Merv
Griffin Enterprises
Written and Complied by Michael Bode and Cameron McCaffrey
1st Logo
(1984-1992)
Nickname: "The Griffin"
Logo: Against a black background, inside a box with a sky
blue border, we see a very detailed drawing of a griffin (a Greek
mythological creature with the wings, head and forelegs of an
eagle, and the body, hind legs, and tail of a lion) behind a
chain-link fence. Below that, in a white italic font , we see the
text "MERV GRIFFIN ENTERPRISES," and under that, one of
the following:
- 1984-1986, 1991-1992: No byline
- 1987: A unit of Coca-Cola Television (in red, with
"Coca-Cola" in its signature font)
- Late 1987-1991: A unit of Columbia Pictures Entertainment (in
the 1976-92 Columbia Pictures font)
Sometimes, the logo is animated with the griffin blinking its
eyes, other times it's just a still picture.
Variation 1: "Wheel of Fortune" often used a
custom variation of this logo. The background was yellow-orange
instead of the normal black, and the text, which consisted of the
company name, Coca-Cola or CPE byline, and a Califon Inc.
copyright notice, was in a Peignot font (as seen on the 1971
Viacom logo and the MTM logo).
Variation 2: There is a variation of this logo where instead of the still white italic text appearing, it is animated. Inside the text, a light blue "chrome" color moves inside it.
Cheesy Factor: The light
blue "chrome color" variation for the text looks very
cheap and dated.
FX: The griffin blinking its eyes
Music: No music of its own, just the closing theme of the
show. This logo and the King World logo following it were
accompanied by the following announcements:
- "Jeopardy!" (Johnny Gilbert): "This is Johnny
Gilbert speaking. 'Jeopardy!' is a production of Merv Griffin
Enterprises and is distributed by King World." (Johnny
Gilbert)
- "Wheel of Fortune" (Charlie O'Donnell): "'Wheel
of Fortune' is produced by Merv Griffin Enterprises and is
distributed by King World."
- The logos were not accompanied by announcer spiels on
"Super Jeopardy!" or "Monopoly."
- Late 1992 episodes of "Jeopardy!" and
"Wheel" show this logo with the spiels that are more
commonly heard with the next logo (see below).
Availability: Surprisingly, Sony preserves MGE logos, so
this can be found on Game Show Network's reruns of
"Jeopardy!" and "Wheel of Fortune" episodes
of this time. However, the announcer spiels on those shows are
ruined because Sony removes the King World logo and instead shows
the Boxes of Boredom with Charlie O'Donnell saying "Columbia
TriStar Television" (this is especially bad on
"Jeopardy!").
Scare Factor: None for
the still white text version without the griffin blinking its
eyes, Low for the still white text version with the griffin
blinking its eyes, and Median for the version with the
"chrome text," because the design could scare some
people, especially when viewed in a dark area.
2nd Logo
(1993-1995)
Nickname: "Cloud BG Griffin," "Sony
Griffin," "'90s Griffin," etc.
Logo: Against the same cloud background as the
then-current Columbia Pictures Television logo, we see a
gold-colored griffin on a pedestal (appears to be a statue).
Underneath the griffin, in the same font used in the CPT logo of
the time, is the phrase "MERV GRIFFIN ENTERPRISES," and
under that, the byline "a SONY PICTURES ENTERTAINMENT
company." This logo was always followed by a graphic with
the show's title card and copyright information.
FX: None, this is a still logo
Music: The closing theme for the show
("Jeopardy!" or "Wheel of Fortune") would
fade out as this logo appeared and the show's announcer (Johhnny
Gilbert on the former, Charlie O'Donnell on the latter)
identified the company. A drumroll would play while the title
card/copyright info graphic was shown, followed by the
then-current King World logo with its music AND the announcement
"Distributed by King World." Here are the announcements
used:
- "Jeopardy!" (Johnny Gilbert): "This is Johnny
Gilbert speaking. 'Jeopardy!' is a production of Merv Griffin
Enterprises.'"
- "Wheel of Fortune" (Charlie O'Donnell): "Merv
Griffin Enterprises produces... [copyright screen
appears/drumroll starts] Wheel of Fortune!"
Availability: Uncommon, can still be seen on Game Show
Network's reruns of "Jeopardy!" and "Wheel of
Fortune" episodes from this period. (It also recently showed
up at the end of a "Late Night with David Letterman"
episode with Merv Griffin as a guest.)
Scare Factor: None