DLT Entertainment Limited

Credits

Descriptions by
Seth Nelson and Bigrene2

Captures by
Eric S., V of Doom, Pygmalion X, and Camenati

Editions by
Mr. Logo Lord, V of Doom and Camenati

Video captures courtesy of
Roy Broussard, Other Files: The Final Season, Broken Saw, and ENunn

Background

DLT Entertainment Ltd. (formerly known as "D.L./Don Taffner Syndication Sales", "D.L. Taffner Entertainment", and "D.L. Taffner Productions Ltd." until 1996) is a production and distribution company which handles off-network syndicated shows into distribution. The company is best known for distributing the popular sitcom Three's Company. Also, DLT Entertainment handles other shows such as Too Close for Comfort and Three's a Crowd (a spin-off of Three's Company). Starting in the 1970s, DLT Entertainment made its way around by producing one of United Kingdom's long running sitcoms, As Time Goes By on the BBC among other UK sitcoms, such as Full House (not to be confused with the US sitcom, which ran on ABC, in which the UK series was renamed after the US series was getting popular to audiences, and it was renamed to avoid confusion), The Benny Hill Show, and others. DLT Entertainment owns the international rights to The Adventures of Teddy Ruxpin (originally produced by DiC Entertainment and LBS Communications). Taffner also owns a British production unit, named" Theatre of Comedy Limited (Ltd.)", which that company is known best for producing the As Time Goes By series.

1st Logo (1979-1994)

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Logo: On a harvest gold background, resembling that of kitchen appliances back in the late 70s and throughout the 80s, the following text zooms to the center of the screen:

DISTRIBUTED BY

D.L. TAFFNER

SYNDICATION SALES

The words are in the same font used in the Three’s Company credits, and the zoom-up is a lot like the Viacom “V of Doom” logo, except you can make out sort of a rollercoaster effect (think of it as the Telepictures “Rollercoaster Shadows” logo, but upside-down without the shadows, almost)

Trivia: This never appeared after Three’s Company on its original ABC run. This logo was used for syndication of that show only, like the logo suggested.

Variants:

• Originally, the logo didn't have the rollercoaster effect. It zoomed in a downward fashion.
• Depending on the source, the text is placed on an orange background.

Technique: The zoom in.

Music/Sounds: None.

Availability: Rare. It's preserved on old prints of Three’s Company and some episodes of The Ropers on Antenna TV. It is also seen on reruns of Three's a Crowd on that same channel as well, when they are rerun (typically after Three's Company completes its cycle.)

Legacy: The color scheme is a huge eyesore, and the zooming text is very cheap.

2nd Logo (As Time Goes By 1st Variant) (January 12, 1992-February 18, 1996)

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Logo: On set with a gray background with the BBC logo of the time, and the Theatre of Comedy Ltd. in-credit notice (with theater masks as part of it's logo) after closing away from the As Time Goes By credits, we see the text reading:

A

THEATRE OF COMEDY PRODUCTION

IN ASSOCIATION WITH

D.L. TAFFNER/U.K. PRODUCTIONS LTD.

FOR BBC TELEVISION

Variant: On some occasions, the BBC logo of the time, is seen under D.L. Taffner's name, replacing the "BBC Television" in-credit text.

Technique: None.

Music/Sounds: The ending theme of As Time Goes By.

Availability: Seen on 1992-1996 episodes of As Time Goes By. It can be currently seen on PBS affiliates in the United States.

3rd Logo (As Time Goes By 2nd Variant) (April 30, 1995?-December 30, 2005)

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Logo: Same as the last variant, only with a couple slight changes: the text D.L. Taffner Productions Ltd. in-credit notice is replaced by a new logo for it, reading DLT Entertainment (in the same font as the logo below), and the Theatre of Comedy Entertainment, and BBC logos are above and below it, respectively. Also, there is a "swoosh" effect for the Theatre of Comedy logo.

Variants:

• Along with BBC's then-new, now current logo in 1997, the background was slightly changed as well.
• A slightly different version has the same logo below and "Theatre of Comedy Company is seen above and it's boxed on a black background.
• There is a version without the "Theatre of Comedy" logo and it's boxed in with the "Nasty Gal Productions" logo below

Technique: The formation of the Theatre of Comedy logo.

Music/Sounds: Same as the first variant.

Availability: Same as the first variant. This logo was also spotted on My Family.

4th Logo (1993-2000s)

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Logo: On a black background, we see the words “DON TAFFNER’S” with a red line above it first. Those words zoom back, as a white star appears in the middle of the screen, rotating counter-clockwise while a big red “D” comes in from the lower left corner, a big red “L” comes in from the bottom center, and a big red “T” comes in from near the upper right corner. After the “DLT” is formed, the star stops rotating, is already in the “D,” and the words “ENTERTAINMENT LTD.,” this time with the red line BELOW the words, slides in from the left at a fast pace, stopping right below the “DLT”.

Variants:

• On late '90s cable/syndicated airings of Three's Company, the web address "www.threescompany.com" would appear below the forming logo.
• A longer version holds the last note of the music longer.
• On Shirley it uses a superimposed variant.
• On UK shows the word "UK LIMITED" appears below DLT replacing "ENTERTAINMENT LTD.".

Technique: The production company name appearing, the "DLT" forming, the spinning star, etc.

Music/Sounds: Starts with a synth drone combined with a single synth note, followed by a five-note piano tune.

Music/Sounds Variant: On Shirley, it uses the ending theme of the show.

Availability: Rare. This is only on TV Land, Logo, and local syndicated versions of Three’s Company, Three's a Crowd, although on Antenna TV the long version did appear on at least one episode. and Shirley on local syndication.