MGM Home Entertainment/Online Bumpers
Background
Starting in 1996, and until 2005, these bumpers advertising the MGM website appeared on products from MGM/UA Home Video/MGM Home Entertainment.
1st Bumper (1996-1998)
Bumper: On a white background, lime green dust forms a lime green oval while an orange circle with a white arrow spins. The words "visit mgm/ua on the internet" and "www.mgmua.com/video" fly in from the left and right sides of the screen respectively. An orange arrow flies down towards the circle and disappears while the latter text stops at the oval.
Technique: Computer effects.
Music/Sounds: None usually, but on the 1996 demo tapes of Unforgettable and It's My Party, there is music from the movie that plays as an announcer says "Visit [NAME OF MOVIE] on the Internet at www.mgmua.com."
Availability: Seen on certain MGM/UA releases of the era such as All Dogs Go to Heaven 2, Kingpin, Mullholland Falls, Larger than Life and the 1996 VHS of Rocky, as well as early MGM DVD releases such as the 1997 DVD releases of Goldeneye and The Black Stallion (also retained on reprints), and the 1998 releases of Red Dawn, Hang 'Em High, and The Good, the Bad, & the Ugly. It even pops up on DVD reprints of the latter title and the THX remastered 1998 laserdisc of Singin' In The Rain before the MGM/UA Home Video logo.
2nd Bumper (1997-2002; 2004)
Bumper: On a black background, an invisible filmstrip of MGM logos is rolling down. The camera eases back to show an angled view of a blue screen with black and white overtones while the filmstrip moves to the left. The blue screen has a yellow/orange circle with the letters "mgM" and the word "ONLINE" on the bottom right of those letters. About 85% of the circle is cut out, specifically on the "g" and most of the bottom, leaving a crescent shape. A spotlight shines on the circle. Then, the screen slides backwards, and another screen of the same style slides in front of it, but this one has the words "Visit MGM at" on the top, and at the bottom, the URL "www.mgm.com", also in the yellow/orange color. The camera then moves so that only the screen shows, while the URL moves upward to be on the top center of it. At the same time, "Visit MGM at" disappears.
Variant: On the 1999 DVD of For a Few Dollars More, the top and bottom sides of the screen are cropped to create a widescreen version.
Technique: A mix of live-action footage (Leo) and computer effects.
Music/Sounds: Aside from Leo roaring, there is a synthesized whoosh when the bumper begins. As the second screen slides in, there is a mechanical moving sound, and then a thud. Then, as the camera moves to face the screen, a weird synthesized moving sound is heard, which sounds like a car from The Jetsons. When the camera gets into a comfortable position, the bumper ends with another thud.
Music/Sound Variant: On some 1998 re-releases, this bumper is silent.
Availability: Seen on MGM Home Entertainment VHS and DVD releases from the time frame, as well as later MGM/UA Home Video releases such as Red Dawn (VHS release only; the DVD used the previous bumper) and A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum. On DVD, its first appearances are on the 1998 releases of Leaving Las Vegas and Rollerball. It was used in tandem with the 3rd bumper until 2002, an example being the original 2000 VHS issue of Return to Me, which has both bumpers (however, the 2001 VHS of The Greatest Story Ever Told only has this bumper). The silent version appears on the 1998 VHS releases of Shag: The Movie, Blood Red, Amos and Andrew, Blown Away, West Side Story, Running Scared, and Get Shorty. The last MGM release to use this bumper was the 2002 VHS of Bandits, though it is still retained on reprints of older editions, such as the 2004 reprint of the 2000 DVD of The Alamo (1960), the 2012 reprint of the 2000 DVD of Spaceballs, and the 2014 reprint of the 1999 DVD of Overboard (1987). Surprisingly, this was used on the 2004 Australian VHS of Dark Blue.
3rd Bumper (2000-2005)
Bumper: On a black background, the 1986 MGM logo animates as normal. When it is done, it dissolves into the text "COME SEE WHAT THE ROAR IS ABOUT" in a white Impact font. The text zooms in slightly towards the viewer before dissolving into the URL "MGM.COM". It zooms in slightly towards the viewer, before the bumper fades to black.
Technique: Live action footage (Leo) and computer effects (the rest).
Music/Sounds: A different lion roar than usual, then some ominous synth drones and whooshes. The Leo roar in this bumper was heard in the MGM Means Great Movies promo.
Availability: Rare, as it was the last of these bumpers to be seen on VHS releases. It was used on VHS releases like A Christmas Carol: The Movie, It's a Very Merry Muppet Christmas Movie, Soul Plane, and Be Cool. As mentioned above, this was used in tandem with the 2nd bumper until 2002. Also, it is the VHS equivalent of the 4th bumper. Some of the first products to use this bumper include What's The Worst That Could Happen, Dirty Pictures and Attention Shoppers, among others.
4th Bumper (2001-2005)
Bumper: On a black background, a large "@" symbol fades in on the center of the viewer's screen. While it does this, the words "visit mgm" wipe in in front of it. As this happens, the MGM logo (minus the MGM header and the TM symbol) types in and zooms in. The logo briefly rests but then begins zooming in again, until Leo is uncomfortably close to the viewer's screen. He then fades out, while the "@" symbol disappears, and the "visit mgm" text transforms into a golden line. The URL "www.mgm.com" wipes in above that golden line. The golden line fades out, while the URL is still on the viewer's screen. The URL is seen for 3 more seconds before the bumper fades out.
Variant: On some releases, the bumper is shown in widescreen.
Technique: Modern digital effects apart from Leo.
Music/Sounds: Aside from Leo roaring, there is a two-note orchestrated fanfare, which ends in a twinkle that sustains itself ominously.
Availability: Seen on MGM Home Entertainment/DVD releases from the era such as Saved!, Agent Cody Banks, Good Boy!, UHF and Legally Blonde 2: Red, White & Blonde. Also, it is the DVD equivalent of the 3rd bumper. The earliest known release to use it is Running Scared, and one of the last products to use it is the Collector's Edition DVD of Spaceballs.
