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{{PageCredits|description=Livin'|capture=GirlMeetsWorldDisneyChannel Fansite, Nyxem and TheRealMarcel2000|video=Broken Saw, American Public Television and ShadowingSilver|edits=Michael Kenchington}}
Background: APT was founded in 1961 as the Eastern Educational Television Network (EEN), distributing public TV shows such as The French Chef, Mister Rogers Neighborhood, and Washington Week to public television stations on a regional basis, and then nationwide when NET (now PBS) was formed. They changed their name to Interregional Program Service in the 1980s (though it still used the old name on some shows, such as Travels in Europe with Rick Steves, until 1992), became American Program Service (APS) in 1992, and changed to their current name, American Public Television in 1999. It didn't appear to use a logo until 1970, and then stopped using its own logo for nearly two decades after that.


===Background===
{{Infobox company|founded=February 9, 1961 ({{age|1961|2|9}} years ago)|country=United States|name=American Public Television|image=American_Public_Television_logo.svg|formerly=[[Eastern Educational Television Network]] (1961-1980)<br>[[Interregional Program Service]] (1980-1992)<br>[[American Program Service]] (1992-2000)}}
In 1999, [[American Program Service]] (APS) renamed itself to '''American Public Television''' (APT). The company continues to distribute public TV shows nationwide to PBS stations.


{{ImageTOC
|American_Public_Television_1999-2002.png|1st Logo (April 26, 1999-2010)
|American_Public_Television_(2008).png|2nd Logo (February 2, 2009-February 5, 2011)
|American_Public_Television_(2011).png|3rd Logo (February 6, 2011-)
}}


1st Logo
===1st Logo (April 26, 1999-2010)===
<gallery mode="packed" heights="215">
(1970-1975)
File:American Public Television 1999-2002.png
Eastern Educational Network (1975)
File:American Public Television.png
</gallery>
{{YouTube|id=wGcmpcRsncA|id2=ZDDsUmfi5sw|id3=5OkugXoK58U}}


'''Visuals:''' On a black background, there are three squares, one in the distance zooming out, one with a white outline that flips, and one with red outlining. Each one is blue with transparent lines and watermarks of the name, close-up and in a Helvetica font. As the watermarks scroll to the right and zoom in, a red outline forms another square, which appears like a CRT-TV being turned on as "American Public Television" fades in; it is in the same color and has another watermark of the name with the camera panning on it.
Nickname: "The 2.5D Compass"


'''Variants:'''
Logo: Against a black background, we see six overlapping circles of varying sizes. In the center is a compass with the north, west, and south arrows pointing to the innermost circle and the east arrow pointing to the outermost circle. Behind it is a seventh, smaller circle to which the four ordinal directions point. At its core is a black circle with "EEN" inside it. To the right is the text
* Starting in 2000, the <u>URL text "aptonline.org" appears under the company's name</u>. The first few seconds of the animation are also cut off. In more recent years, it reads "APTonline.org".
Eastern
* On <u>''The Organ Wise Guys'' shorts</u>, the logo appears at the bottom of the screen with the text: "Copyright (C) (Year) American Public Television" to the left of the logo.
Educational
* Each variant <u>may appear in widescreen</u>.
Network


'''Technique:''' CGI.
in what appears to be ITC Avant Garde Gothic.


'''Audio:''' Same as the second logo for [[American Program Service]].
FX/SFX: None.


'''Availability:''' For most of its lifespan, this logo was essentially the public television equivalent of the 1st [[Sony Pictures Television]] logo.
Music/Sounds: Just an announcer saying, "This is the Eastern Educational Television Network."
* It was tacked onto the end of practically every program APT distributed during the period, such as ''The Saddle Club'' and ''A Place of Our Own'', as well as shows on independent public TV stations such as 2010-2019 KCET and on the digital broadcast network Create (which APT partially owns).
* With the logo being retired in 2010 in favor of the 2nd logo, its presence has dipped down, but it can still be found on older prints of APT programs.
* It made an appearance on the 2010 documentary ''Greece: Quest For the Gods''.
* Though APT normally doesn't show its logos at the end of ''The McLaughlin Group'', this was seen on a 2009 episode thereof.
* The original 1999 variant is also seen before the 1993 [[Connecticut Public Television]] logo on a 2014 episode of ''Scully: The World Show''.
* This logo is also seen on the [[PBS Kids]] specials ''Barney's Great Adventure'' (originally a theatrical feature released by [[PolyGram Filmed Entertainment|PolyGram Films]]), ''VeggieTales: The Star of Christmas'', and ''VeggieTales: Duke and the Great Pie War''.
* The original 1999 variant is also preserved on a U.S. master copy of the ''Two's Company'' episode "The Clergy", following the 1989 [[London Weekend Television Productions|An LWT Programme for ITV]] endcap.
* The original 1999 variant is also preserved on a U.S. master copy of the fifth S01 episode of ''A Fine Romance'', "How to Avoid Bankruptcy", following the 1996 An LWT Programme for ITV endcap.


===2nd Logo (February 2, 2009-February 5, 2011)===
Availability: Extinct, and more well-hidden than any Holy Grail-class public television logo before it, to the point where it was only discovered in 2020 on episodes of Wall $treet Week on the American Archive of Public Broadcasting. How elusive did it prove to be? The tail end of a 1975 episode of WNED's One Man Show that had it was part of a recording of WNET's Where Have All the Rebels Gone? that had been on the Internet Archive and gone unnoticed by the logo community for just over five years before being discovered the next month!
[[File:American Public Television (2008).png|center|frameless|393x393px]]
{{YouTube|id=66Rz8GRoVCM}}


'''Visuals:''' A new-and-improved version of the previous logo, with notable differences:
Editor's Note: After Wall $treet Week became a PBS program around 1972, the EEN would not use another logo for two decades, by which point it had already rebranded itself twice.
* The logo is darker and seemingly quicker in pace.
* The company name is stretched.
* The square with "American Public Television" appears via a "wipe-in" effect.
* "American Public Television" is in a different font.
* There are spotlights shining over the logo.
* The URL "APTonline.org" appears under the logo.


'''Technique:''' CGI.


'''Audio:''' Same as the last logo.


'''Availability:'''
2nd Logo
* Seen on ''WORLDFOCUS'' episodes from the era.
(1992-1999)
* It is also still intact on old episodes of ''Doc Martin'', plastering the previous logo on current prints of Series 1 episodes.
American Program Service (Early-Late 1990s)APS


===3rd Logo (February 6, 2011-)===
Nickname: "A Production of..."
<gallery mode="packed" heights="215">
File:American Public Television (2011).png
File:APT still logo.PNG
File:APT still logo (alt).PNG
</gallery>
{{YouTube||id=l0oI6CbmA6o|id2=quBQSZCnr5U}}


'''Visuals:''' On a shady {{color|darkgray|steel gray}}/blue gradient background, the text "{{Font|Times New Roman|'''American Public Television'''}}" in the Times New Roman font shines. Then, several blue/{{color|aquamarine|aqua}}/white-textured squares zoom out from the sides of the screen and the URL "{{Font|Times New Roman|'''APTonline.org'''}}" wipes in below. The top of the "{{Font|Times New Roman|'''n'''}}" in "{{Font|Times New Roman|'''Television'''}}" shines with a four-pointed star.
Logo: On a maroon-colored background, we see the text


'''Trivia:''' This logo was made by Zydeco Design as part of a rebrand of APT coinciding with the latter's 50th anniversary.
A PRESENTATION OF


'''Variants:'''
AMERICAN PROGRAM
* A <u>still version</u> exists. Here, the background is white, the squares' colors are altered and the company's initials with the words "{{Font|Times New Roman|'''American Public Television'''}}" underneath it.
SERVICE
* On <u>''Doc Martin and the Legend of the Cloutie'' and ''The Whole Truth with David Eisenhower''</u>, the 4:3 version of the logo is stretched to fill the 16:9 image.
* Sometimes, as seen on ''Nightly Business Report'' and ''Rough Cut: Woodworking with Tommy Mac'', the logo <u>fades in and out</u>.


'''Technique:''' CGI.
in Copperplate, which zooms in slightly. There is a shining wipe on the text.


'''Audio:''' A re-arranged version of the last three notes of the 1996 American Program Service logo's music. Otherwise, the actual 1996 theme or the closing theme is used.
Variant:There is a variant which has "BOSTON" under the text.


'''Availability:'''
FX/SFX: The name zooming in, and the "shimmer".
* Seen on current prints of APT's archival programming such as ''Mr. Bean'' and ''The Joy of Painting'', and newer (episodes of) APT shows such as ''WORLDFOCUS'' and ''Nightly Business Report'', among others.
* The version with the older fanfare can be seen at the end of ''Doc Martin'', ''Midsomer Murders'', ''Mystery Science Theater 3000'', ''Royalty Close-Up'', ''A Daring Journey: From Immigration to Education'', ''The Reformation: This Changed Everything'', ''Free to Rock'', ''Fit 2 Stitch'' (previously distributed by [[NETA Program Service]]), and a series of 78 movies licensed from [[20th Century Studios]], [[Warner Bros. Pictures|Warner Bros.]], [[Paramount Pictures]], and Sony Pictures Television (though the telefilm ''Doc Martin and the Legend of the Cloutie'' uses the later fanfare).
* The still version can be seen on ''Ruby's Studio'' on the now-defunct Qubo Channel.


{{Chronology|[[American Program Service]]}}
Music/Sounds: None. In other cases, it uses the end theme of the show. Bloopy's Buddies, however, used their own generic theme over the logo (as well as two other logos that produced Bloopy's Buddies as well).
{{Navbox-PBS}}{{TV-Navbox}}

[[Category:United States]]
Availability: Extinct on television, but preserved on VHS tapes of Bloopy's Buddies and the "Cyber Cafes" and "Macworld" episodes of Computer Chronicles on the Internet Archive. It also appeared on American PBS airings of The Big Comfy Couch episodes from the era. Don't expect to see this on Nightly Business Report, which used in-credit notices until 1999.
[[Category:Television logos]]

[[Category:American television logos]]
Editor's Note: Very much a simple logo. Despite looking like a placeholder, this logo was used for eight years.
[[Category:PBS]]

[[Category:Logos with music by Denny Gore]]

[[Category:Logos made by Zydeco Design]]

3rd Logo
(1994-April 25?, 1999)
American Program Service (1990s)
Nicknames: "APS", "Programs For Public Television"

Logo: On a black background with 2 orange/brown squares, we the letters "Aps" in orange/brown with the words "American Program Service" below the letters zooming out from us, with the "p" slightly on top of the "A", a white bracket revealing the "p", and a black bracket revealing the "s". Once the letters shift into place, the words:

________
Programs
For Public
Television

appear below the letters "ps", while a small flash appears above the "A" in the top left hand corner. Also, one of the squares disappears, leaving one square in the background, which rotates.

FX/SFX: The animation in the logo.

Music/Sounds: A rather triumphant synth tune with snare drumroll sounds, produced on the E-mu Proteus 2 Orchestral synthesizer using the Percussion 1 (Patch #58) instrument patch.

Availability: Rare. Was seen on 1994-1998 episodes of Computer Chronicles; a few episodes from the era on the Internet Archive retain this. Can also be seen on 1997-1998 episodes of The Kidsongs Television Show on iTunes. Again, this didn't appear at all on Nightly Business Report.

Editor's Note: A good effort for its time. It also bears the first appearance of the familiar APT theme.



4th Logo
(April 26?, 1999-2010; July 25, 2014)
American Public Television (1999)American Public Television (2001) *HD*American Public Television - CLG WikiAmerican Public Television (2010) *HD*


Nickname: "The Squares"

Logo: On a black background, we see two squares, one with white outlining and the other with red outlining, shifting throughout, and each one is blue with watermarks of the name on them. Then a red outline forms another square, which appears in the same color also with watermarks of the name as it finishes, with the text "American Public Television" on it in a somewhat squashed version of Helvetica.

Variants:
Starting in 2000, the URL text "aptonline.org" appeared under the company's name. The first few seconds of the animation are also cut off. In more recent years, it reads "APTonline.org".
On The Organ Wise Guys shorts, the logo appears at the bottom of the screen with the text: "Copyright (C) (Year) American Public Television" to the left of the logo.
Each variant may appear in widescreen.

FX/SFX: The animation in the logo.

Music/Sounds: Same as the last logo.

Availability: Uncommon, but when it was in use, it was basically the PBS equivalent to Sony Pictures Television. It was tacked onto the end of practically every program shown on PBS during the period, such as The Saddle Club and A Place of Our Own, as well as shows on independent public TV stations such as KCET and on the digital broadcast network Create (which APT partially owns). With the logo ending in 2008 and being replaced by the 5th logo, its presence has dipped down, but it can still be found on older prints of programs on PBS. It made an appearance on the 2010 documentary Greece: Quest For the Gods. Though APT normally doesn't show its logos at the end of The McLaughlin Group, this made a surprise appearance on a 2009 episode thereof. The original 1999 variant strangely appears before the 1993 Connecticut Public Television logo on a 2014 episode of Scully: The World Show.

Editor's Note: This is a very memorable logo, but like the Sony Pictures Television logo, it wasn't for good reasons back then. Nowadays, it's seen in a more positive light due to its nice music and animation. It helps that, despite its (former) omnipresence, it never actually plastered over logos.


5th Logo
(2008-February 5, 2011)
American Public Television (2010)

Nickname: "The Squares II"

Logo: Nearly the same as before, but animated for HD, darker and seemingly quicker in pace. The company name is also stretched.

Variant: Originally, there was no URL in the logo, but starting in late-2009, the URL text "APTonline.org" appears under the company's name.

FX/SFX: Same as the last logo.

Music/Sounds: Same as the 2nd and 3rd logos.

Availability: Appeared on WORLDFOCUS episodes from the era. Due to its short life, it wasn't nearly as common as the previous logo. It still appears on old episodes of Doc Martin.

Editor's Note: A decent update to the last logo.


6th Logo
(February 6, 2011- )
American Public Television (2011)


Nicknames: "Shady Squares", "The 50th Anniversary Logo"

Logo: On a shady steel gray/blue gradient background, we see the words "American Public Television" in a Garamond font appear. Then, several blue/aqua/white-textured squares zoom out from the sides of the screen and the URL "aptonline.org" appears below.

Trivia: This logo was made by Zydeco Design as part of a rebrand of APT coinciding with the latter's 50th anniversary.

Variants:
On Doc Martin and the Legend of the Cloutie and The Whole Truth with David Eisenhower, the 4:3 version of the logo is stretched to fill the 16:9 image.
Sometimes, as seen on Nightly Business Report and Rough Cut: Woodworking with Tommy Mac, the logo fades in and out.

FX/SFX: The zooming, done in modern computer animation.

Music/Sounds: A re-arranged version of the last 3 notes of the 1994 fanfare. Otherwise, the actual 1994 theme is used.

Availability: Current and common. Seen on current prints of PBS's archival programming such as Mr. Bean and The Joy of Painting, and newer (episodes of) PBS shows such as WORLDFOCUS and Nightly Business Report, among others. The version with the 1994 fanfare can be seen at the end of Doc Martin, Midsomer Murders, Mystery Science Theater 3000, Royalty Close-Up, A Daring Journey: From Immigration to Education, The Reformation: This Changed Everything, Free to Rock, the fifth season of Fit 2 Stitch, and a series of 78 movies licensed from 20th Century Fox, Warner Bros., Paramount, and Sony (though the telefilm Doc Martin and the Legend of the Cloutie uses the later fanfare).

Editor's Note: Simple but effective. However, the 1994 theme does not fit well with this logo.

Latest revision as of 02:41, 9 August 2024

Credits
Descriptions by
Livin'

Captures by
GirlMeetsWorldDisneyChannel Fansite, Nyxem and TheRealMarcel2000

Editions by
Michael Kenchington

Video captures courtesy of
Broken Saw, American Public Television and ShadowingSilver

Background

In 1999, American Program Service (APS) renamed itself to American Public Television (APT). The company continues to distribute public TV shows nationwide to PBS stations.


Contents

1st Logo (April 26, 1999-2010) 2nd Logo (February 2, 2009-February 5, 2011) 3rd Logo (February 6, 2011-)
1st Logo (April 26, 1999-2010) 2nd Logo (February 2, 2009-February 5, 2011) 3rd Logo (February 6, 2011-)


1st Logo (April 26, 1999-2010)


Visuals: On a black background, there are three squares, one in the distance zooming out, one with a white outline that flips, and one with red outlining. Each one is blue with transparent lines and watermarks of the name, close-up and in a Helvetica font. As the watermarks scroll to the right and zoom in, a red outline forms another square, which appears like a CRT-TV being turned on as "American Public Television" fades in; it is in the same color and has another watermark of the name with the camera panning on it.

Variants:

  • Starting in 2000, the URL text "aptonline.org" appears under the company's name. The first few seconds of the animation are also cut off. In more recent years, it reads "APTonline.org".
  • On The Organ Wise Guys shorts, the logo appears at the bottom of the screen with the text: "Copyright (C) (Year) American Public Television" to the left of the logo.
  • Each variant may appear in widescreen.

Technique: CGI.

Audio: Same as the second logo for American Program Service.

Availability: For most of its lifespan, this logo was essentially the public television equivalent of the 1st Sony Pictures Television logo.

  • It was tacked onto the end of practically every program APT distributed during the period, such as The Saddle Club and A Place of Our Own, as well as shows on independent public TV stations such as 2010-2019 KCET and on the digital broadcast network Create (which APT partially owns).
  • With the logo being retired in 2010 in favor of the 2nd logo, its presence has dipped down, but it can still be found on older prints of APT programs.
  • It made an appearance on the 2010 documentary Greece: Quest For the Gods.
  • Though APT normally doesn't show its logos at the end of The McLaughlin Group, this was seen on a 2009 episode thereof.
  • The original 1999 variant is also seen before the 1993 Connecticut Public Television logo on a 2014 episode of Scully: The World Show.
  • This logo is also seen on the PBS Kids specials Barney's Great Adventure (originally a theatrical feature released by PolyGram Films), VeggieTales: The Star of Christmas, and VeggieTales: Duke and the Great Pie War.
  • The original 1999 variant is also preserved on a U.S. master copy of the Two's Company episode "The Clergy", following the 1989 An LWT Programme for ITV endcap.
  • The original 1999 variant is also preserved on a U.S. master copy of the fifth S01 episode of A Fine Romance, "How to Avoid Bankruptcy", following the 1996 An LWT Programme for ITV endcap.

2nd Logo (February 2, 2009-February 5, 2011)


Visuals: A new-and-improved version of the previous logo, with notable differences:

  • The logo is darker and seemingly quicker in pace.
  • The company name is stretched.
  • The square with "American Public Television" appears via a "wipe-in" effect.
  • "American Public Television" is in a different font.
  • There are spotlights shining over the logo.
  • The URL "APTonline.org" appears under the logo.

Technique: CGI.

Audio: Same as the last logo.

Availability:

  • Seen on WORLDFOCUS episodes from the era.
  • It is also still intact on old episodes of Doc Martin, plastering the previous logo on current prints of Series 1 episodes.

3rd Logo (February 6, 2011-)


Visuals: On a shady steel gray/blue gradient background, the text "American Public Television" in the Times New Roman font shines. Then, several blue/aqua/white-textured squares zoom out from the sides of the screen and the URL "APTonline.org" wipes in below. The top of the "n" in "Television" shines with a four-pointed star.

Trivia: This logo was made by Zydeco Design as part of a rebrand of APT coinciding with the latter's 50th anniversary.

Variants:

  • A still version exists. Here, the background is white, the squares' colors are altered and the company's initials with the words "American Public Television" underneath it.
  • On Doc Martin and the Legend of the Cloutie and The Whole Truth with David Eisenhower, the 4:3 version of the logo is stretched to fill the 16:9 image.
  • Sometimes, as seen on Nightly Business Report and Rough Cut: Woodworking with Tommy Mac, the logo fades in and out.

Technique: CGI.

Audio: A re-arranged version of the last three notes of the 1996 American Program Service logo's music. Otherwise, the actual 1996 theme or the closing theme is used.

Availability:

  • Seen on current prints of APT's archival programming such as Mr. Bean and The Joy of Painting, and newer (episodes of) APT shows such as WORLDFOCUS and Nightly Business Report, among others.
  • The version with the older fanfare can be seen at the end of Doc Martin, Midsomer Murders, Mystery Science Theater 3000, Royalty Close-Up, A Daring Journey: From Immigration to Education, The Reformation: This Changed Everything, Free to Rock, Fit 2 Stitch (previously distributed by NETA Program Service), and a series of 78 movies licensed from 20th Century Studios, Warner Bros., Paramount Pictures, and Sony Pictures Television (though the telefilm Doc Martin and the Legend of the Cloutie uses the later fanfare).
  • The still version can be seen on Ruby's Studio on the now-defunct Qubo Channel.
◄ American Program Service
American Public Television
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