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Sony Wonder (view source)

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{{PageButtons|Sony Wonder|Print Logos=1}}
{{PageCredits|description=Logoboy95 and others|capture=Logoboy95 and others|video=FanCentralNetwork, statefairshows, Luke2505, originalsboy11, and LogosForTheWin|edits=Shadeed A. Kelly, KirbyGuy2001, and others}}
===Background===
'''Sony Wonder''' was the children's music and home video arm of [[Sony Music Entertainment]], originally formed in 1991 as "Sony Kids' Music". In 1993, Sony Wonder began distributing [[Nickelodeon]] videos until 1996, when their license with Nickelodeon expired. In 1995, the company began distributing ''Kidsongs'' video releases after acquiring the rights from [[KidVision]] until 1998, and [[Sesame Workshop]] releases from 1995 to 2007, as well as ''Arthur'' videos from 2000 to 2006. By 1997, they distributed videos from [[Golden Books Family Entertainment]], which became [[Classic Media]] in 2002.
Sony Wonder also had a TV division, which produced and distributed TV shows. This division of the company purchased [[Sunbow Entertainment]] in 1998, but in October 2000 the company sold their TV division including Sunbow to Germany's [[TV-Loonland AG (Germany)|TV-Loonland AG]].
On March 13, 2007, Sony BMG Music Entertainment announced they would shut down Sony Wonder so that they can focus on their central music businesses; it would be moved to [[Sony Pictures Home Entertainment]] as an in-name-only division on June 20, 2007. The releases by Classic Media (now part of NBCUniversal) and Sesame Workshop were then transferred to [[Genius Products]]. From 2010 to 2018, ''Sesame Street'' DVDs were distributed by [[Warner Bros. Home Entertainment]], and since late 2018, they have been released by [[Shout! Factory Kids]].
=== 1st Logo (Fall 1991-April 11, 1995) ===
<center>[[File:Sony_Wonder_1991.jpg|233x233px|center]]</center>{{YouTube|id=0BjQXDUSeGU}}
'''Nicknames:''' "Bouncy Block", "Weird Block", "Cheesy Block", "Cheapy Wonder"
'''Logo:''' On a white background, we see the {{font color|#202350|dark blue}} Sony logo. At the same time, a {{font color|green|green}} (or {{font color|#13889a|teal}}) box falls from the top to the bottom-middle of the screen, squeezing in as it does so. Once it hits the bottom, it bounces back up, spreading and widening itself, and stops below "SONY", revealing the word "WONDER" in the Herman font.
'''Variant:''' On the 1994 VHS of ''Jim Lee's WildC.A.T.S. Cry of the Coda'', a still of the logo is seen with {{font color|#202350|'''"ALSO AVAILABLE FROM"'''}} above it in the same color as the Sony logo. This is after the initial logo's sequence ends.
'''FX/SFX:''' The box bouncing, the spreading and widening.
'''Music/Sounds:''' None, except for the variant listed above, which has an announcer saying ''"Also available from Sony Wonder."''
'''Availability:''' Rare. It can be seen on pre-1995 Nickelodeon tapes from the era, which are easily available on Amazon and eBay. The later Nickelodeon tapes (the ones that say "Nickelodeon Video") have the next logo. Also seen on VHS tapes of ''A Bunch of Munsch'', ''Dog City'', ''Wild C.A.T.S.'', ''Cadillacs and Dinosaurs'', and ''Tales from the Cryptkeeper''.
'''Editor's Note:''' A rather simple effort using primitive early 1990s graphics, but it is notable for appearing on Nickelodeon tapes prior to Viacom's purchase of Paramount.
===2nd Logo (April 18, 1995-November 7, 2006; February 25, 2014-)===
{{Gallery | align =center | mode =packed | height =175 | width = |File:Sony Wonder 1995 Early.jpg| |File:Sonywonder laserdisc.png| |File:Sony Wonder 1995 better.png| |File:Sony Wonder 1995 Sesame Street videos promo.png| |File:Sony_Wonder_2005.jpg| |File:Sony_Wonder_Logo_(1995;_2013_Reissue).jpg|}}{{YouTube|id=https://youtu.be/C01ky9djaes|id2=TjJT96U2Vuw|id3=WJwHtwJ8ozI}}
'''Nicknames:''' "The Ribbon", "The Sunny Ribbon", "The Sky"
'''Logo:''' We see a cloudy background playing backwards, with a sun glowing behind it. The word "WONDER" (in the Herman font, more simple from before), in a {{Font color|purple|purple}} ribbon, then flies from the top-right to the bottom of the screen, turning {{Font color|magenta|magenta}} in the process. The ribbon then turns {{Font color|blue|blue}} when stopping at the near center, and we see a CGI {{Font color|yellow|yellow}} sun appear in place of the "O" in "WONDER" (and directly behind where the other sun resides) via a light effect. The Sony logo fades in at the top of the ribbon, while the CGI sun "wiggles." The end result is almost the same as the first logo.
'''Variants:'''
*On some tapes and DVDs, alongside television shows, there is a short version which starts with the logo being formed. This can mainly be found on trailers.
*An early version of this logo mostly exists on Nickelodeon tapes such as ''Rocko's Modern Christmas'', ''Aaahh!!! Real Monsters: Monsters Night Out'', and ''Ren & Stimpy: Nothing But Shorts.'' The light effect barely moves and is much brighter, and the sun is a much yellower golden. The background itself is also darker, which was changed on later releases. The sun also became a brighter yellow-orange.
*On Side A of the 1995 ''The Ren and Stimpy Show: The Essential Collection - Classics I & II'' LaserDisc, the logo is in a much higher quality and the sun is more orange.
*On ''Big Bird Sings'', there are no fades at the beginning or end of the logo.
* A still widescreen version of the logo with a different cloud background has been spotted on the 2014 DVD of ''The Swan Princess: A Royal Family Tale'' and the 2016 DVD of ''The Swan Princess: Princess Tomorrow, Pirate Today,'' among very few other current ''Swan Princess'' titles.
*The color of the CGI yellow sun in "WONDER" can vary. On nearly all Sony Wonder releases, the CGI sun is in golden-yellow. On many ''Sesame Street'' VHS releases from late 1996-early 1998 such as ''Sing Yourself Sillier At the Movies'' and ''Kids' Guide to Life: Telling the Truth'', the CGI sun is in orange-yellow orange. On early 1996 ''Sesame Street'' VHS releases such as ''Elmocize'' and ''Rock & Roll'', the logo appears brighter, making the CGI sun appear in a white-tinted color.
*For ''Kidsongs'' VHS releases, the transition choice is either fade-then-cut or the other way around, depending on whether this logo plays before or after the 3rd [[Together Again Productions|TAP logo]].
*On widescreen DVD releases from the company, the logo is centered on a light blue background, and is "blended" into it in the cheapest way possible.
*On the 1999 VHS of ''Little Witch'', an SME copyright notice (in the Impact font) can be seen after the logo fades out.
*On the Greek release of ''Rainbow Fish'', the already-formed logo has its animation stop near the end of its runtime.
*Two short versions exist:
**One that begins where the ribbon stops in the center (seen on Canadian releases of [[PBS Kids]] shows like ''Caillou'' and ''Zoboomafoo'', alongside TV shows like ''Mega Babies'' and the third season of ''The Kidsongs Television Show'').
**One where we fade in as the ribbon animation begins (seen on ''A Rugrats Passover'').
*On trailers for ''Sesame Street'' VHS tapes and cassettes, the logo is already formed with only the clouds in the background moving. The ''Sesame Street Video and Audio'' trailer, however, has it in obvious jagged jpeg quality.
*On ''Generation O!'', the "www.generationO.com" URL appears underneath the logo.
'''FX/SFX:''' The ribbon flying in and the sun and the Sony text both appearing. For the still widescreen version, none.
'''Music/Sounds:''' When the logo starts, we hear a riveting string note being held out, and when the ribbon appears, descending harp notes play in-sync with the ribbon. As the ribbon is in its position with the sun appearing, a brief flute melody plays, and when the Sony logo appears, everything rises to a majestic note complete with tubular bells that slowly stops once the logo fades. This is all synthesized, with some samples produced on the E-mu Proteus 2 Orchestral digital synthesizer.
'''Music/Sounds Variants:'''
*For the early version of the logo, some of the instruments are more quiet. This variant only lasted for a few months, as ''Tales from the Whoop: Hot Rod Brown, Class Clown'', released on August 8, 1995, was the first Nickelodeon VHS to use the normal music.
*On Canadian releases, an announcer will say "Look for these great products now available from Sony Wonder."
*For certain Sesame Street VHS tapes, a echo/reverb effect is added. Same goes for the [[Sesame Workshop#4th Logo (November 16, 1983-July 8, 1997)|CTW "Sparks" logo]] following it.
*On TV shows, only the last half of the tune plays.
**For ''Generation O!'', the music fades out faster than usual.
*At the end of the ''Sesame Street Video and Audio'' trailer, the theme starts near the harp, making it off-sync to the logo's animation.
*In some cases, it's either the advertisement music or opening/ending theme of a show/feature.
*At the end of ''Timothy Tweedle'', the logo's music starts very late, due to its music and the ''Balmur Entertainment'' music being swapped. However, inside the movie's contents contains a version with the logo order fixed.
*Being their only release to use this variant, on the 2003 DVD of ''Zoe's Dance Moves'', a whoosh panning from the right to the left can be heard during the ribbon's movement, along with a twinkle during the bell portion. The VHS release didn't have this, as it used the normal music.
'''Availability:''' Common. It can be seen on many Sony Wonder tapes and DVDs from the late 1990s to the mid-2000s, along with TV shows as well.
* Tapes and DVDs that can feature this include Sesame Street videos, later Arthur releases, and specials from Golden Books Family Entertainment/Classic Media (though on VHS tapes, it mainly appeared at the end).
* The still widescreen version is found on ''The Swan Princess: A Royal Family Tale'' and ''The Swan Princess: Princess Tomorrow, Pirate Today'' (the Christmas special has the Stage 6 Films logo instead). Since 2014, this has been the only variant to be utilized.
* Some of the last releases to use this logo were the 2006 VHS releases of ''Sesame Street: Guess That Shape And Color'', ''Elmo's Potty Time'', and ''Elmo's World: Reach for the Sky!''.
* The "blended" widescreen variant can be found on the DVD release of ''The Legend of Frosty the Snowman'' (the 2005 special) and the 2006 ''Here Comes Peter Cottontail: The Movie'' DVD. However, don't expect this to appear on any Big Idea tapes or DVDs they released.
* The short version is ultra rare. It was seen on international TV airings of ''Generation O!'' years ago, as well as the third season of ''The Kidsongs Television Show''. Also seen on ''Mega Babies'' following the [[CinéGroupe (Canada)|CinéGroupe]] and Landmark Ent. Group logos and ''Fat Dog Mendoza'', as well as Canadian releases of a few [[PBS Kids]] shows like ''Caillou'' and ''Zoboomafoo''. It also appears on Tubi's print of ''Santa Mouse and the Ratdeer''.
'''Editor's Note:''' This logo is a favorite of many due to its omnipresence on releases of ''Sesame Street'' and ''Arthur'', as well as many others. It also utilizes some neat CGI effects that, while not mind-blowingly fantastic, work very well and held up quite well for the logo's lifespan. Similarly to the 1998 [[Klasky-Csupo]] and [[Spiffy Pictures]] logos, this logo has gained notoriety for the many low-quality parodies and remixes of it found on the Internet, including the infamous web series ''Greeny Phatom.''
===3rd Logo (November 14, 2006-April 3, 2007)===
<gallery mode="packed" heights="200">
File:Sony Wonder 2006.jpg
File:Sony Wonder (2007).png
</gallery>{{YouTube|id=https://youtu.be/DuzUDCHluak}}
'''Nicknames:''' "Cheesy Sun", "Flash Sun", "Twirling Sun"
'''Nicknames:''' "Cheesy Sun", "Flash Sun", "Twirling Sun"


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* Sometimes the logo is bylineless.
* Sometimes the logo is bylineless.


'''FX/SFX:''' Simple Flash animation by Bemis Balkind.
'''FX/SFX:''' Simple Flash animation.


'''Music/Sounds:''' We hear a quick jet zooming sound, then multiple xylophone notes and a "TWING!" as the circular sun zooms back. As the sun spins around, we hear several drum taps, then three bouncing sounds. two "dwong" sounds are heard as the Sony Wonder logo is finally formed, followed by an ascending twinkle.
'''Music/Sounds:''' We hear a quick jet zooming sound, then multiple xylophone notes and a "TWING!" as the circular sun zooms back. As the sun spins around, we hear several drum taps, then three bouncing sounds. two "dwong" sounds are heard as the Sony Wonder logo is finally formed, followed by an ascending twinkle.
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</gallery>
</gallery>


'''Nicknames:''' "The Generic Background", "The Text of Laziness" "In-Credit Sony Wonder" "The Text of Boredom"
 
'''Nicknames:''' "The Generic Background", "The Text of Laziness"


'''Logo:''' On the lighted environment background (similar to the website at the time), we see white words that spell "Sony wonder", in the same plain, bold font like the print logo at the time (with the black drop-shadow at the right) on the center of the screen.
'''Logo:''' On the lighted environment background (similar to the website at the time), we see white words that spell "Sony wonder", in the same plain, bold font like the print logo at the time (with the black drop-shadow at the right) on the center of the screen.
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'''Editor's Note:''' Of all the Sony Wonder logos, this is probably the most forgettable of them all, not just because of how it supposedly appeared on only one film, but also just because of how rushed it feels.  
'''Editor's Note:''' Of all the Sony Wonder logos, this is probably the most forgettable of them all, not just because of how it supposedly appeared on only one film, but also just because of how rushed it feels.  


[[Category:American home entertainment logos]]
[[Category:American animation logos]]
[[Category:American logos]]
[[Category:Home entertainment logos]]
[[Category:Home entertainment logos]]
[[Category:Animation logos]]
[[Category:Animation logos]]
[[Category:Sony Corporation (Japan)]]
[[Category:Sony Corporation (Japan)]]
Retrieved from "https://avidwiki.mywikis.net/wiki/Special:MobileDiff/132882"

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