Oddity Archive: Episode 23 - Scary Logos (and other Nostalgic Video Terrors)

For those of the TV and Video(tape) generations, end logos (rather inexplicably) tended to scare a lot of us--but why? Also, we'll take a look at some other nostalgic video terrors (like the FBI Warning).
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[@Zycyzyx]

These logo animations always fascinated me. It's not *just* the overly dramatic or eerie synth sounds playing that makes them unnerving; but the impression that all these weird abstract things are taking place in a boundless, empty void. It's like peering into a universe created for just this very specific, odd event to happen. Also, as it's all taking place in a void, you have no grasp on the relative size of anything within it, meaning what you're seeing could be absolutely massive.

[@svinjamaria]

And couple all of those with extreme uncanny valley of logos and eerie music notes that should *never* be paired together

[@TyRiders2]

What about the logos in space

[@E3T7]

Zycyzyx I love a lot of the Synth Fanfares, it fascinates me too

[@E3T7]

Nyarome 2 Which ones annoy you?

[@molotera8789]

This

[@glennso47]

This logo on furniture: "Do not remove this tag. Under penalty of law. " I thought that if you removed the tag a cop would show up at my front door to immediately haul me off to the firing squad.

[@4of20]

Irony: "you wasn't very smart"

[@s8wc3]

Trolling is a art. Also, it was common when computer adoption was booming in the mid-late 90s to have people thinking that receiving an "illegal operation" error was actually illegal.

[@JordanBahrPian-UkePlayer]

Thankfully, the consumer is safe to rip it off anytime (s)he pleases.

[@harrisonhoudesheldt5212]

i've heard this joke and so many like it in my past 19 years of life pillows, clothes, furtiture

[@shannonbriggs100]

Every single couch and mattress my parents bought had that tag on and, even though it annoyed the hell out of me, they never allowed me to take it off.

[@monwoo10]

What really scared me were the intermission screens between adult swim shows

[@ZBI666]

monwoo10 You mean the bumps? Man, those things had some of the best music. But I don't blame you though, some of them were pretty scary... like the "Dawn is your enemy" or "Do not stray" bump. Definitely scary to a 6 year old. .-.

[@Tytygigas]

+Zombieink6 in case you were curious, the songs were done by a guy called flying lotus. he makes some incredible experimental music. just throwing that out there.

[@ZBI666]

+Tytygigas Ahh yes, flying lotus is great, just like Dilla and madlib. Good stuff :)

[@stephenbunch7458]

some of those bumps are werid as crap, like those robots, ugh.

[@BigOlSmellyFlashlight]

What scared _me_ is the 8pm bumper because that meant adult swim was about to start

[@voxlvalyx]

I don't feel like typing/remembering it again, so here's my 9 month old comment from a video of the Screen Gems logo on KZbin: I see why kids found this scary. It's pretty unsettling, especially at the time, seeing as how synthesized anything was rarely seen. The unreal sound of it could be nightmarish. Personally, I was always terrified of the THX deepnote and the MGM lion. The RCH Productions (It's always Sunny) backwards messages still creeps me out. I think the reasoning behind the fear is that the show is over; you shouldn't still be watching. You're left with that final frame of credits (usually the credits rolling fully up, leaving you with a clear picture while the final note is playing), signifying that the show is over, then there's an uncomfortable silence. Then suddenly some strange jingle with an abstract logo is staring you in the face. It's the fact that it doesn't feel like it should be there. I've always gotten that same ominous feeling from finding Easter eggs in video games and movies. It feels weird, and a little unnerving.

[@linainverse9369]

THX scares me too

[@tooturnttomato]

In Over The Hedge they play on that THX sound with all the squirrels and critters being blown away by the sound haha still scared me even though it was a funny family movie

[@Server2008]

Yeah, though I can also see why people were scared of the BND (or VID-TV) logo, because of the music and the mask of Guo Xiang. I get that they probably needed some logo to stick out and be well-known but having a logo like THAT??? especially knowing that this logo would apparently play before CHILDREN'S PROGRAMMING??? Yeah, this just doesn't feel right at all man. I feel bad for any kids in Russia who were about to watch children's programming on TV only to see that logo. They definitely must've been scared one way or another.

[@Blackmagecat]

One of my favorite anti-copying things is on the first My Chemical Romance disc, which reads the following: "Unauthorized duplication is a violation of applicable laws and will result in Gerard coming to your house and sucking your blood." Copy this CD, and the somewhat vampiric lead singer will feed off your greedy corpse.

[@iaincowell9747]

That reminds me of a CD I have (I can't remember what one though). At the last page of a album booklet they unusually give a list of everyone that worked on the album production. One album I have all that it says is "Friends, fans & family, you know who you are & you know that we're grateful".

[@diy_mushroomguy]

Nothing was better than system of a downs steal this album. It didn't come with a booklet just a plastic case that looked like the songs were written in sharpie and the CD the same. Ironically you had to download the booklet lol.

[@MattMcIrvin]

These production logos never scared me--but the "technical difficulties" cards did. It took me a long time to figure out why. I had a really acute startle reflex as a kid, to the point that I was scared of popping party balloons, and what would often happen when the PLEASE STAND BY card came up was a long, unpredictable interval of silence, followed by a sudden voice announcement at a fairly high volume level, and I think I was just anticipating that sudden announcer voice out of nowhere startling me.

[@bwc1976]

Thanks for putting this into words better than I could have! Sign-offs were sometimes like this as well, the loud booming announcer voice that sounded like it was scolding us for not being asleep yet, the moment of anticipation between the ending of the national anthem and the sudden loud static, the feeling of being suddenly left alone, etc. And what made one of them worse for me was, the station identification slide had this cartoon drawing of a knight standing there at attention, so it felt kind of like the knight was watching me and scolding me. I'd so love to find a recording of that sign-off now though.

[@philliesphan9364]

I'm 30 and am still afraid of popping balloons

[@BrokebackBob]

Oddity Archive is now one of my favorite KZbin channels!! Where has it been all my life? Oh, that's right we didn't have KZbin when I was born in 1956.

[@SciFiFan2012]

I've always liked the Universal Studios logos, the plane flying around the Earth, and how it changes through the decades.

[@jamesborlan2850]

The Man From Krypton universal studios logos are always at its prime They even did something similar to what they did in 1990 when they introduced their 2012 logo

[@NealMouse9140]

Wait, Do you mean the one with the Cartoon Plane?

[@jamesborlan2850]

Neal Hudson actually that the universal cartoon studios logo He’s referring to the 1990 anniversary logo

[@NealMouse9140]

@@jamesborlan2850 Oh Yeah! I remember that!

[@robinnico7702]

@@NealMouse9140 I've never seen that one, but I don't think any of their logos are scary

[@ClarenceFisher]

I"m a logo purist. I hate it when a logo I've come to love get changed over to something cold, sterile and plastic.

[@Flamingbro69]

Even if I wasn’t a big fan of the old Ad Council Logo, when I saw they changed the logo a few years ago to something so basic and bland, I was like “why?”

[@Flamingbro69]

I’m loving how brands like Pizza Hut and Burger King are actually reverting back to their classic looks, showing that logo rebrands can be done right.

[@chuckleshelicopterwigwamjo7315]

based

[@MadameSomnambule]

Same with me, I find a lot of charm in older logos, especially from the 70s and 80s, back when cgi was a new thing and logos could be colorful and quirky looking. Now, it's all plain text and solid color. I don't mind flat design in some cases (especially when it's got a retro 50s/60s/70s sort of look to it), but the modern day flat design often looks kinda boring.

[@RainbowStarlightGirl]

I don't usually post KZbin comments anymore, but I have to say this. Thank you. This episode made me laugh so hard I had tears in my eyes. It didn't just do that for me, though. For this to make sense, I have to explain a bit. I've been diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia, and as a result, FBI warnings tend to terrify (and sometimes trigger) me. I usually have to avert my eyes because they bother me so much. This episode actually helped with that. It made me laugh at them, made me feel better about them, made those messages and thoughts loose some of their power over me. Made me see the humor in them. Made me less likely to have those thoughts when I see them. I especially loved the "several millenia in jail part; I laughed so hard at that, and that one's related to some of the worst thoughts (my major problem has been thinking that the FBI wants to put me in jail). Once again, thank you. I'm so, so glad that I discovered this KZbin channel.

[@benjapizarro981]

I hope that your doing well

[@MrWarners14]

I can't particularly blame kids for being unnerved by a lot of these logos. It's probably the obnoxiously loud audio and the zoom part can be seen as intimidating...or something unpleasant.

[@TuxKamen]

I always figured the floating Ozma head in the L. Frank Baum movies wouldn't be as scary for the kids that saw it originally. These kids probably grew up reading the Oz books, so knew exactly who Ozma was and how she was a good character, so would've seen it as a sign of comfort that she was watching over them and smiling at them

[@austinreed7343]

Mark Carpenter Same with many of the Indian logos.

[@alientoonz1786]

@@austinreed7343 And Pakistan.

[@edbateyjr.517]

Those movies weren't not meant for kids to watch, they would lead to nightmares.

[@kendallcookie]

Having Asperger's syndrome, it makes me sensitive to some sounds, so I'm asking myself why I am torturing myself with these logos?

[@NECHOII]

*DO YOU START CRYING WHEN YOU HERE A REALLY SCARY LOGO?*

[@NECHOII]

*I DON'T HAVE ASPERGERS, (or any type of disability for that matter.) BUT I AGREE WITH YOU: I TOO THINK THAT SCARY THINGS ARE FUN TOO!*

[@teh_supar_hackr]

with a side of fries?

[@NECHOII]

*IT WAS A JOKE! ''ASS BURGERS''/''ASPERGERS'' HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!*

[@Piefav2]

+NECHO II Stop it. Get some help.

[@TheRealPeculiarReality]

About Screen Gems: I think it was intended to be two rolls of film, which shared the same end-cap. Kind of an Escher effect, really.

[@R0ck4x3]

That'd make sense

[@E3T7]

PeculiarReality Or Satanic 6s

[@TheMGMfan]

That's actually a lot like how I see that logo most of the time, but they actually epresent something in your interpretation rather than just being abstract shapes in mine. I always thought it was actually meant to be S for Screen Gems with a circle in the middle; a few logos, like Playstation or Anchor Bay, are abstract shapes that are meant to represent something, but I didn't realize their meaning until I was much older, but still just accepted as they were because that's how it is, so that would make sense here.

[@kendallcookie]

*WBGH logo turns on* Me: WELL LOOK AT THE TIME SO LONG SATAN!

[@JustJaidenism]

HeLLLOOOOO Jesus!

[@netsurferx1]

They might as well have just come out & said it on the Richard Simmons Deal-A-Meal warning: *VIOLATORS WILL BE EXECUTED!*

[@daisydaze2886]

For some strange reason as a little kid I was terrified of that damn THX logo and would always cover my ears and close my eyes until it was over. It wasn't until Spy Kids replaced it with a cow mooing that I was able to enjoy it a little more

[@robinnico7702]

It wasn't that one,it was Monster's Inc

[@harukoharuhara1863]

THX scares me too

[@linainverse9369]

I'm absolutely freakin terrified of it too

[@carlycarmine3858]

Yeah, that is absolutely the most terrifying logo I've ever seen

[@cjc363636]

The Paramount logo with that LOUD orchestral stinger in the early 70s made me duck behind the covers more than once! Then I got older and realized the TVs now had a remote with a mute button.... Problem solved!

[@squeallymaniac]

SAME

[@otaking3582]

No reference to the THX logo? Shame on you!

[@otaking3582]

I don't understand what's awesome about it. In fact, Tiny Toons made the joke about it saying "The audience is now deaf"

[@ZackTheLightningNinja]

In fact, it still scares me! Well, just the robot.

[@scottbedore734]

+Zack-TheLightningNinja I thought it was gonna come out the screen and kill me 😂

[@ZackTheLightningNinja]

Scott Bedore I had many dreams about that.

[@harenzaren]

Otaking Mikohani I had nightmares about that

[@robynstopped]

You should do an episode on MTV logos from the 90's. Those were both terrifying and creative as hell!

[@nils-olofohman1079]

The only scary one I remember was from the 80s: the one with the guillotine and the grotesque personified MTV creature with the eye that pops out. Disturbing and gross!

[@saxongreen78]

In the 1980s our local TV station (in rural Australia) during an ad break would suddenly place a card on the screen with a photo of an illuminated police sign with a newsreader stating, after about 1.5secs of silence: 'This is an urgent police message: could anyone knowing the whereabouts of (named criminal) please contact (police station) urgently...do not approach this person as they may be armed...' It was bloody terrifying!

[@g3vevo334]

Do you have any idea what these might be called? Trying to see if I can find it online.

[@Tekrothebountyhunter]

I've never had a fear of logos...although I'll admit the Erry Vision logo is a bit creepy. But when it comes to nostalgia, when I saw that f.h.e. logo I just about melted.

[@willjleighton]

You guys are wimps. The THX sound system test was really scary. Whenever my family watched Aladdin when I was 4, and the THX logo came on, I would run behind the couch and start crying. It wasn't the logo itself, it was the eerie sound that accompanied it.

[@spencerh8426]

THX will go down in 2SPOOKY4ME history.. And pixar: you have trolled us all.. My memories of the logo was when I had a nightmare where the robots eyes were gorged and the the logo said "I control you.. Now DIE" and the logo jumped at me

[@thethrashpanda]

Was Aladdin on VHS?

[@RoyBattyRabbit]

I remember we had Aladdin on DVD and I was always too scared to watch it because of THX lol.

[@kendallcookie]

me: ok time to watch a disney movie THX logo: brUMMMMMMMM me: well it's certainly time to get the fuck outta here

[@Fuzy2K]

I must be weird, because I thought the THX logo (and its accompanying sound) was the coolest thing ever when I was a kid. My dad had a few laserdiscs with it back in 1997.

[@NightOfTheLiving8bit]

Back (not too long ago) I remember living by myself in my apartment, and since I didn't have cable, I used the good ol' bunny ears antenna and the only thing on late at night when I was falling asleep, was the local news channel that played late night talk shows up until about 2am. Once those ended, there was nothing left to broadcast, so the station would play this overly long national anthem (that was slightly distorted, as it was very aged) followed by a emergency broadcast like thing after. Which followed this creepy "beeeeeep" that was consistent and never stopped, along with a "station off the air" sign. I remember waking in a daze, or just about to fall asleep and hearing/seeing that and being so creeped out. It always reminded me of what the air waves would be just before a nuke hit us and there was nothing we could do. The actual "emergency broadcast system" is also super creepy when it pops up...(see comment below)

[@NightOfTheLiving8bit]

This always (to this day) creeps me out, as it's the exact thing that would pop up if a nuke was about to hit us, or a massive biological attack. After all, this system was created during the Cold War, to alert people of an impending attack. But then was taken over by weather stations after the CW. And it's main use to this day, is still for that. Though it's never (thankfully) been used. I wonder what the original broadcast station looks like from when it was created.

[@jusky_]

I can relate. I was watching TV before, and then the EBS came up and I nearly shit my pants until I realized it was a test. Same with the station off the air stuff, I'd wake up in the middle of night as a little kid and get spooked with it on the tv.

[@Flamingbro69]

I can relate too. Late at night, I usually leave the TV On while I’m asleep, and back when I had DirecTV (I switched to Hulu Live in 2019), I used to leave the Channel on to some channel like Adult Swim or Nick at Nite and on rare occasions, I was woken up and greeted by the EAS, still creeps me out when it comes up.

[@theskyrax670]

@@Flamingbro69 I remember the EAS interrupting Transformers Animated on The Hub once.

[@elklandry]

The FBI warnings on VHS tapes never scared me, since I couldn't read when I was a child.

[@SarafinaSummers]

So here's something funny. When you get a tape or dvd with Descriptive Video Service enabled, they will read the text of the warning to you.

[@ChuckD79]

I never suffered from "logophobia" as a kid, although the Mark VII logo caught me off-guard the first time I saw it at the end of a Dragnet rerun on Nick at Nite (for you Adult Swim fans, its sound effects were re-used as part of the Williams Street logo). However, those end-of-tape "video gremlins" were a different story!

[@thecoloreddog6012]

Im glad I'm not the only one who was freaked out by logos lmao

[@The3ninjakids]

And I used to scared of the EAS until I saw your episode on it. I love how you replace the scary radio-like voice from EAS with a funny computer voice.

[@dcb99filmz]

Thank God i wasn't alive to see the floating Ozma head logo....the Grandma of all scary logos

[@Donald38]

Ozma?

[@dcb99filmz]

@@Donald38 Princess Ozma of Oz, that's meant to be her head as the Oz Film Manufacturing Co. logo.

[@johnnyklebitzrevenge4793]

In my opinion, it needs to be an 80's Metal Album Cover

[@denelson83]

I'm sure many other _Sailor Moon_ fans like myself remember that "DiC" logo.

[@denelson83]

+Danielle Pluzsik No, but I remember Phil and Snit from The Zone. Sailor Moon aired on YTV up here in 🇨🇦.

[@cornishchris8404]

Yea, i'm Canadian too, and all the YTV bumpers (before 2006) scared me

[@cornishchris8404]

***** I don't think so

[@cornishchris8404]

***** Am i the only Canadian on the internet?

[@cornishchris8404]

***** that's good

[@hulavaultboy5935]

Good news everybody, Shout! Factory released The Compleat Al on DVD for the first time on November 11, 2014. But you probably know that already.

[@Derekthepersonable]

Argh you beat me to it :P

[@GiovanniCloud]

Whoh, it's Connie! :D

[@ChaosAndMayhemTV]

5:06 was the WGBH (Boston, MA) noise from 1977 to 1984. It was heard on some PBS shows in the 2000s.

[@DrummingMoose]

ChaosAndMayhemTV It's been around since 1973

[@spongeboymebob771]

It was reversed and slowed down for the Wyoming Incident creepypasta.

[@kaiguitarguymenard]

@@DrummingMoose 1971

[@robinnico7702]

I remember that from Arthur and Zoom

[@martinallysonsenn6108]

btw the real logo is here too 6:31

[@artistwithouttalent]

Take a look at Klasky-Csupo's logo or some early Nickelodeon bumpers (specifically the "dancing face") and tell me you aren't unnerved.

[@artistwithouttalent]

*****​ I suppose I should refer to my night terrors by their proper name.

[@artistwithouttalent]

***** It wasn't the voice that creeped me out, it was the Cronenbergian imagery.

[@artistwithouttalent]

***** Fair enough. I suppose it is one of those subjective things.

[@DrummingMoose]

Danielle Pluzsik Then there's the night light episode where his angry face is seen in the dark hellbound freezer of the Krusty Krab

[@DrummingMoose]

Danielle Pluzsik According to the transcript for that episode from the Spongebob Wiki, it's Tom Kenny

[@Kodocha7]

I'm not easily scared but oh dear god I feel like the OZ lady is gonna eat my soul

[@robertcarldecker]

I thought she died in the 1930s.

[@l.tc.5032]

Jackie C. Margaret Hamilton is a nice lady. You don't have to be scared of her.

[@holyshard530]

If they made a new oz film I would FREAKING LOVE IT TILL THE END OF THE EARTH!!

[@seanmichaels8060]

That was the only truly scary one.

[@thealaskanbullworm1442]

Johnny how do you have KZbin? You live in the 1800’s

[@elle7768]

Oh god. Was NOT expecting to see mine! “Sit BooBoo, Sit… Good dog!” That has been in so many of my nightmares and I don’t even remember which show it came after. Just that it made (and apparently still makes) my skin crawl!

[@OddityArchive]

"Ubu". Most notably, it appears at the end of Family Ties.

[@elle7768]

@@OddityArchive All this time, I thought that dog was named BooBoo 😂😂😂 Still scares the crap out of me.

[@bardthenascarfanaticdragon]

​@@elle7768His name was Ubu. He died.

[@HeadsetGuy]

14:44 Yep, I saw that one coming. It was also on the first Sweatin' to the Oldies tape (also with Richard Simmons), which my mom used to watch; so it makes sense that another Richard Simmons tape would use that logo.

[@LadyBloodyWrists]

I was about to comment about Weird Al's "don't download this song" and how it could be a great FBI warning parody just before you mentioned him. LOL, I loved his FBI warning parody, "Virus Alert" definitely reminds me of it

[@cessnaace]

I remember all of those (I think). Glad to see the Magnetic Video logo again. The very first home video label. One FBI warning that you didn't use was one used by Worldvision Home Video on their "The Addams Family" TV series LaserDiscs. They included the line "we don't know lawyers. We know cement contractors."

[@yupekosi]

When I was younger, I had a Teddy Ruxpin-like toy called the “2-XL” which ran on cassette tapes. When the cassette was almost over, it would warn you and then play a very, very loud siren that freaked the flip out of me, and still does.

[@lvnarlotvs]

9:18 is the noise they use after some shows on Adult Swim, which is sometimes combined with what sounds like someone screaming NO!!!! afterwards. That still scares the shit out of me.

[@ejl423]

12:26 Hey look, it's Grandpa Dracula!

[@genethemachine7169]

Grandpa Munster! I thought you blew yourself up!

[@jtb3485]

As a 3 year old, the Viacom logo scared the crap out of me. It's one of my earliest memories. I really thought it was attacking me and I remember crying after seeing it.

[@the9-2-5outlawgamer]

Now they own Paramount pictures.

[@SarafinaSummers]

I still get freaked out when that damned voice hits my tv. Creepy dude, get tf out of my living room!

[@AllisonDancerChick1982]

I swear WGBH was still being used until a few years ago. It woke me out of a dead sleep one night after I fell asleep channel surfing and landed on the local PBS station. Totally remembered all the times it scared me during my childhood.

[@singinglawnchair]

been feeling stressed out from the last couple years and i keep coming back to this channel, especially this episode. keep cranking out the hits, ben.

[@GB3Says]

"Burger King Bucks" LOL

[@tardistardis8]

The king of scary logos is the ViD logo from the 90s. From Russia

[@tardistardis8]

OldSchoolAddict What about the BиD of Doom logo? It scares the shit out of me

[@tardistardis8]

魔人オコゼルゲ I mean when the mask breaks the screen and screams

[@tardistardis8]

魔人オコゼルゲ Yes. But i don't think it was on tv. The Viacom V of Doom zooms into the screen and quickly changes to the BnD logo with it's eyes open, it's mouth open, screaming.

[@tardistardis8]

魔人オコゼルゲ Well it's a viacom logo with the bnd mask's eyes open.

[@tardistardis8]

魔人オコゼルゲ It's called Viacom V of Doom ВИД

[@killswitchmorgan400]

What your show lacks in comedic value and timing is more than made up for by the absolutely stellar awesomeness of the footage you have gathered, and the well researched supplementary information you provide is a boon to a retronaut such as myself.. You made a new follower this day, good sir. More!

[@ThatSkynyrdKid70]

I remember when I was little, a logo on a DVD of a Lynyrd Skynyrd concert scared the crap out of me. It was of like some sign like thing that had a bunch of nails fly into it really quickly. I remember they mixed it super loud, so everytime I watched that DVD, right after they finished playing Free Bird and the credits started, I would always go right back to the main menu. lol

[@linainverse9369]

THX maybe?

[@tony-wt1wq]

What about the Klasky Ku- i mean csuop... The logo with the scary paper robot in front of an ink backdrop?

[@MORPHOSYS]

Yeah, that made no sense…

[@soldierofjudgement0477]

+Tonyis2lazy2writehis2names RUGRATS!

[@kiernanhowell-mackinley1733]

+Tonyis2lazy2writehis2names *Klasky-Csupo (Class-key Chew-poe)

[@tony-wt1wq]

Kiernan Howell-MacKinley thanks

[@onihaiena6152]

JSYK, he isn't a robot, rather than an ink splat.

[@GabrielleCenter2000]

This is still one of my favorite Archive vids.

[@connorsoldvideos]

I'm surprised to not see any of Disney/ Paramount's feature presentation logos from the nineties; so much of my childhood was spent lying awake in bed because of those clips.

[@Dream_Bitch]

Same

[@PhilMante]

I remember those, they never really bothered me that much. Paramount's fast zoom into its FBI warning was what got me.

[@FailSafe161]

Love the use of the Dragnet theme at 14:45 haha!

[@captainducra5019]

What scared me the most was the DTMF dialing tones at the beginning (and in some cases, the end) of most mass-produced VHS tapes, much like what was heard at the very beginning of this video at 00:11. Is there an episode of Oddity Archive that talks about these?

[@8bitnitwit]

I read recently that those tones are there simply to tell the tape-cutting robots in the duplication plant when to cut the tape.

[@genethemachine7169]

Those things always made me wonder! I thought it was Morse code or something.

[@Petethekitty]

Man, this is probably going to sound geeky as hell, but this is the first video from your channel that I've seen and I'm in love. I know I'm probably going to spend the night binging your other videos... thanks for the great content!

[@robinnico7702]

I agree, random stranger with a Murdoc pfp

[@dylaninpieces2]

To be honest, the warning for the pirated Fantasia tape at 15:20 is actually pretty funny and clever. It's basically the FBI Warning but in layperson's terms.

[@ChuckD79]

Those "beware of illegal videocassettes" warnings were quite common in the UK (and far more interesting than our rather staid FBI warning screens, IMO)...was surprised to find about a dozen variants of them on YT, as well as a few homemade recreations!

[@YeowMcCheeseProductions]

Oh hey, I didn't expect to see a screenshot of my logo compilation video show up in your video, lol. Good catch. Your video's also pretty informative too and rather entertaining. Nice work. :)

[@missbleach8767]

Greetings

[@feltongailey8987]

That Vestron was so full of 80's goodness. The colors the sound. 1981 to 1984ish were such pivotal years for these topics. Thank you sir. This took a lot of effort. Still not sure where you came up with some of them.

[@the9-2-5outlawgamer]

I can remember covers for movies at the video store scaring the crap out of me. Like the movie “Troll” not the CGI cartoon with Justin Timberlake in it, No, I’m referring to the 1986 PG-13 horror film called Troll With Michael Moriarty, Shelley Hack, and the late Sonny Bono. He gets killed by the Troll, turned into a tree, But in real life, he gets killed by one when he decides to go skiing at night. But that cover with the troll with the beaty eyes really gave me nightmares. And speaking of “Nightmares”, the 1983 horror anthology film that had the movie poster with the flaming red eyes and a pair of white hands popping out of the poster, it still gives me visions of terror to this day even though I’m 45 years old as of yesterday. The movie was pretty tame when it came to whore since it had no gore, one story features Emilio Estevez as a kid who is addicted to video games that he ultimately get sucked in one, literally, And another story features horror sci-fi mainstay Lance Henriksen Playing a priest who decides to leave the mission in New Mexico because he feels he’s losing his faith however it is tested when he has pursued by a demonic black 4 x 4 which he defeats when he reaffirms his faith. I think the film was written by conservatives if they came up with horror films.

[@loneshewolf74]

It wasn't until I went on KZbin for the first time that I leaned that many other people have childhood fears of old TV logos. I was both surprised and relieved. As a kid I could not stand the Universal "Globe of Doom" and my parents wondered why I'd be freaking out and running into the kitchen whenever it was shown, and I occasionally have nightmares about the V of Doom. I hear it zooming at me and then it feels like every strand of hair on my whole body is standing straight up. Ha ha.

[@luisreyes1963]

Universal TV had the "Globe Of Death" that ran from 1960 to 1996. 💀

[@joshpritt2146]

​@@luisreyes1963 1964 to 1990

[@MORPHOSYS]

PEEEEEEEACHEEES. (DOM DOM)

[@DrummingMoose]

+Harlow Embick Hey if they can do stuff that doesn't make sense, so can I!

[@MORPHOSYS]

man do i cry when i see my old comments i was so hhhhhhhhh

[@stupid8911]

When I was beginning to read/talk/insert sarcasm into daily life, my dad would say "FBI" in a deep serious tone at the beginning of every Disney VHS I had. Anyone babysitting me (and subsequently forced to watch these VHSs with me) would hear me say "FBIiiii" every time...it's not a family tradition :-) Thanks for the video, it rocks

[@SarafinaSummers]

I am laying here, in freaking stitches! I thought our family was the only one to go "FBI warning" along with the tape. Only, we were reading along with the DVS narrators. LMAO

[@ColdFusion]

Heya, great channel. Just wondering, what's the intro song?

[@onihaiena6152]

"Pavanned," a song he made.

[@rooktallon3141]

ColdFusion Just letting you know, it's not Pavand. I have all of the variations and that song at the beginning certainly isn't one of them. I keep rewinding the video just to listen to that part of the epesode.

[@vertixty]

The intro song is Jiminy - jimmy fith band

[@buckbiggsly146]

Dude wtf i almost had a heart attack with that emergency alert system sound

[@shannonbriggs100]

The only logos that scared me as a kid, were the ones on those weird old BBC educational/documentary VHS tapes the teacher would have us watch when they couldn’t be bothered to make a lesson plan. I remember every time I saw the tv get rolled into the class room, I’d get so pissed off because I knew I was going to be bored out my mind for an entire hour.

[@HonorableRosemary]

Good night, that FBI warning was a bit much. My Logo bete noir was the Viacom one, with that guy who was probably Frank Welker with synth on his voice roared "VIACOM!" at you. That voice scared the pants off me.

[@The3ninjakids]

As for logos, when I was in 5th grade, and at the end of A Pup Named Scooby Doo, I saw the Hanna-Barbera logo. It kind of scared me, but it actually made me question it more than scary, like, what the fuck did I just listen to? I may sound like some weirdo here, but I actually LOVE the Viacom "Wigga Wigga" logo. I think it's because I have nostalgic memories of seeing it at the end of Sabrina, the Teenage Witch back when I lived at my old house as a kid. I just love that music that plays! It fills me up with nostalgia! As for the V of Doom... it's scary as shit! First off, Viacom is an evil company to begin with, so naturally, anything that I see of them now will scare me. Second off, the ugly-looking V coming towards you may sound comedic, but it's scary! Thirdly, the music is especially dreadful. The Closet Killer is another scary fucker. I'd like to say that I thought the zoom-in was an edit by you, since you were talking about people editing logos to make them scary, so I found it funny. When I found out that it wasn't edited, I shit myself. The zoom-in and scary-ass music are scary.

[@teh_supar_hackr]

I used to get scared of the fbi warnings,the brodcasting service and the dreaded grey screen of beeps.there was once at 6:00 in the mornings a thing called "tones and bars" I went on there and found,well colured bars and the anoying beep on a loop.

[@PlayerFiveVids]

I always found it funny that the beeping is the same one they use when someone on TV is cussing.

[@teh_supar_hackr]

I thaght tones and bars was tunes and bars.

[@TheGamerWithMore]

Trinexx007 It is called a Test Pattern

[@TheGamerWithMore]

Sandi Lorenz It is called a Test Pattern

[@PlayerFiveVids]

TheGamerWithMore Correct. Sorta. It's *a* test pattern, and this specific type of test pattern is called the SMPTE Color Bars. Usually paired with a 1KHz tone.

[@mlovmo]

Scariest is "Horror Incorporated," a Minneapolis TV horror movie opening sequence. But the PBS one from the 70s @10:43 was unnerving for me as a kid, too.

[@rebeccaturner1123]

You forgot about Australia and their Roadshow Home Video logos, they are not as creepy, but menacing. Also VID creeps me out. Edit: The date is May 3rd, 2024, about 3 years after this comment was posted, so nice to see an old comment of mine that actually isn’t that cringey.

[@kkatmartin1]

I have aspergers and seeing certain things or hearing certain things irrationally scared me as they stick with me long. My favourite of scary (to me) logo start ups were the ones from Elmo Movies. The Jim Henson Pictures logo. Kermit the Frog with his camera...... I am afraid of Kermit when he isn't on the Muppet Show or Sesame Street when I am aware of him coming so an unknown Kermit is scary as fuck for me! I used to think he was outside my window just staring at me! Ugh!!!!

[@kkatmartin1]

***** YES! OMG!

[@NathanSimpsonnathanisbeast]

I still have the DVD of "The adventures Of Elmo in Grouchland!" Trust me it's one of the best kids films Ever made! (Im Not Scared Of The "Jim Henson Pictures" Logo with Kermit as a Cameraman!) but i tell you one ident that really scared the shit right out of me and that's the 2001 Ragdoll Productions Caption that plastered every Old Ragdoll logo on sight EVEN AT THE END OF The 1997-2002 Version of "Teletubbies" it's every time I watched that show I expected to see the "Woman Holding a Candle" ident from '97 but no It was always the one from 2001!!! Damn you BBC! damn You!!!!!

[@dragonheart2272]

The only logo that ever truly frightened me as a kid was the Jim Henson logo for the 1992 release of the Muppet Movie. It just came off as very loud and threatening to me. Even at 21 years old, I still get a sense of uneasiness watching it.

[@jakemarszewski779]

Peaches duh duh

[@Stevo701]

Some of these still make me still shiver till today 0.0 happy I'm not the only one here. None the less another great video :D

[@singletona082]

I'm sorry but the disembodied oz princess head just kinda creeped me out because it looked like she was going to eat you. You want terrifying logos? 90's unsolved mysteries..

[@EddieMillerStudios]

1:59 ~ Every time the EAS goes off I always hear that in the back of my head. XD

[@NijiMarii]

I used to hyperventilate to the WGBH logo.

[@JoshCraver9000]

The creepiest logo ever (in my opinion) is the Red Hour logo from 1999, it features a creepy face, and Ben Stiller shouting "RED HOUR", complete with a nice echo for that extra-creepy effect!

[@uK8cvPAq]

These warnings used to scare me silly as a kid, then my dad bought some pirated VHS tapes home and I was on edge whenever a police car went past. Then DVD's and high speed internet started to take off and suddenly everyone was doing it!

[@soulchorea]

I'm 9 years too late to ask this question, but......at 4:15 - when you (at least half-jokingly) say, "possibly to even yourself!!" - this brings up a loophole that I've always believed in since I was like 14. All these warnings saying you can't duplicate such and such production - what if the duplication you make is not of the production itself, but simply a recording of YOU watching the production, but from perfect 1:1 first-person perspective, as if you were perfectly aligned to the 4:3 ratio??

[@RoyCoof]

The scariest video terror I've ever seen was the PARI or the Philippine Association of Recording Industry piracy warning. It starts of with a kid with a doll on her hand. She ran to hug her dad then it suddenly cuts to her dad who died in the car, all bloody. The last one is the kid's doll covered in blood. It was all black and white style so it may have been in the 80s or 90s. It gave me nightmares when I was a kid. Up until now, I still have the copy of it.

[@bathroomshy]

omg same

[@TheNintendochannel64]

do you have a link to that? i wanna see it

[@RoyCoof]

***** Sadly, there's no existing link of the copy however I have the copy of it. :3

[@RoyCoof]

***** If you want me to upload it for you, I may. :3

[@TheNintendochannel64]

+xKaitoACUTEx - DarkerShade (ShadesofBlue) cool i will be subscribed

[@dylaninpieces2]

I bet someone in the AVID wiki (originally the CLG Wiki) called the Columbia Sunburst logo "The Blue Sunshiney Thing" after seeing this episode.

[@nbrado]

Great videos man :) - I grew up in 80's and the protect and survive stuff about nuclear war used to freak me out

[@GamingPalooza]

the most scariest logo i ever remember from child hood was the United Artist logo from the 80s/90s

[@cornishchris8404]

Which UA, the one with a UA turning into posistion and playing a big awesome orchestra at the end? Geez, i loved that one

[@robinnico7702]

I think he meant the one that played before the yellow submarine movie with the mountain and the sparkling effects

[@joshpritt2146]

​@@cornishchris8404 i like the color/circle logo that was used during the Transamerica-era from 1967-1968.

[@NostalgiCrazy]

16:10 Vaporwave? :p

[@artistwithouttalent]

S e b i z z a r L o g o s t h e t i c

[@NostalgiCrazy]

H e l l Y e s s s !

[@E3T7]

Sebizzar It could be used as Vaporwave, but you don’t know the genre if you think that

[@NostalgiCrazy]

@@E3T7 How so...

[@E3T7]

@@NostalgiCrazy Tbh this was from a while ago, so it could in fact be Vaporwave the guy put over the clip

[@75aces97]

14:40 Who knew Richard Simmons was so serious about copyright enforcement. Speaking of which, besides the death threat, is that authorized use of the Dragnet theme?

[@frostychocolatemilkshakes2944]

I helped contribute to those high view counts on those scary logo compilation videos. Yes, I have no life. I don't know why I find watching old commercials/logos/PSAs so interesting. Anyway, I'm really glad I found your video, and I'll be sure to subscribe and look through your other stuff.

[@ntsecrets]

The WGBH audio cue is still used on tv and radio in 2023. They’ve even kinda doubled up the end of it for emphasis.

[@JamesieHodge]

I used to be terrified of the "SunLife" sun. SunLife is a corporation for elderly people in the UK and in the 90s and early 2000s SunLife had a sun with a face for it's logo. In the advertisements for SunLife, the sun used to have a ripple effect that made the sun's rays wriggle around. That terrified me so much that every time a SunLife advert would come on the T.V. I would have ran out of the room. I used to think it was some kind of tentacle monster thing that wanted me to die. I imagined it with lazers coming out of the eyes. I had a fairly overactive imagination when I was a child.

[@xincognitox977]

Jamesie Hodge Didn't they give you a free pen or something. Come to think of it they still do. Pretty lame gift lol

[@litlblkhouse]

It's 2023, and I'm going back to Ben's "peaches" joke after seeing the Super Mario Bros movie. I think some of you may know why.

[@idkany293]

Aw ya beat me to it

[@sutorippuwebmaster8783]

"Unauthorized duplication is a violation of applicable laws or at least maybe you'll owe us a beer!" - Seven Nations

[@prfo5554]

Once many years ago when I was a kid, I had a dream of a person recording a video of a video of a video of someone recording a FBI copyright notice. Strangely that dream was years before I knew what the FBI copyright notice meant.

[@atomic7196]

The only logo I was scared of was the Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer logo. I always used to run away from the ?TV when it came on, and then came back when the cartoon started.

[@3rdmannn]

this comment section is like AA for me as a child when i watched VHS tapes. everyone around me told me to calm down because i was so scared of warnings before the show or movie. i had no idea other people felt the same.

[@AdamHemi]

So happy that I found your channel :)

[@kinleymckinley3074]

@R0ck4x3 Actually, it's called the, "Closest Killer."

[@JordanBahrPian-UkePlayer]

@OddityArchive Have you ever thought of creating an episode (at least a mini-sode) based on screener cassettes, or cassettes loaned to video stores and critics for viewing before the actual release date?

[@bunnybismuth]

You consider this one of your worst, but it has the "hit by zooming logos" bit AND the "BND logo guys" bit, and those are two of the funniest things you've ever done

[@veggiebroth5542]

The head cleaning tapes for VHS's use to scare the living crap out of me as a child. I would literally pop it in and run out of the room

[@curtchase3730]

With video tapes, you could FF through the annoying warnings. With DVD, you are strapped to your chair, hands tied, eyes held open with toothpicks, and FORCED to watch anti-copy warnings as well as outdated "previews" of "new" release films from 5 years ago! Every button pressed on the player''s remote does nothing but show "illegal operation" logo! You Tube took up the idea as well. Damn, I miss pre-recorded VHS tapes!