CBC National IDs

Logo descriptions by mr3urious, Thisisanswer and rj4712

1st Logo
(1956-1974)

Nicknames: "The Map", "Canada Map", "Map of Canada"

Logo: On a cyan background, we see a dark blue map of Canada with longitude and latitude lines. On it is "RADIO-CANADA" with "CBC" either above or below it in yellow or white.

Variant: There is a black and white version.

FX/SFX: None.

Music/Sounds: A male announcer saying "This is the CBC Television Network." In French-speaking parts of Canada (such as Quebec), where CBC is called "Radio-Canada", a different male announcer says "Ici Radio-Canada."

Availability: Extinct on TV, though like many things, it is preserved on old tapes and YouTube. It was dropped by the end of 1974 for the next logo.

Scare Factor: Low. The announcer may spook some.

2nd Logo
(December 1974-December 31, 1985)

Nicknames: "The Gem", "Exploding Pizza", "Kaleidoscope"

Logo: On a blue background, several orange/salmon/yellow/red-colored objects form in the middle of the screen via a kaleidoscope/mirror effect, forming the CBC logo, which consists of a red "C" with several curved lines and half-circles on the outer edge.

Variant: A variant used in 1975 had different animation and a different, more bombastic fanfare. On a blue background, several small CBC logos pop up on screen to form a pattern, before the middle one zooms into the screen ala the "V of Doom" and overtakes the screen. This one is nicknamed "CBC of Doom".

FX/SFX: The logo forming. Very nice 2D animation.

Music/Sounds: An 11-note synthesized woodwind sounder, with a male announcer saying "This is CBC." In French-speaking parts of Canada, where CBC is called "Radio-Canada", a different male announcer says "Ici Radio-Canada." Earlier before 1975, this logo used a dramatic 3-note tune with flutes and brass.

Availability: Extinct on TV, though like many things, it is preserved on old tapes and YouTube. It was dropped by the end of 1985 for the next logo.

Scare Factor:

Minimal for the regular version and low for the 3-note version. The odd animation, design, and music could creep some out, but this is a favorite amongst Canadians.
Low to high for the "CBC of Doom" variant, as the loud music and the "V of Doom"-like zoom-in could pester quite a few people.

3rd Logo
(January 1, 1986-November 1992)

Nicknames: "The Gem II", "Exploding Pizza II", "Glass Gem", "Shiny Gem"

Logo: On a different-colored background, depending on the variant, with a wavy pattern composed of pieces of the familiar "Exploding Pizza", the 1986-1992 CBC logo appears one-by-one in the center, which consists of the 1974 CBC logo but a bit thinner, which then shines.

Variants: Many variants were commissioned for this logo, and were color-coded for each period of the day.

Morning: The background is colored purple/tan/blue gradient, and the CBC logo is colored cyan/tan/pink.
Afternoon: The background is colored cyan, and the CBC logo is colored cerulean.
Evening: The background is colored turquoise, and the CBC logo is colored cyan.
Night: The background is colored black, and the CBC logo is purple. In some cases, the background is colored with a white gradient.
50th Anniversary (the only known non-daypart version): The background is black, and the CBC logo is gold.

FX/SFX: The waving logo, the pieces fading in. Very nice CGI animation! It looks very good almost 28 years later.

Cheesy Factor: On brighter variants, the logo pattern looks tacked onto it.

Music/Sounds: A very quick synth piano background, followed by a 5-note synth-chime fanfare and an announcer saying "This is CBC Television" or "Ici Radio-Canada". This was used with the afternoon/evening variants. The morning variant used a majestic flute tune in place of the fanfare, whereas the night and 50th anniversary variants used brass renditions of the tune. The 50th anniversary variant also used an announcer saying "CBC. 50 years of telling your story." Sometimes, the announcer says the programs premiering depending on the time of the day.

Availability: Same as before. It was abandoned during November 1992. The 50th Anniversary is long extinct, as it was only used in 1986.

Scare Factor:It depends on the variant...

Minimal for the Morning, Afternoon, and Evening variants. The music is very soothing, but it all depends on how you feel about the background. Otherwise this is a beautiful logo for the mid 80's.
Low to medium for the Night and 50th Anniversary variants, due to the darkness.

4th Logo
(November 1992-December 31, 1997)

Nicknames: "The Gem III", "Exploding Pizza III", "Simplified Gem"

Logo: We see a shiny 2x2 grid, with the right top square reading "CBC" and the opposite square reading "SRC". The grid then opens up and turns into a circle. The camera then zooms out as several pieces zoom out onto the circle to reveal the current CBC logo, which is bolder than the other variants and has a solid circle in the middle instead of a "C". Several green, red, and blue streaks move between the logo parts. Sometimes the names of the cities being served in the area appear in the lower corners of the screen.

FX/SFX: The rotating of the pieces, the streaks.Like before, just very good animation.

Cheesy Factor: The names are badly chyroned in when it appears.

Music/Sounds: A bell fanfare ending in a flourish. An announcer says either "This is CBC. Public broadcasting.", "This is the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation", "This is CBC, Canadian Broadcasting Corporation.", or "Ici Radio-Canada".

Availability: Same as before. It was abandoned during December 31, 1997.

Scare Factor: Low to medium, due to the darkness, announcer, and quite fast pace of the animation.

5th Logo

(January 1, 1998-December 31, 2001)

Nicknames: "The Gem IV", "Exploding Pizza IV", "Red Gem"

Logo:On a white background, a strange object opens up in the middle of the screen. The official logo of CBC, which consists of the CBC gem with "CBC Radio-Canada" in between the gem, zooms out into a interlocking pattern of CBC logos. A red circle appears and spreads out into the gem as the pattern of logos zooms out and fades away, leaving the gem slowly zooming in.

FX/SFX: The gem forming, the logos moving.Like before, just very good animation.

Music/Sounds:Same as before.

Availability:Same as before. It was abandoned during December 31, 2001.

Scare Factor:Low, due to the announcer and quite fast pace of the animation.

6th Logo

(September 2001-January 2006)

Nicknames: "The Gem V", "Exploding Pizza V", "Red Gem II"

Logo:On a white background with some rotating objects, we zoom through many digitized lines that move around. We then see 4 of them colliding, making the gem. The screen flashes and then the gem in red zooms out piece by piece. "CBC" and "Canada's own" fades in below.

FX/SFX: The lines, the gem zooming out.Like before, just very good animation.

Music/Sounds:An majestic fanfare with the announcer saying "This is CBC, Canada's own."

Availability: Extinct.

Scare Factor:Low, due to the announcer and quite fast pace of the animation.

7th Logo

(January 2006-2009)

8th Logo

(2009-2012)

9th Logo

(2012-2014)

10th Logo

(2014-)

CBC National IDs

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