quite a few.

5th Logo (1974-1978)

Nicknames: "Royal EMI", "Blue EMI II"

Logo: On a blue background, we see golden royal letters flying and moving toward the screen. One of the bigger letters say "E", "M" and "I". The big flying letters move out, and then one of the flying letters create the text "NAT COHEN PRESENTS FOR EMI FILM DISTRIBUTORS LTD.".

Variants:

• Sometimes, the logo has a black background, and the letters look more colored orange.
• At the end of movies, the text instead says "DISTRIBUTED BY EMI FILM DISTRIBUTORS LTD."
• Sometimes, the logo is shown in 4:3 "open matte" aspect ratio. This can be seen on the 1999 Cinema Club UK VHS release of Murder on the Orient Express, along with the film itself.

FX/SFX: The letters flying.

Music/Sounds: On Are You Being Served?, a bombastic fanfare is heard. Otherwise, none or the opening theme of the movie.

Availability: Uncommon. Not widely seen in the U.S. due to replacement with American distributors' logos. The easiest place you can see it is on Are You Being Served?: The Movie and a Showtime Networks print of the Roger Corman sex comedy Candy Stripe Nurses (apparently a UK print was used). It was seen after the Paramount logo on Murder on the Orient Express, while newer releases have the 2013 Universal Pictures and the 2011 StudioCanal logos.

6th Logo (1978-1980)

Nicknames: "The EMI Block II", "Blue EMI III"

Logo: On a black screen, we see the letters "EMI" (in the familiar logo's font) zoom toward the center of the screen. As the letters move, the background turns into blue and a box zooms out itself into place forming the familiar EMI logo.

Variants:

• Sometimes the logo is shown in 4:3 "open matte" format and exposes more vertical space, therefore the EMI "rectangle" fills in a letterbox position.
• For films shot in scope format, the logo is squashed or cropped depending on the film.
• A later version exists where the byline "A MEMBER OF THE THORN EMI GROUP" appears below in two lines.

FX/SFX: The EMI lettering zoom-in, and the rectangle drawing itself in.

Music/Sounds: Usually silent, or on rare occasions, the films opening music. On international prints of Can't Stop the Music, the logo plasters the Associated Film Distribution logo, keeping the music from the logo intact.

Availability: Extremely rare in the U.S due to replacement with other distributors logos, while bordering on rare to uncommon in international territories. The easiest place to find this is on International prints of The Driver (after the StudioCanal logo). The later version was used during 1980, as was allegedly seen on international prints of these movies, the U.S. versions of these movies plaster with the Associated Film Distribution logo. Unsure if it appears on international prints of Convoy, though it does not appear on international prints of The Deer Hunter.

7th Logo (1978-1981)

Nicknames: "The EMI Block III", "Blue EMI IV", "The Record Dudes"

Logo: In the opening scene of a movie, a print version of the EMI logo is shown. "PRESENTS" is also below anything else.

Variants:

• On Convoy, the logo is colored blue.
• At the end of The Driver, the words "THIS HAS BEEN A PRESENTATION OF" appear above both the EMI and 20th Century-Fox logos.
• In The Jazz Singer (the 1980 Neil Diamond version), the still EMI logo appears superimposed in the style of the opening credit sequence.
• The notorious Village People movie Can't Stop The Music had the EMI logo appearing as if it was made of solid silver.
• The Deer Hunter opened with the Universal Globe (on U.S. prints) followed by a white EMI Film Distributors ID. When "PRESENTS" fades in, the logo fades out to make room for it.

FX/SFX: None.

Music/Sounds: Usually silent, or on rare occasions, the films opening/closing music.

Availability: Rare. It can be seen on a few EMI films such as Convoy, The Jazz Singer, at the end of The Driver, The Deer Hunter, and Can't Stop The Music, among others.

8th Logo (1981-1983)

Nicknames: "The EMI Block IV", "Blue EMI V"

Logo: It's an enhanced version of the 6th logo, except the outlined rectangle is bolder and it was larger, and it was closely matching the print EMI logo. The Thorn EMI byline appears in a different font.

Variant: Starting in 1982, the byline appears in one line, with "THORN EMI" having its own logo instead of text. Plus the EMI logo is smaller.

FX/SFX: The EMI lettering zoom-in, and the rectangle drawing itself in.

Music/Sounds: Usually silent, or on rare occasions, the film's opening music.

Availability: Uncommon. Not widely seen in the U.S. due to replacement with American distributors' logos. Can be seen on some films of the era on VHS and DVD, such as the Anchor Bay releases of Tender Mercies and Bad Boys, among others. Most current prints are usually preceded by a StudioCanal logo. This might have appeared on UK theatrical prints of First Blood, but given that Thorn EMI Video normally removed even their own logos on either side of the pond, this likely doesn’t appear on early UK VHS releases. As for the first version with the text-only Thorn EMI byline, it was found on Honky Tonk Freeway.