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Favorite Local Television Logos of the Past/Present

S

spencerkarter85

Here's some of my favorite local television logos of the past. Some say like for example the Circle 7 logo used by ABC O&O's (like WABC, KABC, WLS, KGO) are a classic. Here's my favorites varied by my favorite DMAs.

Orlando, FL
1.)WESH-TV 2 (Sailboat 2) logo from 1974-1992
2.)WFTV-TV 9 current logo
3.)WKMG Local 6 logo

Greenville/Spartanburg/Asheville (my home market)
1.)WFBC/WYFF 4 (Arrow 4) logo from 1974-1991 (Red/Blue from 1974-1986 to Solid Gold from 1986-1991)
2.)WSPA-TV 7 (Straw 7) logo from 1979-1990.
3.)WSPA-TV 7 (Strawless 7) logo in emerald green/gold from 1990-1994.
4.)WLOS-TV 13 (Building) logo from 1984-1995.
5.)WHNS-TV 21 (Subway-typed) logo from pre-FOX years 1984-1988.

Columbia, South Carolina
1.)WIS-TV (Big 10) logo from 1984-1991.
2.)WIS-TV logo from 1974-1984.
3.)WIS-TV Spirit of Carolina logo from early 1990s.
4.)WLTX-TV 19 current logo
5.)WOLO 25 ABC Columbia current logo
6.)WACH FOX 57 (WACH FOX HD) logo.

Charleston, South Carolina
1.)WCIV-TV 4 (4 Leads with 1976-1979 NBC symbol) logo from 1978-1987. It was NBC at the time. On that logo, on most print ads for that logo from 1978-1987 used the 1976-1979 NBC's Trapezoid N logo instead of the 1979-1986 Proud N logo (in the 1979-1986 advertisements on The News and Courier, now Post and Courier newspaper) and the current 1986 six-feathered NBC logo (in the 1986-1987 advertisements in that same paper). But some website I saw, now a dead link had a screen capture of WCIV 4 ident from 1980 (with The Proud N logo).
2.)WCIV-TV 4 1987-1990s logo (styled after LA's KNBC-TV 1985-1994 logo) with the current NBC peacock and the slogan "On Your Side". That was the same logo used during Hurricane Hugo in 1989 and Bill Walsh (now at rival WCSC) was their cheif meteorologist.
3.)WCSC-TV 5 (Square 5) logo from the late 1970s-early 2000s. Classic and timeless all I can say.
4.)WCBD-TV 2 (1982-1990s Circle 2) logo before the switch from ABC to NBC. This logo was used from the TV-2 Eyewitness News/TV-2 Action News era. Especially used when longtime veteran at the station Rob Fowler arrived 25 years ago (with a mustache, now clean shaven)
5.)WTAT 24 current logo

Augusta, Georgia
1.)WJBF-TV 6 1982-1995 logo (Key 6 logo I called) used during the days of Bob Young (later ex-Augusta mayor) and the NewsWatch6 era.
2.)WRDW-TV 12 1986-1995 logo (plain 12 silmilar to their pre-HD News 12 logo)
3.)WAGT-TV 26 Power logo from 1980s-1995.

What's your favorite local television station logos?
 
From Detroit:
1) WXYZ Circle 7 (from 1962/63-present) as it was a ABC O&O until 1985.
2) WKBD 1978-83 Field Communication era
3) CBET (early-Mid 80s) CBC logo in the center of the 9
 
From New York:
- WOR-TV 9 (dotted/stylized "9") logo from 1970-83 (though the logo itself ran to the start of the MCA era in 1987, the point to 1983 was when they were still in New York)
- WPIX 11 ("circle 11") logo variation from 1969-76 (runner-up: 1976-82 "11 Alive" variation)
- WNET 13 - 1972-76 logo, 1977-'90's "Thirteen" logo
- WNEW-TV 5 - 1967-77 logo w/sans-serif "Metromedia Television Alphabet" font
- WCBS-TV 2 - mid-to-late 1960's logo with "2" in Grotesque No. 9, followed by 1973-85 logo with "2" in Serif Gothic Heavy
- WNBC-TV 4 - 1972-74 "TV 4" logo
- WNJU-TV 47 - 1970's-'80's logo (with "4" from then-sister stations WAPA-TV in San Juan, PR and KCPX/KTVX in Salt Lake City, UT and "7" nicked from late 1960's WNAC-TV [now WHDH] Boston logo)
WABC's "circle 7" logo, of course, goes without saying.
 
What I want to know is...in the '70s logo for KTAR-TV 12 Mesa (Phoenix market),
why was the "2" in the "12" bigger than the "1"?
 
In the Bay Area, I've always liked the logo for KTVU - "Channel" 2 or "Fox" 2, depending on the time of day. In the 70s and 80s, they had a great slogan, intoned by a satirically pompous deep voiced announcer - "There's only one...TWO." Maybe you had to be there.

Also always liked the "5" logo for KPIX-TV, which was originally owned by Westinghouse - in that same font that was used for KFWB (radio) in LA, 1010 WINS (radio) in New York, KYW-TV Philadelphia, and others.
 
Lkeller said:
In the Bay Area, I've always liked the logo for KTVU - "Channel" 2 or "Fox" 2, depending on the time of day. In the 70s and 80s, they had a great slogan, intoned by a satirically pompous deep voiced announcer - "There's only one...TWO." Maybe you had to be there.

Also always liked the "5" logo for KPIX-TV, which was originally owned by Westinghouse - in that same font that was used for KFWB (radio) in LA, 1010 WINS (radio) in New York, KYW-TV Philadelphia, and others.
Click to expand...

KTVU
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m4jA1dQ8DCw

KPIX
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q9cW9nebsSE
 
WIIC-TV (now WPXI) in Pittsburgh used one years ago that took the 1's
in Channel 11 and incorporated them into the 'word" e11even (sic)

They had all of the English teachers in town writing nasty letters about that one.
While it was in hot rotation almost none of their kids were spelling "eleven" correctly.

Their current logo was adopted back when Stereo Sound was still a hot thing in the
early 90's. A circular shape like a pair of headphones where the 1's are the ear pieces.
 
Some local ones from D/FW:

KDFW (Arrow 4) until the mid-80s when they went to a bland white 4 in a blue circle

KXAS (Star 5) - That one really is a classic, which they turned to when they changed their call letters from WBAP-TV. However, my second favorite is the reflected 5s with the NBC "snake" logo in a circle inside the curve of the 5 (from the late '60s). (Aside: the news desk for Channel 5's newscasts in the late '60s was actually shaped like a 5.)

KTVT (anthropomorphized 1s) - in the late '60s after the call letters changed from KFJZ-TV to KTVT, the 1s in 11 were made to look like little men, complete with pointy noses, ties, and shoes. IIRC, one of the "guys" would ask the other one, "What you lookin' at, bub?" and the other one would say something about quality programming on Channel 11.

WFAA (circle 8) - a classic for many years. Their logos have always been clean and uncluttered.

And from the Wichita Falls market:
KFDX (tv III) - where the "tv" overlapped the roman numerals "III" - quite inventive for the '60s and early '70s.
KAUZ (tube 6) - the "6" is in the shape of, and inside the outline of, a TV picture tube.
 
And on another note: Is there some "repository" of these logos where one might be able to see them (besides YouTube)?
 
FreddyE1977 said:
WIIC-TV (now WPXI) in Pittsburgh used one years ago that took the 1's
in Channel 11 and incorporated them into the 'word" e11even (sic)

They had all of the English teachers in town writing nasty letters about that one.
While it was in hot rotation almost none of their kids were spelling "eleven" correctly.

Their current logo was adopted back when Stereo Sound was still a hot thing in the
early 90's. A circular shape like a pair of headphones where the 1's are the ear pieces.
Click to expand...
I used to jokingly pronounce it "E-eleven-even''.
 
Kurt Toy said:
FreddyE1977 said:
WIIC-TV (now WPXI) in Pittsburgh used one years ago that took the 1's
in Channel 11 and incorporated them into the 'word" e11even (sic)

They had all of the English teachers in town writing nasty letters about that one.
While it was in hot rotation almost none of their kids were spelling "eleven" correctly.

Their current logo was adopted back when Stereo Sound was still a hot thing in the
early 90's. A circular shape like a pair of headphones where the 1's are the ear pieces.
Click to expand...
I used to jokingly pronounce it "E-eleven-even''.
Click to expand...

One of the many, many tales of woe and chaos surrounding WIIC/WPXI.
Along with "Groucho Marx took a turn for the worse today, in fact, he died",
Pat Finn being inserted into Woody Allen movies via chromakey, and unedited
footage of R. Budd Dwyer's suicide. Was Television Hill really an Indian burial ground?
 
Dan Dennis said:
And on another note: Is there some "repository" of these logos where one might be able to see them (besides YouTube)?
Click to expand...

I grabbed the WKAQ-TV deal from images.google.com or rather Google Images (click the Images link); I am sure that if you enter call letters, a bevy of photos will show.

cd
 
I've always thought that the Milwaukee TV stations had very nice and distinct logos, many lasting for at least more than a decade each; the WISN-TV "striped 12" logo has been around since the mid-70s, and in some form or other, is still around today.

WTMJ's previous "4" logo lasted nearly 25 years, again in different forms, until the station overhauled its look a few years ago. WITI's "TV6" logo was also around for a long time, from 1977 until 1995-ish, when it switched from CBS to Fox. They actually revived the logo recently for its Antenna TV subchannel, as "TV6.2"

WVTV and WCGV also had some pretty cool logos--WVTV's late 70s to mid-80s logo with the slanted "1" next to the "8", then its "Super 18" logo from the late 80s on through to its affiliation with The WB. WCGV's "futuristic" 24 logo from about 1984-ish until they affiliated with UPN was also a favorite of mine.
 
WJAC-TV in Johnstown, PA.

The call letters rested on what looked like mountains.

The caption read, "Serving millions from atop the Alleghenies."

On Channel 6, it had viewers from McKeesport almost to Mechanicsburg, and from Pennsylvania's Northern Tier to parts of Northern Virginia, Western Maryland and Eastern West Virginia.
 
I agree about the KXAS "Star 5" logo; indeed, if I ran an
NBC affiliate on Channel 5, in Texas or not, I might want
to use that logo. WFAA's "Circle 8" logo, which I remember
from the late '70s, seemed like a variation on the ABC "Circle
7" logo, but it was straightforward. Their "8" without the
circle also looks good. I liked WFTV's what I'll call "Fat 9"
logo in the '70s and '80s (the large top of the 9, with a
skinnier bottom); WTVC Chattanooga also used this logo.

Two others I liked: WAGA's TVwaga5 from the early '70s:
it had a large "5" with the letters "TV" next to the vertical
line, and "waga" ending at the curve at the bottom (the "TV"
and "waga" were to the left of the "5").

And WTVT's Bicentennial logo, during a time when the station's
slogan changed temporarily from "Big 13" to "The Original 13":
thirteen stars encircling the "13," which was redrawn for the duration.
 
KeyTimes950 said:
WJAC-TV in Johnstown, PA.

The call letters rested on what looked like mountains.

The caption read, "Serving millions from atop the Alleghenies."

On Channel 6, it had viewers from McKeesport almost to Mechanicsburg, and from Pennsylvania's Northern Tier to parts of Northern Virginia, Western Maryland and Eastern West Virginia.
Click to expand...

Yes, but not in my house in Pittsburgh.
Old school analog reception in this part of the world was a tricky business.
I could never get 6 at our house, but I could get 7 from Wheeling fairly okay
and 9 from Steubenville as strong as local. Visit a friend a block or two away
and the opposite might be true.

When Channel 8 signed on in Johnstown it seemed to cover the
neighborhood much better.
 
bpatrick said:
I liked WFTV's what I'll call "Fat 9"
logo in the '70s and '80s (the large top of the 9, with a skinnier bottom); WTVC Chattanooga also used this logo.
Click to expand...

The "9" was, more or less, in a shape of a television screen -- I also recall WTVM Columbus and WKPT Kingsport (for the "9" part of their "19" logo) using this logo as well.

Stations that broadcasted on channel 6 also used this logo as well -- KOIN in Portland and (I think) the aforementioned WJAC used a variant of this logo for channel 6, which of course, is an upside-down "9".
 
ShawnHill1 said:
WVTV and WCGV also had some pretty cool logos--WVTV's late 70s to mid-80s logo with the slanted "1" next to the "8", then its "Super 18" logo from the late 80s on through to its affiliation with The WB. WCGV's "futuristic" 24 logo from about 1984-ish until they affiliated with UPN was also a favorite of mine.
Click to expand...

All the Arlington Broadcasting stations around that time (WCGV, KNXV-Phoenix, WTTO-Birmingham, WQTV-Boston) had similar looking logos and slogans (both WCGV and KNXV used "Where The Stars Shine" around 1984).

My favorite over the past 20 or so years had to be KPDX-Portland, OR during their FOX-affiliated era, with the "49" looking like a smiling face in a way. Also, WCVB-Boston has had the same "5" logo for 40 years, and still looks good.
 
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