Logo descriptions by Seth Nelson and Bigrene2

Logo captures by Eric S. and Mr. Logo Lord
Editions by Mr. Logo Lord and V of Doom
Video capture courtesy of catbeast2007


Background: DLT Entertainment Ltd(formerly known as D.L./Don Taffner Syndication Sales/Entertainment/Productions Ltd. until 1996)., is a distrbution company which handles off-network syndicated shows into distribution. The company is best known for distributing the popular sitcom Three's Company. Also, the company handles other shows such as Too Close for Comfort, and Three's a Crowd(a spinoff of Three's Company). The company made it's way around by producing one of United Kingdom's long running sitcoms, As Time Goes By, on The BBC, among other UK sitcoms, such as Full House(not to be confused with the US sitcom, which ran on ABC, in which the UK series was renamed after the US series was getting popular to audiences, and it was renamed to avoid confusion), The Benny Hill Show, and others. The company also owns the international rights to The Adventures of Teddy Ruxpin (originally produced by DiC Entertainment and LBS Communications). Taffner also owns a british production unit, named Theatre of Comedy Limited(Ltd.), which that company is known best for producing the As Time Goes By series.




1st Logo
(1977-1985)

Logo: This on-screen text would usually be found at the end of a show’s closing credits. On Three’s Company, the following would read:


However, on Too Close for Comfort, the following would read:


Except on season 1 of the show, which read:


FX/SFX: None; scrolls up with the credits.

Music/Sounds: The closing theme of the show.

Availability: If you saw the above, and them being superimposed, you'd know by now.

Scare Factor: None to minimal; depends on what ending theme might be used (Too Close for Comfort can be the most bothersome) or what comes after, like the next logo here.



2nd Logo
(1979-1994)

Nicknames: “The Zooming Text of Doom”, "The V of Doom-like Logo", “Harvest Gold or Avocado Green?”, "The Rollercoaster of Doom"

Logo: On a gold-orange background, resembling that of kitchen appliances back in the late 70s and throughout the 80s, the following text zooms to the center of the screen:


The words are in the same font used in the Three’s Company credits, and the zoom-up is a lot like the Viacom “V of Doom” logo, except you can make out sort of a rollercoaster effect (think of it as the Telepictures “Rollercoaster Shadows” logo, but upside-down without the shadows, almost)

Trivia: This never appeared after Three’s Company on its original ABC run; this logo was used for syndication of that show only, like the logo suggested.

FX/SFX: The zoom in.

Cheesy Factor: Not only does this text seem ugly, it seems scary enough to remind viewers of another familiar local-TV sight at the time!

Music/Sounds: None.

Availability: Pretty much extinct; originally Three’s Company now has the 4th logo in place of this one.

Scare Factor: High to nightmare; the silence combined with the ugliness of the logo as well as the way the words zoom up will cause people’s spines to tingle. However, the scare factor is lower for those who are used to seeing it.




3rd Logo(As Time Goes By variant)
1st Variant
(1992-1996)

Logo: On set with a gray background with the BBC logo of the time, and the Theatre of Comedy Ltd. in-credit notice(with theater masks as part of it's logo) after closing away from the As Time Goes By credits, we see the text reading:

A

THEATRE OF COMEDY (in it's respective font) PRODUCTION

IN ASSOCIATION WITH

D.L. TAFFNER/U.K. PRODUCTIONS LTD.

FOR BBC TELEVISION



Variant: On some occasions, the BBC logo of the time, is seen under D.L. Taffner's name, replacing the "BBC Television" in-credit notice.

SFX: None.

Music/Sounds: The ending theme of As Time Goes By.

Cheesy Factor: None.

Avalibility: Seen on 1992-1996 episodes of As Time Goes By. It can be seen on PBS affiliates in the United States.

2nd Variant
(1996-2005)

Logo: Same as the last variant, only with a couple slight changes: the text D.L. Taffner Productions Ltd. in-credit notice is replaced by a new logo for it, reading DLT Entertainment(in the same font as the logo below), and the Theatre of Comedy Entertainment, and BBC logos are above and below it, respectively. Also, there is a "swoosh" effect for the Theatre of Comedy logo.

Variant: Along with BBC's then-new, now current logo in 1997, the background was slightly changed as well.

SFX: The formation of the Theatre of Comedy logo.



Music/Sounds: Same as the first variant.


Cheesy Factor: None.

Avalibility: Same as the first variant.



4th Logo
(1999- )


Nickname: "DLT"

Logo: On a black background, we see the words “DON TAFFNER’S” with a red line above it first. Those words zoom back, as a white star appears in the middle of the screen, rotating counter-clockwise while a big red “D” comes in from the lower left corner, a big red “L” comes in from the bottom center, and a big red “T” comes in from near the upper right corner. After the “DLT” is formed, the star stops rotating, is already in the “D,” and the words “ENTERTAINMENT LTD.,” this time with the red line BELOW the words, slides in from the left at a fast pace, stopping right below the “DLT”.

Variants:

• There’s a short version on Nick-at-Nite and TV Land reruns of Three's Company that has the URL www.threescompany.com below the logo.
• A longer version holds the last note of the music longer, does not have the URL, and is followed by the 1993 Program Exchange “Arrows of Annoyance” logo.

FX/SFX: The production company name appearing, the DLT forming, the spinning star, etc.

Music/Sounds: Starts with a hiss combined with a single synth note, followed by a five-note piano tune.

Availability: This is on both Nick at Nite, TV Land, and local versions of Three’s Company.

Scare Factor: Low; much nicer than the previous logo, but if you see this on local TV, you’ll still be annoyed by the Program Exchange logo.