American International Television

Credits

Descriptions by
Sean Beard and Eric S.

Captures by
Eric S., Shadeed A. Kelly, V of Doom, and Bob Fish

Editions by
Bob Fish, V of Doom, SeanElGatoTV2k8, Shadeed A. Kelly, and kidinbed

Video captures courtesy of
Eric S. and SeanElGatoTelevision

Background

American International Pictures created its own television division as "American International Television" (also known as "American International Productions Television" or "AIP-TV") in 1964 to distribute all AIP film releases and produce various television shows. In 1979, AIP was acquired by Filmways, Inc. and American International Television became Filmways Television in 1980. The AIP library, with some exceptions, is today owned by MGM Holdings Inc.

1st Logo (1964-1966)

Nicknames: "Capitol Building", "AIP Car Plate", "AIP Skyline"

Logo: On a skyline background, we see the American International Pictures logo of the era (the words "American" and "International" in the SF American Dreams Extended font with a drawing of the Capital Building between them), except that the word "TELEVISION" is seen in place of "PICTURES".

Variant: The first two seasons of the cartoon series The Adventures of Sinbad Jr use the in-credit text "An American International Television Release".

FX/SFX: None.

Music/Sounds: The same theme from the American International Pictures logo of the era. On some shows/TV movies that have the logo superimposed over the opening/ending shots, the logo would have the opening/ending theme of the program or have the AIP theme (sloppily) tacked on.

Availability: Extremely rare.

• This was on early syndicated rerun prints of The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet (before Ozzie Nelson took over distribution in the late 1960s).
• It can still be found on old prints of Hercules and The Captive Women, as well as the Mexican Samson (El Santo) films dubbed into English by K. Gordon Murray.

Editor's Note: The logo design looks kinda cool, and resembles a car nameplate from the era more than a film/TV production company's logo.

2nd Logo (1966-December 31, 1968)

Nicknames: "Capitol Building II", "AIP Button"

Logo: On a gray or skyline background, we see an image of the Capitol Building inside a two-layer circle, resembling a coat button, with the words "American International Television" appearing below.

Variant: Some TV shows use an in-credit variant that says "An AMERICAN INTERNATIONAL TELEVISION Production".

FX/SFX: None.

Music/Sounds: The 1966 AIP logo theme first. Starting in 1967, series would have a loud, battling horn, flute and drum/timpani fanfare. In other cases, the opening/closing theme is used or is silent.

Availability: Ultra rare.

• It appeared on some syndicated programs including early AIP films. Also, the late Samuel Z. Arkoff retained ownership of the earliest AIP films and licensed them to Teleworld for distribution, so this no longer appears.
• The 1967 fanfare variant is still retained on the Orion VHS release of the English dub of The X From Outer Space.
• It's currently seen on Prince Planet on MGM's online platform "MGM Digital Media".

Editor's Note: None.

3rd Logo (January 1, 1969-1973)

Nicknames: "Capitol Building III", "Capitol AI", "Creepy AI", "The Capitol Dome/Creepy AI Combo", "The Avengers Logo"

Logo: Over a black background (or superimposed over a real action background), we see a color-changing circle with a line drawing of the Capitol Building inside. Then, it zooms in place as part of the American International Pictures logo, which is now an abstract lettering design consisting of the initials "AI", to the right of the screen. After the circle moves into place, the bottom segment of the "A" and then the "I" fade into place, forming the complete logo. The phrase "American International Television Presents" then fades in below the logo after it forms.

Later Variant: From 1972-1973, a comma and the word "Inc." were added next to the company's name. There is also a short version.

FX/SFX: The colors changing, the circle zooming to the right and the rest of the logo forming.

Music/Sounds: The same fanfare from the 2nd logo, the opening theme of the show, or movie.

Availability: Extremely rare.

• This appeared on the original U.S. syndication prints of The Avengers, on the U.S. print opening of Johnny Sokko and His Flying Robot right after the 1984 Orion Pictures logo (both intact on Comet airings), and TV prints of AIP-produced and dubbed films.
• The in-credit logo was retained on Johnny Sokko and His Flying Robot on MGM Digital Media's YouTube account.
• The Avengers was then distributed by Weintraub Entertainment Group in 1990 and is now currrently owned by Canal+, so outside of tapes (of certain episodes of that series from early 1990s A&E reruns) this is long gone.
• Expect the Orion (or MGM) logo to precede the AIP logo on feature films.
• The short version is retained on public domain prints of The Magic Serpent.
• The Nightmare Theatre print of Warning from Space retains this.

Editor's Note: Some people might be put off by the logo and its fanfare.

4th Logo (1973-1974)

Nickname: "Creepy AI II", "Creepy AI in the Sky"

Logo: Over a cloudy sky backdrop, we see the familiar abstract "AI" logo in yellow inside a 2-layered circle border of the same color. The words "American International Television Inc. presents" in blue fade in below the logo.

Variant: There is a black & white version of this logo for movies from the 1950s and early 1960s.

FX/SFX: The moving clouds, and the fading in of the text.

Music/Sounds: None, or the opening theme of the movie.

Availability: Extinct. This appeared on a fair amount of American International films and TV series, most notably on the AIP dub of Assignment Terror.

Editor's Note: None.

5th Logo (1974-1980)

Nicknames: "AiTV", "The OTHER Creepy ai"

Logo:

• Opening: On a blue background, we see 4 white angular letters spelling "AiTV" popping onto the screen one by one; the last two overlapping the letters "Ai" on top. Then the text "AMERICAN INTERNATIONAL TELEVISION, INC. presents" pops in near the "Ai" section of the logo, which then becomes red. The complete logo fades out about a second before the empty screen fades to black.
• Closing: A still shot of the completed logo, with a yellow background, a brown logo and lettering, this time reading "Distributed by AMERICAN INTERNATIONAL TELEVISION, INC.". Sometimes, the logo would be superimposed.

FX/SFX: The lettering and words popping into place, and changing color as the sequence plays out. None for the closing variant.

Music/Sounds: An ascending horn and string fanfare (actually stock music, composed by William Loose); rather sedate compared with its predecessor. The closing variant is silent, with the theme playing out over it on some shows.

Availability: Extinct.

• This appeared on U.S. prints of Lorne Greene's New Wilderness, Star Maidens, Twiggy's Jukebox, and TV syndication prints of AIP films.
• Lorne Greene's New Wilderness remained available to TV stations from Orion Television until the mid-1980s with the AiTV logo still present.
• As AITV produced shows haven't been rerun in years, this latter logo is gone.

Editor's Note: The music may get to some.