Dolby Stereo

1st Trailer (1979-1991)

Trailer: On a scrolling starry space background, the words "OUR FEATURE PRESENTATION" fades in above. After a moment, the DOLBY STEREO logo (with the "Double "D" and box with "DOLBY STEREO") inside it slowly scrolls from the right to the middle of the lower half of the screen with a trail effect. As the Dolby Stereo logo finishes trailing, the words "PRESENTED IN" fade in between the upper text and the logo.

FX/SFX: The starry space background, the appearance of the text, the Dolby Stereo logo scrolling in, via Scanimate animation. This was done by Filmack Studios (who got the license to use the Dolby logo).

Music/Sounds: "Zap!" by Derek Scott.

Availability: More than likely extinct. Seen on theaters of the time which had Dolby Stereo technology. Reportedly one of the film showings to have this was Star Trek: The Motion Picture.

Editor's Note: Basic animation for the time, but the music definitely makes up for it.

2nd Trailer (1978?-1990s?)

Nickname: "Our Feature Presentation in Dolby Stereo", "Dolby Rollercoaster"

Trailer: On a zooming starfield background, "OUR FEATURE PRESENTATION" zooms in from the bottom and shines. After that, we see a blank Dolby Stereo logo zoom from the top with a trail effect until it gets to the center. About before the trail is done, we see the whole logo, and "PRESENTED IN" zooms to the top of it afterwards. The logo "shines" from left to right then flashes brightly.

FX/SFX: Rather limited animation. This was also done by Filmack Studios.

Music/Sounds: Same as the first trailer.

Availability: Probably extinct, but was common in the past; it was the most common Dolby trailer in cinemas before the introduction of Dolby Digital.

Editor's Note: Pretty cool concept, but the execution is standard for its time.

3rd Trailer (1986?-1990s?)

Nickname: "For Your Listening Pleasure"

Trailer: We have a space background. Suddenly, a Dolby logo zooms in fast. Then, it zooms out from the left. When it's done, it flashes and forms the box with "DOLBY STEREO". When that is done, the slogan "FOR YOUR LISTENING PLEASURE" fades in below.

Variant: A Dolby Stereo SR variant also exists. In this variant, the Dolby logo zooms our with two boxes reading “SR”. “SPECTRAL RECORDING” is formed on top of the box reading “DOLBY STEREO”.

FX/SFX: The animation. It's kind of choppy, despite being stunning for the time.

Music/Sounds: Whooshing sounds, then a “bang” when the logo comes together. If one listens with headphones, a “whoosh” can be heard panning from left to right after the logo forms.

Availability: Probably extinct. It was possibly seen in theaters with Dolby Stereo and Dolby Stereo SR technology.

Editor's Note: Compared to the Filmack trailer, this manages to hold up much better to today's standards.

4th Trailer (1987?-1990s?)

Nickname: "Berta the Bumblebee"

Trailer: On a light blue gradient background, an animated bumblebee flies in from the middle of the screen. She flies to the right, and scratches herself. She waves to the viewer, humming, as she flies to the left. After scratching her head again, she goes to the right off-screen. She flies by the screen from the left and right, yelling in enjoyment. She heads to the middle of the screen, before facing the viewer. She yells "Yipee!" before flying at the screen, hitting it and flying back to the middle, dazed. After shaking herself off, her wings stop moving, making her fall of the screen from the bottom. After a few moments, the Spectral Recording Dolby Stereo logo (as described in the previous logo) appears in the middle.

FX/SFX: Simple hand-drawn animation.

Music/Sounds: The buzzing of Berta, her hooting and hollering, and a crashing sound when she hits the screen.

Sound Variant: The German version has an announcer saying this is a presentation in Dolby Stereo when the Dolby SR logo appears.

Availability: Extinct outside of any 35mm prints found nowadays. Likely appeared in cinemas that had Dolby SR technology at the time. It is unknown if this was used co-current with the 2nd and 4th trailers like the future Dolby Digital trailers were.

Editor's Note: A cute, charming trailer with nice hand-drawn animation.

5th Trailer (Fall 1990-2001?)

Nicknames: "Surround Fantastique", "The Dolby Fanfare"

Trailer: We fly through various terrain and mountains. We then see one mountain and then we fly over it, where we can see a man throwing clothes off it, before we go into the sky to see the Dolby Stereo logo or regular Dolby logo float down. "Making Films Sound Better" appears below, along with information for Spectral Recording on the Dolby Stereo variant.

FX/SFX: Mostly live-action.

Music/Sounds: A majestic orchestrated fanfare composed by Henry Mancini. It would be later re-orchestrated later on for the Dolby Digital version.

Availability: It is unknown; Possibly extinct. It probably showed on cinemas at the time.

Editor's Note: A rather impressive and breathtaking logo; however, the ending animation of the Dolby logo floating down and the byline appearing is pretty low-effort and primitive, sadly.

6th Trailer (December 1996-)

Nickname: "Temple"

Trailer: We see a shot of stairs at ruins of a temple. We then fly through to see a silver Dolby logo on a pedestal. Everything fades out except the logo, which shines.

Variant: This was also used as a feature presentation bumper for the defunct theater chain Act III Theatres. After the Dolby logo appears, the logo fades out to reveal the Act III Theaters Logo the same design used in the 1992 logo of its parent company, only "THEATRES" replaces "TELEVISION") with "FEATURE PRESENTATION" below it, all also in shiny silver.

FX/SFX: The fly through, done by Digital Domain.

Music/Sounds: A choir harmonizing throughout ending with a slow gong and chimes/string-section. Wind, pigeons and an owl hooting are heard. Sound elements from Project One Audio; Mixed by David Parker at The Saul Zaentz Film Center.

Availability: Said to appear on a DVD of a Rambo film. For some unknown reason, this appeared on the 2000 Pakistani film Ghar Kab Aao Gay. Appears on the Dolby "Explore Our World" Demo Disc. This also appears on the 1999 Australian DVD of True Romance.

Editor's Note: A moody atmosphere coupled with some neat CGI makes this logo effective in its presentation. This trailer is noted as originally being mixed for Dolby SR and A-type. Was remixed for the "Explore Our World" by Dolby themselves with Pro Logic II for a surround mix.