The Lion 39;s Roar 1985

[Kensel Whiteman]

Since1924 (when the studio was formed by the merger of Samuel Goldwyn's studio with Marcus Loew's Metro Pictures and Louis B. Mayer's company), there have been around five different lions used for the MGM logo.

Leo, the seventh lion, is MGM's longest-lived lion, having appeared on most MGM films since 1957. He has a smaller mane than any of the other lions (which is because he was at a very young age compared to his predecessors when his roaring was filmed). It apperead on Just the Wait (1957)

A different logo, a circular still graphic image of a lion known as "The Stylized Lion", appeared on three films in the 1960s: Grand Prix (1966), 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968), and The Subject Was Roses (1968). Leo was reintroduced after this logo was discontinued. The Stylized Lion, however, was retained by the MGM Records division and was also used as a secondary logo on MGM film posters, in addition to being shown at the end of credit rolls following most MGM movie releases of this period. It was later used by the MGM Grand casinos. (A refined version of it is used as the logo for their parent company, MGM Resorts International.)

From 1984 to 1985, MGM used a variation of its main studio logo for its 60th anniversary based on the print logo, with the ribbons in a golden color. Above the ribbons were the words "Diamond Jubilee", replacing the standard company name, and below the ribboning was the phrase "Sixty Years of Great Entertainment". The "Ars Gratia Artis" motto was removed from inside the circle and replaced with the text "Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer/United Artists". The drama mask from the bottom had its surrounding laurels removed, and the mask itself was moved up a little so that an additional golden ribbon with the text reading "Entertainment Co." below would be added. Although the new roar effect done by Mangini was primarily being used at the time, 2010: The Year We Make Contact (1984) had both the 1960 and 1982 roar effects mixed together.

The logo was retained in the corporate revamp following their acquisition of United Artists in 1981. The logo now read "MGM/UA Entertainment Co."; this logo would appear on all MGM/UA films from 1983 until 1986 and again in 1987 on the film O.C. and Stiggs (which was originally produced in 1985). It was also at this time that the original lion roar sound was replaced with a remade stereophonic one, redone by Mark Mangini; the first film to use the new roar sound was Poltergeist (1982). Incidentally, the sound effect was also used for a beast in the film.

When the company began using MGM and UA as separate brands in 1986, a new logo for MGM was introduced a year later; the same gold ribbons used for the Diamond Jubilee" variant was retained, and the text was redone in exactly the same color. Subsequently, a new "MGM/UA Communications Co." logo was introduced, and would precede both the MGM and UA logos until it was dropped in 1990. (However, both logos would still have the byline "An MGM/UA Communications Company" until 1992.) The lion roar was remixed again in 1995, because an MGM executive found the then-current roar to be "lacking muscle". Using digital audio technology to blend many roars together, including the 1982 roar, the new roar effect debuted with the release of Cutthroat Island (1995). (The purpose of the new roar, also done by Mark Mangini, was not only to give the sound more "muscle", but also to fit into films with 5.1 surround sound.) In 2001, MGM's website address, "www.mgm.com", was added to the bottom of the logo.

In 2012, as first shown as a snippet in the teaser and theatrical trailers of the 23rd James Bond film Skyfall, to which can now be fully seen on the studio's website under its history link, Shine Studio was chosen to redesign and animate the logo in stereoscopic 3-D (three dimensional). This marks the first time in the company's 88-year history that the MGM logo and its lion mascot have been created in 3-D stereo. To add dimension, Shine modeled a close up of Leo's eye creating an element to pull back through for a dramatic reveal of the lion, laurels and filmstrip. All the elements of the logo were re-built in 3-D, and then placed on different planes to add dimensional layers and drama. Leo roars and the company name is brought in from above to center the top screen, which completes the logo sequence. MGM's website address was removed, as MGM is no longer as of 2012 a self-distribution entity, but rather a production company. One reason for the new full-motion logo is the fact that more commonplace digital 3-D movies are being released almost every week and for upcoming films MGM has partnered in production with, such as Wreck-It Ralph with Columbia Pictures and Walt Disney Pictures, the Hobbit film series with New Line Cinema, Hansel and Gretel: Witch Hunters and G.I. Joe: Retaliation with Paramount Pictures they are, for example, either shot in native digital 3-D or converted in post-production to stereoscopic digital 3-D.

Leo the Lion is the mascot for the Hollywood film studio Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer and one of its predecessors, Goldwyn Pictures, featured in the studio's production logo, which was created by the Paramount Studios art director Lionel S. Reiss.[1]

Since 1916 (and when the studio was formed by the merger of Samuel Goldwyn's studio with Marcus Loew's Metro Pictures and Louis B. Mayer's company in 1924), there have been seven different lions used for the MGM logo.

Slats,[2] trained by Volney Phifer, was the first lion used for the newly formed studio. Born at the Dublin Zoo[3] on March 20, 1919, and originally named Cairbre,[4] Slats was used on all black-and-white MGM films between 1924 and 1928. The original logo was designed by Howard Dietz and used by the Goldwyn Pictures Corporation studio from 1916 to 1924 (see left). Goldwyn Pictures was ultimately absorbed into the partnership that formed MGM, and the first MGM film that used the logo was He Who Gets Slapped (1924). Dietz stated that he decided to use a lion as the company's mascot as a tribute to his alma mater Columbia University, whose athletic teams' nickname is The Lions; he further added that Columbia's fight song, "Roar, Lion, Roar", inspired him to make the lion roar. Unlike his successors, Slats did nothing but look around in the logo (as did the Goldwyn Pictures lion), making him the only MGM lion not to roar (although it is rumored that Volney Phifer trained the lion to growl on cue, despite the fact that synchronized sound would not officially be used in motion pictures until 1927). Slats died in 1936 at the age of 17.[5]

In addition to appearing in the MGM logo, Jackie appeared in over a hundred films, including the Tarzan movies that starred Johnny Weissmuller. Jackie also appeared with an apprehensive Greta Garbo in a well-known 1926 publicity still. The lion is also known for surviving several accidents, including two train wrecks, an earthquake, and an explosion in the studio. In the most famous case, a pilot had to crash-land his plane, and left Jackie stranded in the Arizona wilderness for four days with some water and sandwiches[7]. Jackie received the nickname "Leo the Lucky".

An extended version of the logo featuring Coffee appears at the beginning of the short Wild People (1932), featuring the lion roaring three times, rather than just twice. Also, an extended version of the logo featuring Telly appeared at the beginning of the film The Viking (1928), and Telly had the same roar as Coffee's.

Tanner, whose first appearance was before the short subject Holland in Tulip Time (1934) (his first feature film appearance was before Sweethearts four years later, in 1938), was MGM's third longest-lived lion to be used (for a total of 22 years), after Jackie (who was used for a total of 28 years) and the current lion (who has been retained for 64 years). It is this version of the logo that was the most frequently used version throughout the Golden Age of Hollywood, although color did not really become the norm until the 1960s (and even then, many movies were still being made in black-and-white).

Tanner and Jackie were both kept in the change from Academy ratio films to widescreen CinemaScope movies in 1953, with Tanner for color movies and Jackie for black-and-white films. The logo was modified for this change; the marquee below the ribbon design was removed, and the company name was thus placed in a semi-circle above the ribbons.

The sixth lion, named George,[8] was introduced in 1956, and appeared more heavily maned than any of the other lions. He had the same roars as Tanner's. Two different versions featuring George were used; one with the lion roaring toward the right of the screen and then roaring at the camera, and another with the lion roaring toward the upright corner of the screen. This logo would have either a black or dark brownish/gray-ish background, although a blue background variant has been spotted on The Wings of Eagles (1957). This logo would also appear on black-and-white movies.

Leo, the seventh lion, is by far MGM's longest-used lion, having appeared on most MGM films since 1957. Leo was born in Dublin Zoo, Ireland, the same as Slats. He was also the youngest at the time MGM filmed him roaring (hence his much smaller mane).

In 1965, in attempt to update its image, MGM recruited Lippincott to create a more contemporary logo.[9] The result, a circular still graphic of a lion known as "The Stylized Lion", appeared at the front of two films in the 1960s: 2001: A Space Odyssey and The Subject Was Roses (both released in 1968). Afterwards, Leo was reinstated for the opening logo. The Stylized Lion, however, was retained by the studio as its print logo, used by the MGM Records division studio advertising, in addition to being shown at the end of credit rolls following most MGM movie releases of this period, continuing until 1982. It was later used by the MGM Grand casinos. (A refined version of it is used as the logo for their parent company, MGM Resorts International.)

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