Background: Genesis Entertainment was founded by Nashville-based television producer Al Gannaway. The byline “A Division of Gannaway Productions, Inc.” was seen on the 1st logo until 1988, when Genesis became independent.
1st Logo
(1986-19)[]
Nickname: "The Cloudburst”
Logo: On a cloudy sky background, we see a shady blue card with a logo on it zooming-out rapidly. The logo is a teal abstract segmented cloud with a sunburst popping out of its top. Below the sunburst on the cloud is the words “GENESIS ENTERTAINMENT” in a white old-fashioned serif font. The logo shines.
Variants:
- There was an earlier variant which showed the logo flipping toward us on a light cornflower blue/black gradient background. There are four “still” sparkles and a “pop-up” shadow effect surrounding it. Also, the cloud is given a more sapphire color and the body of the sunburst is white. The cloud sometimes lacks segmenting lines.
- A variant with the byline "A DIVISION OF GANNAWAY ENTERPRISES, INCORPORATED" in dark blue was used until 1988.
FX/SFX: The "flipping" effect.
Music: The end theme of the show or none.
Availability: Extremely rare. Can be seen on a few episodes of Highway to Heaven on INSP and Retro TV, but not on Up where it also airs. The flipping variant appeared on The Judge.
2nd Logo
(1989-1995)[]
Logo: On a space background, we see legions of shooting stars. From the right, a giant “G” (looking as if carved from a block of ice) zooms out, turning at an angle towards the screen. As shooting stars fly by the “G”, it sparkles, and turns into a TV-tube ice shape with the “G” appearing as a cutout with small streaks flying from the left. Below the “G” tube, a bunch of sparkles form the words:
GENESIS E N T E R T A I N M E N T
Variants:
- The 1992 game show Infatuation shows this logo with a Genesis Entertainment Group copyright stamp.
- When Genesis Entertainment merged with New World Entertainment in 1994, the byline "A NEW WORLD ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY" was seen below the logo. This variant appeared on 1994-95 episodes of Real Stories of the Highway Patrol and the shows that comprised the Marvel Action Hour (Iron Man and Fantastic Four).
- A sped-up version exists.
FX/SFX: The shooting stars, the sparkle effects, and the zooming “G”.
Music/Sounds:
- 1989-1995: Starts with skittering effects as the starts shoot by, leading into a droning, atonal synth track that adds an ominous bass note when the "G" comes in. "GENESIS" shines in with a strange, distorted bell-like effect.
- 1991-1995: A series of laser-shooting sounds, then an ascending THX-like synth note that leads up to a calm synth note and a shimmering sound when "GENESIS" shines in. This jingle fits the logo much better than its predecessor.
- Some series would use the end-title theme from any show.
Availability: Rare. It can be seen on Real Stories of the Highway Patrol and syndicated prints (as well as Chiller airings) of Tales from the Crypt; both have the 1995 or 2013 20th Television logo following this logo. It was also seen on Disney XD airings of the Iron Man episode "The Origin of Iron Man."
3rd Logo
(1995-1997)[]
Nicknames: “CGI Sphere”, “New World/Genesis Distribution”, "New World Comet"
Logo: It's basically the same as the 1995 New World Entertainment logo, except the text below reads "NEW WORLD/GENESIS DISTRIBUTION."
Variant: Occasionally, only the "explosion" is shown.
FX/SFX: Same as the 1995 New World Entertainment logo.
Music/Sounds: Same as the 1995 New World Entertainment logo.
Availability: This was seen on Tales from the Crypt on Chiller, like the previous logo.