Starry Night Productions
Background
Starry Night Productions was the vanity card of Night Court creator Reinhold Weege. The name originates from the Barney Miller episode "Movie: Part 2", in which Det. Ron Harris produces an adult film in order to infiltrate New York's underground pornography industry. For his fictitious company, Harris uses the name "Starry Night Productions". Weege was a writer for Barney Miller, although not that particular episode.
Logo (January 4, 1984-May 3, 1989)
Visuals: The skyline of Chicago at night is seen with no stars in the sky. A shooting star flies into the sky and explodes, then disappears. After that, a starfield appears in the sky as the text "STARRY NIGHT PRODUCTIONS" appears at the bottom of the screen in a white serif font. The text "IN ASSOCIATION WITH" appears below it in a smaller, more plain font.
Technique: 2D animation.
Audio: A clap-like sound followed by an electric piano chord. Starting in March 1984 with "Harry and the Rock Star", the 11th episode of Night Court, a man is heard breaking into laughter after the piano chord plays that carries over to the Warner Bros. Television logo.
Audio Trivia: The voice of the man laughing is that of Chuck Weege, father of Reinhold Weege. He attended almost all Night Court tapings, and his laughter can be heard in some episodes.[1]
Audio Variant: On one episode of Night Court, after the clap-like sound, the logo is silent.
Availability: Appears on the first six seasons of Night Court (1984) and the 1984 TV pilot Earthlings.
Legacy: This is a particularly infamous logo due to its' unsettling atmosphere thanks to the music, the laugh heard on most variants, the darkness, and the stilted animation as noted by audiences.
