Starry Night Productions

Background

This is the vanity logo of Night Court creator/producer Reinhold Weege.

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, plainer font.

Trivia: The name "Starry Night Productions" had originated from the Barney Miller episode "Movie: Part 2", at one point it's here that Sgt. Harris produces a pornographic film to infiltrate the underground pornographic industry for the NYPD. In the episode, Harris uses the name "Starry Night Productions". However, considering the episode was produced in 1981 and Weege left Barney Miller in 1979, the name was meant to be a shout-out.

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 (voiced by Harry Anderson) is heard breaking into laughter after the piano chord first started up that goes over to the Warner Bros. Television logo of the time period (either the 1973 logo on earlier episodes or the '84 "Shield" logo; on recent prints, it's the 2003 logo).

Audio Variant: On one episode of Night Court, after the clap-like sound, the logo is silent.

Availability: Seen on the first six seasons of Night Court (original series only; the reboot doesn't use this logo) 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 stitled animation as noted by audiences.