Logo Color questions

General goings on in the 1966 Batman World

Moderators: Scott Sebring, Ben Bentley

Post Reply
User avatar
rsaffle
Posts: 2
Joined: Mon Mar 30, 2020 3:09 pm

Logo Color questions

Post by rsaffle »

The TV show intro shows a black bat logo with white Batman letters. Where did the version with yellow Batman letters first come from? I created a logo and instantly painted the letters yellow but now I'm thinking that was incorrect and it got me wondering. Seems like most products released have the yellow letters, including the DVD and Blu-ray.
*See more 3D printed props @ https://www.instagram.com/saffledesigns/
Lounge lizard
Posts: 0
Joined: Mon Sep 03, 2012 5:46 am

Re: Logo Color questions

Post by Lounge lizard »

The yellow backed logo first appeared in 2 comics dated May 1964 which means they would have hit the stands in March that year.
Juilius Schwarz was given 6 months to save the Batman titles whose sales had been in decline.
Detective Comic #327 and World's Finest #141 both feature the 'New Look' logo though intriguingly neither feature it on the cover.
Schwarz brought in Carmine Infantino to give the characters a fresh look however it would seem the World's Finest edition just made it to the market slightly before.
User avatar
Jim Akin
Posts: 0
Joined: Tue Sep 18, 2012 8:24 pm

Re: Logo Color questions

Post by Jim Akin »

Excellent question. I hope someone on the board has firsthand insight into this. (I don't.)

The earliest instance I recall of yellow lettering on the TV logo was on the Topps trading card wax packs, which indicates the "colorization" started pretty early on.

FWIW, I've participated in several logo development processes, and one of the keys is having a design that's identifiable at any size and that, regardless of color palette, still works when printed in a single ink color. (The TV bat logo, minus purple highlights and facial skin tone, works great in monochrome.) I imagine designers working on TV in the mid-60s had similar objectives, and wanted logos that "popped" on color and black-and-white sets of all sizes, so maybe that was a consideration in leaving the lettering white.
User avatar
rsaffle
Posts: 2
Joined: Mon Mar 30, 2020 3:09 pm

Re: Logo Color questions

Post by rsaffle »

Interesting link to the evolution of the bat symbol and as Lounge Lizard pointed out the yellow being introduced. Still doesn't answer the appearance of yellow letters in the tv logo. Can anyone beat Jim's Topps cards being 1st?

I wonder if a logo design sheet was created up front and had color options listed for print use. This is pretty common to provide the preferred color combinations and alternatives.

https://www.cheatsheet.com/entertainmen ... mbol.html/
*See more 3D printed props @ https://www.instagram.com/saffledesigns/
User avatar
Ben Bentley
Moderator
Posts: 1270
Joined: Fri Aug 17, 2012 2:31 pm

Re: Logo Color questions

Post by Ben Bentley »

rsaffle wrote: Sun Dec 20, 2020 9:40 am Interesting link to the evolution of the bat symbol and as Lounge Lizard pointed out the yellow being introduced. Still doesn't answer the appearance of yellow letters in the tv logo. Can anyone beat Jim's Topps cards being 1st?
Off the top of my head I don't recall at what point in 1966 the "Black Bat"/Series 1 Topps cards were released, but I do believe the only time we ever saw the yellow version of the show logo was during the trailer for the Movie.
Screenshot 2020-12-20 at 17.42.36.jpg
User avatar
Lee Kirkham
Posts: 2
Joined: Tue Aug 21, 2012 11:45 am

Re: Logo Color questions

Post by Lee Kirkham »

The first place I remember seeing the logo in yellow was on the soundtrack LP, which would predate the movie by a few months:

Image
I find you to be odious, abhorrent and insegrevious.
Post Reply