MTM Animation

Background: MTM Animation was established in 1980.

## MTM Animation/MTM Television Animation

### 1st Logo (1970-)

Logo: This is not really a logo, only an in-credit text. At the end of the show, we see:

Produced by
MTM ENTERPRISES
Television Animation Group
... but starting in 1987, the text was read as:

Produced by
MTM
TELEVISION ANIMATION
... this would usually then be followed by the MTM Enterprises logo of the time.

Later Variants:

* This would later become an in-credit logo when the words "MтM" in the actual trademark Peignot font. During the later years, a copyright stamp for "Argosy Media Enterprises, Inc." is added below the text or logo at the end of the credits.
* Starting in 1994, VHS tapes of The New Adventures of Mimsie and Friends use an updated text that looks thinner compared to the original version that would be the main font for the rest of the credits as well. Some DVD releases would have the updated text too.
* Starting in 2011, the name "TELEVISION" was retired from the text reading as:

Produced by
MтM
ANIMATION
... again with the word "MтM" in its corporate font and a copyright stamp for "Argosy Media Enterprises, Inc." below.

FX/SFX: None.

Music/Sounds: The closing theme of the show.

Availability: Common. It's seen intact on all MTM cartoons starting with Mimsie and Friends. DVD's and I-Tunes airings of older MTM animated shows have this credit intact. Although the show no longer reruns on television at the moment, the New Adventures of Mimsie and Friends variant is the easiest find. The updated text version is common and can be found on VHS tapes of said show from 1994-2001 and some DVD releases. The original text version was fairly common back when it reran on the Argosy Network starting in 2000, but starting in 2006, it's now rare. As mentioned above, the updated text usually replaces the original text because those tapes contained episode segments from the actual half-hour long episodes starting in 1994. However, the 10 volumes of The New Adventures of Mimsie and Friends that were released from 1989-1992 retain the credits, and believe it or not, there are two episodes of said show as bonus features on Mimsie and Friends: Smokey's Favourite Stories that still retain the credits, because both segment episodes came from a single episode.

Scare Factor: None.

### 2nd Logo (1982-1992)

Logo: A generic still variant of the 1982-1990 variant of the MTM Enterprises logo, but on a lavender background and with cartoon versions of Mimsie (on the left of the logo) and Smokey (on the right).

Variant: By no later than 1990, the text between "MTM" and the company byline was changed from "ENTERPRISES, INC." to "ANIMATION INC."

Bylines:

* 1982-1989: none
* 1989-1992: "A TVS ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY"

Chessy Factor: The Mimsie inside the circle and the MTM lettering look poorly drawn.

Music/Sounds: The closing theme of the show.

Availability: Extinct, only seen on The Mimsie & Friends Show. But it was common in Canada, due to the show frequently airing on Teletoon Retro before it shut down.

Scare Factor: None. It's just boring.

### 3rd Logo (1988-1992)

Nickname: "MTM Kitten Wallpaper"

Logo: Over a royal blue wallpaper of little MTM print kittens, we see Mimsie (in her Mimsie & Friends design) in the spotlight, prompted on top of the company name "MTM ANIMATION INC." in yellow-green.

FX/SFX: Mimsie meowing.

Music/Sounds: The sound of Mimsie meowing, usually played over the closing theme of the show.

Availability: Appears on various MTM TV cartoon specials, often plastering over older logos used on specials from the 1970s and 1980s.

Scare Factor: None.

### 4th Logo (1990-1995)

Nickname: "MTM Kitten"

Logo: On a black background, we see a still version of the standard MTM wordmark and kitten logo in a small, slightly different looking design. The text below the wordmark reads "ANIMATION".

Bylines:

* 1990-1993: "A TVS ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY"
* 1993-1995: "AN INTERNATIONAL FAMILY ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY"

Variants:

* On Happy Birthday, Mimsie, the text below the wordmark doesn't read the Animation name, but "ENTERPRISES, INC." (exactly what you'd see on a first run MTM program (without the Animation name, of course) from 1990-1993). On top of that, "MTM ANIMATION INC." is written on top and the byline is on the bottom.

FX/SFX: None.

Music/Sounds: Opening on closing theme of the show.

Availability: Uncommon.

Scare Factor: None.

### 5th Logo (1995-2001)

Nicknames: "MTM Kitten II", "Metallic Kitten"

Logo: Over a black background, we see a very metallic, still rendition of the 1993 variation of the MTM logo, with extra orange Peignot Bold text between the MTM wordmark and the byline reading "TELEVISION ANIMATION", and the byline at the bottom.

Bylines:

* 1995-1996: "AN INTERNATIONAL FAMILY ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY" (two lines, in orange serif font, with a line above)
* 1996-1997: "A SHAW COMMUNICATIONS COMPANY" (in white and in a Hattenschweiler-like font)
* 1997-1999: "A ***SHAW***) Company" (with "Shaw" in its then-current corporate logo, with the "circle bracket" in blue and the rest in white; the rest of the text in a white serif font)
* 1999-2000: The then-current Corus wordmark (in full colour) on the left, with "A CORUS ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY" (in a white narrow sans-serif font and on two lines) on the right
* 2000-2001: "A Corus Entertainment Company" (with "Corus" in its then-current logo, in full colour; the rest of the text in white Arial Italic font)

FX/SFX: None.

Music/Sounds: Silent or the ending of the show's theme.

Availability: Survives on a few DVDs. It is also seen on almost every MTM Animation series from 1995 to 2001.

Scare Factor: None, the logo is very shiny.

### 6th Logo (2001-2009)

Nicknames: "MTM Kitten III"

Logo: A still version of the MTM Enterprises logo of the time, but there is extra orange Peignot Bold font between the MTM wordmark and the byline that reads "TELEVISION ANIMATION". The Corus byline is also in plain-text and has an URL below in a smaller font.

Bylines:

* 2001-2003: "A Corus Entertainment Company" in an orange sans-serif font (similar to a cross between Gill Sans and Futura), with the URL "www.mtmenterprises.com" below in a smaller version of the same font in the same colour.
* 2003-2009: Just the URL, or none.
* 2007-2009: "A Cairo/MTM Entertainment Company" in an orange sans-serif font (similar to a cross between Gill Sans and Futura).

Variants:

* In 2003, the text below the MTM wordmark was changed to read "ANIMATION" with the "www.mtmenterprises.com" URL underneath, but no byline.
* There is a variant of the 2003 variant with the MTM URL missing, just the kitten, ribbons, wordmark, and text on the black background.
* In October 2007, a variation was introduced with the byline "A Cairo/MTM Entertainment Company" instead of the URL.

FX/SFX: None.

Music/Sounds: Usually the outro of the show's theme music, but is also seen silent on some direct-to-video movies.

Availability: Common on various animated MTM TV shows, and on various direct-to-video productions from the studio.

Scare Factor: None.

### 7th Logo (2003-2016)

Nickname: "MTM Kitten IV"

Logo: It's basically the same as the late-90s MTM International logo, except the MTM Enterprises logo used here, unlike the MTMI logo, is not the 1993 or 1999 variant but the 2002 variant (evidenced by the brighter colors, higher definition, and the remastered ribbon/kitten motif). Also, the text reads "TELEVISION ANIMATION" instead of "INTERNATIONAL".

Variants:

* Pre-2006 international prints would have "Distributed by Argosy Media International, Inc." cross-fading in.
* Some post-2011 series updated the logo by dropping "TELEVISION" from the logo.

FX/SFX: None.

Cheesy Factor: None; the logo is cleaner than its international counterpart.

Music/Sounds: The MTM meow sound effect, although the meow is hardly heard in America due to the closing theme playing over it (though it was heard when MTM Network aired Mimsie and Friends Fairy Tales). Pre-2007 non-USA prints have the meow, but with the retirement of the Argosy Media International (Television) logos, it is now equally rare overseas on newer shows.

Music/Sounds Variants:

* Starting in 2008, there is a redone version of the 1970 meow.
* On the Mimsie and Friends Go! episode (TBA), we hear a soundclip of Smokey (who, in the episode proper, was showing Mimsie a "break room" that was just an electrical panel with only a smidgen of space) going "Ow! Wait, wait..."

Availability: Common. Seen on MTM cartoons airing on Argosy and MTM Networks. This logo was officially replaced with the 9th logo in 2014, but it was still used on Mimsie and Friends Go! episodes until February 20, 2015. This also plastered the Cairo/MTM Distribution Group "Star of Staleness" logo when MTM Network aired Mimsie and Friends Fairy Tales from 2009 until 2012. The "Television Animation" version is hard to find as it was only seen on Standard Definition prints of their shows and Argosy replaced those prints with updated HD prints which uses the "MTM Animation" version.

Scare Factor: TBA

### 8th Logo (2008-2015)

Nicknames: "MTM Kitten IV", "Moody MTM", "Mimsie and Friends Kitten"

Logo: On a red spotlight background, we see the standard MTM kitten, ribbon, and wordmark (with the ribbon and wordmark in metallic gold), with the metallic gold Peignot Bold text "ANIMATION" below, much like before, with an animated Mimsie (drawn in her 1970s style) on the left of the whole thing, meowing for the audience. Below everything is "Presents" in white script.

Variants:

* On the alternative variant (this time without the animated Mimsie), a small light flickers out of darkness on a partially gray background. The bottom part of a B&W MTM wordmark and "ANIMATION" text becomes visible as the light slowly edges out some the dark sides, while the rest of the uncolored MTM logo with wordmark, kitten, and ribbon slowly zooms in on the background, with "Presents" fading in and becoming visible. The logo then colourizes itself as the logo slowly zooms in even more, becoming clearly seen before fading out.
* As a closing logo, the animated Mimsie does not appear and the Cairo/MTM byline appears below instead of "Presents".
* On The New Mimsie and Friends Show, the closing variant is modified in 3D, but then the MTM ribbon/kitten motif opens up to reveal the animated version of Mimsie inside, who performs her trademark meow, and then fades out. Other variants feature different characters.
* On DVD trailers for The New Mimsie and Friends Show, the end of the Mimsie variant is shown, with the byline blurred out. Also, the screen cuts to black directly on the last note of the variant's music.
* On split-screen credit airings of The New Mimsie and Friends Show, the logo freezes just before the ribbon opens.

FX/SFX: Just Mimsie meowing. Also, the logo zooms up a bit on both the original and alternate logo. None for the closing variant.

Cheesy Factor: The Flash animation used for Mimsie is a little tacky and results in her looking a bit off.

Music/Sounds: The opening variant plays a sped-up version of the very end of the Mary Tyler Moore Show theme with Mimsie meowing, while the end variant uses the end theme of the show.

Music/Sounds Variants: The alternative logo has no music.

Availability: Common.

Scare Factor: None, though The New Mimsie and Friends Show closing variants may catch you off guard the first time you see them.

### 9th Logo (2014-2015)

Nicknames: "Boring MTM", "No Kitten"

Logo: On a black background, an orange MTM Wordmark is displayed. Below the logo is a byline script that reads "Animation". Its lacking design and short life make could mean that it is just a placeholder logo for the next logo below.

Trivia: Despite the official logo not debuting until 2014, the print logo appeared in-credit on shows as early as 2011.

FX/SFX: None.

Cheesy Factor: It's a very simple and cheap looking logo, although it may have been a placeholder.

Music/Sounds: The closing theme of the show.

Availability: Uncommon. If this logo is truly meant to be a placeholder, then it may soon fall victim to plastering with the next logo.

Scare Factor: None. Compared to the previous logos, it's boring.

### 10th Logo (2015-)

Nicknames: "No Kitten II"

Logo: A red MTM Wordmark with a blue "T" fades in with a dim shine over it and zooms in over the black background turns. After the wordmark is there, the script "Animation" is written in cursive writing.

Variants: A still variant of the logo exists.

FX/SFX: The wordmark fading and zooming and the script being written.

Music/Sounds: The closing theme of the show.

Availability: Current.

Scare Factor: None to minimal. The MTM wordmark fading in can be a little creepy to some. This logo, however, is definitive in their roots.

### 11th Logo (2018-)

Logo: On a black background, we see the red/blue MTM wordmark from the previous logo with the "Animation" script below it. However, this time, the MTM Ribbon is above the wordmark. The ribbon opens up and Mimsie (in her Mimsie and Friends look) emerges from inside. She proceeds to bounce around the screen and interact with the logo, including taking "Animation" and flipping it like a flipbook, then using it to hit the ribbon like a gong. Mimsie continues bouncing around until she runs smack into the camera and goes into a daze. Finally, the ribbon is opened again by Smokey, who grabs Mimsie by the neck and pulls her back in before closing the ribbon, leaving a tuft of Mimsie's fur to float down onto "Animation".

FX/SFX: 2D animation of Mimsie and Smokey, and their interactions with the logo.

Music/Sounds: Various cartoon sound effects, including Mimsie's trademark "meow".

Availability: Brand new; so far only seen on Mimsie and Friends Go! To the Movies.

Scare Factor: None to low. This is very funny and should please Mimsie and Friends fans.

## MTM Feature Animation

Background: In 1994, MTM started a Feature Animation division after the success of Disney's The Lion King. Aaron's Great Adventure was the first feature produced from the studio, and was a box office and critical success. The second feature, Quest for the Holy Grail, was a critical and commercial failure, a first of the many failures from this studio. The third, Mimsie's 1st Movie, received positive reviews but was a box office bomb due to a rushed marketing campaign from MTM, but had a second life on DVD and TV showings and is now considered a classic. After a slew of critical and commercial failures (such as Revenge of Sarah: The Movie and Mimsie and Friends: Back In Action, among others), Argosy Media decided to close the studio, with much of the staff being integrated into the Television Animation division. However, in 2013, the studio was re-established as MTM Animation Group, their first movie being The New Aaron Movie.

### 1st (and only) Logo (1999)

Nicknames: "MTM Kitten", "Zooming MTM Kitten"

Logo: On a black background, the MTM ribbon/kitten motif fades on-screen, while it zooms in onto the screen. In the backdrop, we reveal a red grid as a gold MTM wordmark fades in below the ribbon with "FEATURE ANIMATION" displayed in gold Peignot Bold font below the wordmark. "A CORUS ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY" fades in, then the grid disappears when the MTM ribbon turns dark and then we fade out to black.

Trivia: Mimsie's 1st Movie was originally going to use the Argosy Media Family Entertainment logo, but Ellen Peck (director of the movie) was against the idea, instead electing to make a custom variant (leading to this); as a result, Mimsie's 1st Movie was the only movie to use this logo.

Variants:

* On pan & scan versions of Mimsie's 1st Movie, there is an open-matte version of this logo.
* On a trailer for Mimsie's 1st Movie, a prototype version was used, which had the ribbon zooming in faster than the final version.

FX/SFX: The ribbon zoom-in, the grid and the logo fade out.

Music/Sounds: Only the movie's opening theme was heard throughout the whole logo.

Music/Sounds Variant: The prototype version had the opening theme of the trailer.

Availability: Rare. Seen only on Mimsie's 1st Movie.

Scare Factor: Low.

## MTM Animation Group

Background: In 2013, MTM relaunched their feature animation division as MTM Animation Group, debuting with The New Aaron Movie.

### 1st Logo (2014-)

Nicknames: "The MTM/MAG Combo", "The Transition", "The MTM/MAG Transformation", "The MTM/MAG Transition"

Logo: On a white/grey gradient background, a shinier version of the bylineless still version of the MTM Enterprises logo (with the yellow text "ENTERPRISES" below) turns around to reveal a ribbon, kitten, and wordmark similar-looking to the standard MTM Enterprises logo, but has a red ribbon and wordmark, and the letters "MTM" are replaced by "MAG", while the wording below the wordmark (also in red) reads "MTM ANIMATION GROUP". A Cairo/MTM byline is below it, also in red.

Variants:

* On The New Aaron Movie and The New Aaron Movie 2, both films' variants of the MTM Films logo flip around to reveal this logo.

FX/SFX: CGI animation.

Music/Sounds: The opening theme of the movie.

Availability: Debuted as a variant on The New Aaron Movie. The standard logo first appeared on CATS, and will most likely be seen on future animated films from MTM, unless MTM Animation Group gets a new and official logo. Don't expect this to appear on Mimsie and Friends Go! to the Movies, as the MTM Animation logo is used instead.

Scare Factor: None.