Videosonic

Background

Videosonic was one of the largest Greek home video distributors. They released Greek tapes made by RCA/Columbia Pictures International Video, Columbia-TriStar Home Video, and Orion Home Video, along with some B-movies.

1st Logo (1983-1995)

Visuals: On a glittery, starry background, a blue grid flips to the bottom, while three more flip to the top, left, and right. The grids from the left and right disappear as the words "VIDEOSONIC", in a green futuristic font, with a white circle inside the letter "O", zoom back in a light trail effect and set in place in between the two grids. The logo then turns white and shines and flashes pink as a green 3D TV tube shape with a weird red bird-like object (actually the letters "VS" out of semicircles) zoom out and spins around from the right. It then sits on the top and flashes and turns 2D. The logo flashes too and turns green as the circle turns red. The grids then move until the logo cuts into the warning screen, all in Greek.

Variant: On some tapes, there is a warning screen (a different one that scrolls upwards) before the logo. "Sad Day" still plays from the beginning, so when the logo appears it isn't in sync with the music.

Technique: Scanimate.

Audio: An oversaturated snippet of the song "Sad Day" by Blancmange, also pitched a semi-tone higher.

Availability: Seen on Videosonic videos from the era, primarily RCA/Columbia International Video and Orion Home Video releases. Such titles include Ghostbusters (1984), Annie (1982), Stand by Me, and Silverado, among other films.

2nd Logo (1995?-1999)

Visuals: On a blue background with a gradient black bar in the middle of the screen, a clip of the 3rd Columbia Tristar Home Video is seen quickly forming up. A chroma-keyed Oscar statue slides in from the left and wipes it to the 2nd Orion Pictures logo (the "COMING FROM" variant). It then shows several film clips as the background turns into a bigger copy of the slips. This goes on for a few seconds before going to a clip of a black background, green floor with checker patterns, and walls of some VHS's scrolling away. The background then turns into the background before the clips and the aforementioned clip then "flips" away, as a remote flies up. As it flies away, a pair of red rings, a sphere, and 4 copies of "VIDEOSONIC" from before, but in yellow and with a thick outline, zooms out and turns towards the screen. The background then becomes mostly black with a blue spotlight in the middle and the rings then intersect through the words, the the farthest word becoming 3-D and gaining blue inside the border. The rings shine briefly before everything disappears, except for the word and the sphere, in which the latter fills in the "O". The logo shines with yellow in the word and white in the outline, as well as the registered trademark spinning in.

Technique: CGI and live action footage.

Audio: A short version of "Personal Best" by Craig Palmer.

Availability: Since Videosonic was one of the largest Greek home video distributors, it should be at least somewhat easy to find in Greece (and possibly Cyprus). Could be seen on Greek Orion and CTHV releases, as well as B-movies. Such titles include Matilda, Jumanji, The Quick and the Dead, Jerry Maguire, and The Craft, among others.

3rd Logo (1999-2008)

Visuals: 2 variants of this logo exist:

VHS: On a dark blue background, there is an E and O, both connected, zoom out and spin with white light surrounding it and a red sphere in the middle. It spins along with the other letters (V, I, D, S, O, N, I and C) also surrounded in white light and omitting white patterns beind them as they spin around the screen. The letters get close to each other, and the whole screen flashes white as a red rectangle appears behind with the trademark symbol next to the text.
DVD: On a murky blue background, there is a white rectangle spinning and zooming towards us before turning yellow. Once it stops, it turns orange and the text "VIDEOSONIC" zooms out, letter by letter. A yellow outline appears, then a red 3D ball zooms out and stops in the center of the "O". The logo then flashes.

Technique: Both variants use CGI.

Audio: Depends.

VHS: A futuristic synth tune with whooshes which ends with a muffled boom and a synth hum.
DVD: A droning synth piece, followed by whooshes.

Availability: Can be seen on Greek DVDs and VHS tapes from Columbia/TriStar Home Video and Sony Pictures Home Entertainment. This appears on many film titles like Shrek, The Ring, Love Actually, Hulk (2003), and Madagascar, among others.