Walt Disney Pictures Logo 1985

Walt Disney Pictures Logo PNG

The American company Walt Disney appeared in 1923. It was founded by two brothers: Walt and Roy Oliver Disney. It was a small animation studio that grew to the scale of the largest media conglomerate with its broadcast networks and amusement parks. She is famous for her full-length animated films and a fabulous logo.

Meaning and History

Evolution of the Walt Disney Pictures Logo

Walt Disney himself drew initial versions of the logo. In his youth, he worked as a designer in an advertising agency, and then became a cartoonist, so he had an excellent artistic experience.

The company logo is part of the credits and adorns the entrances to popular theme parks. But for the first 48 years, Disney did not have a distinguishing sign: viewers saw only "Walt Disney Pictures Presents" or "Walt Disney Presents" on the screen. Sometimes they were supplemented by the Mickey Mouse profile, which in the animated version circled and changed color. In 1937, the phrase "Walt Disney Pictures" began to be used as a logo. It is still relevant, although designers have made minor changes to it.

Walt Disney Pictures Symbol

In 1985, the castle was presented on the emblem – an integral part of the brand's visual identity. He first appeared in the credits of The Black Cauldron and even then looked very recognizable, because the inspiration for him was the Sleeping Beauty and Cinderella castles.

The drawing was constantly transformed. At first, it was a two-dimensional image, drawn with white horizontal lines. But technology has evolved, so Walt Disney decided to show its audience that it keeps up to date, and its graphics meet the highest quality standards. In this, she was helped by a three-dimensional logo, which was commissioned by Pixar. Viewers first saw the modernized design in 2006 when the Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest movie was released.

1937 – 1948

The debut logo is one of the personal signatures of the famous cartoonist. The designers stylized it and enlarged it to the size of the branding. The inscription is made with combined upper and lower case letters. The capital "W" and "D," which are twisted, as well as the lowercase "i" and "y," visually reminiscent of the ears and tail of a mouse, are unique, as an allusion to the main cartoon character Mickey Mouse.

1948 – 1979

After ten years, the artists changed the logo's style, so the inscription "Walt Disney," although it looked like a handwritten one, did not have an italic slope.

1972 – 1983

In parallel with the general logo, a studio was launched at that time. It was a 1937 version with "Productions" written at the bottom. The additional word is done in a smooth typeface from the Sans Serif category.

1983 – 1985

During this period, there was a variant with the word "Productions" with serifs. The font is close to the classic universal. But the top inscription has not been changed: it is still in the Waltograph font.

1985 – 2006

In the mid-80s, the graphic part was added to the text part. This is the castle located above the phrase "Walt Disney." The film studio chose him as a fairytale symbol. The palaces are depicted in the form of horizontal stripes and are surrounded by a solid arch. A triangular flag is visible above each tower.

2006 – 2011

In 2006, the developers proposed an emblem with a clear visualization of magic castles: stripes disappeared, realistic detail appeared, wide-open gates, and a shooting star hint that the film studio embodies the most fabulous desires. The word "Productions" has been reduced with a new uppercase font, and the "Walt Disney" lettering has been slightly thinner.

2011 – present

The current version is the same as the previous one, except the inscription. Instead of the full version, an abbreviated version is used – only "Disney," the name of the cartoon company's founder.

The new emblem is decorated with towers, windows, balconies, and flags. The animated star leaves a long line in the shape of an arch. But the creators did not limit themselves to this alone and, over time, adding even more details. So some festive fireworks and clouds expressed the magic of the brand. The castle, in turn, symbolizes romance, love, and a fairy tale.

But with the release of Toy Story, there have been changes in the cartoon world. Animators began to accompany each cartoon with their version of the logo so that the picture corresponded to the plot. For example, in Maleficent, it looks a lot like Cliffside Castle, and in Tron, it looks like a city of lights.

Font and Color of the Emblem

Walt Disney Pictures Emblem

The graphic part of the logo appeared in 1985. It became a fairytale castle's image since the animation studio is associated with magic, princes, princesses, kings, and queens. At first, the palace looked lined, but then another image appeared, more tangible and realistic. As conceived by the designers, it still changes depending on the plot of the cartoon or film.

Walt Disney Symbol

The colorful image is accompanied by the phrase "Walt Disney Pictures." The company name is also found in the early versions of the emblem, although the style has changed markedly since 1937. There is an opinion that the phrase "Walt Disney" is nothing more than a personal signature of the brand owner. But some are willing to argue with this because on old letters and postcards the autograph of the famous animator looks completely different.

As it turned out, Disney, like many cartoonists, had several signatures at once, including Roman or printed. Moreover, he constantly improved them, almost in the same way as changing the Mickey Mouse design. Until the early 1970s, the logo included one of the old versions: with careless lines and connected letters. Later, a few years after the death of Walt Disney, the new leaders decided to use a more original version.

The owner of the studio left behind a lot of handwriting samples. Based on them, the designers developed a universal verbal sign – most likely, hyperbolic and stylized. And they chose the most memorable signature with the strange letter "D." The remaining characters are also unusual: "T" looks like "Y," and the dot above "I" looks like a large circle crossed out diagonally.

The media conglomerate never had an official font, but in 2000 the Justin Callaghan typographer tried to recreate it based on existing lettering. He developed two versions of the Waltograph: bold and regular with lowercase and uppercase letters. The company Walt Disney noted that if Mickey Mouse undertook to write memoirs, he would choose the font Waltograph.