Rankin/Bass Animated Entertainment: Difference between revisions

'''Rankin/Bass Animated Entertainment''' was formed in September 1960 by Arthur '''Rankin''', Jr. and Jules '''Bass''' as '''[[Videocraft International]]'''; it was renamed to Rankin/Bass in 1968. In 1971, the company was acquired by [[Tomorrow Entertainment]] and distributed by [[Viacom (1971-2006)|Viacom Enterprises]], while [[Broadway Video]] acquired the rights to the pre-1974 library in 1988. It was later acquired by [[Telepictures Productions|Telepictures]] on January 24, 1983 and then became a subsidiary of [[Lorimar-Telepictures]]. The studio closed in 1987 as a result of TV show failures like ''The Comic Strip'', and its partnership was dissolved in 2001 after the production of the studio's last Christmas special ''Santa, Baby!''.

The pre-1974 library is currently owned by [[NBCUniversal]] on behalf of [[DreamWorks Animation]] through their [[DreamWorks Classics]] label, while the post-1974 library is owned by [[Warner Bros. Television|Warner Bros. Entertainment, Inc.]] except for ''The Jackson 5ive'', which is distributed by [[CBS Media Ventures]]. Rankin/Bass's theatrical film library is currently split amongst different companies. [[StudioCanal]] owns ''The Wacky World of Mother Goose'' and ''Mad Monster Party'' since both movies were released by [[Embassy Films Associates|Embassy Pictures]], ''The Last Unicorn'' is currently owned by [[ITV Studios]] (released by [[ITC Entertainment Group|ITC]]) and [[Universal Pictures]] owns ''Willy McBean and his Magic Machine'' via DreamWorks Animation and ''King Kong Returns''.

'''Logo:''' On a black background, the 1975 logo plays, without the "A" and "PRODUCTION" above and below the now-white "ran{{small|K}}in bass" words, respectively. The word "''{{color|skyblue|animated}}''" in a script-like font flashes and appears. The words "{{color|skyblue|entertainment from}}" then slides in. We then cut to a sped-up version of the [[Telepictures Productions|Telepictures]] "Linecoaster" logo.

'''Logo:''' We see the classic Rankin/Bass logo, except made completely three-dimensional, with the text in {{color|royalblue|royal blue}} and in the corporate font of then-current parent company Telepictures. A white line forms under the logo, and that line "springs" into a cursive "Animated Entertainment". Then, the "RB" zooms up, and the shapes slide apart as they come closer to the screen, revealing a white "from". As the "O" overtakes the screen, we see the animation of either [[Telepictures Productions|Telepictures]] (1985-86) or [[Lorimar-Telepictures]] (1986-89), which eventually fills the entire screen.