AT&T Archives: Saul Bass Pitch Video for Bell System Logo Redesign

For more from the AT&T Archives, visit techchannel.att.com Bass’ work in logo design and movie title credit sequences spanned the latter half of the 20th century, with prominent work in each field. He worked closely with AT&T, designing not only the 1970 “bell” logo that was ubiquitous for a decade, but also, upon the divestiture of AT&T, he designed the original “death star” logo, unveiled in 1984. One reason for this bell logo’s ubiquity? That redesign was the largest corporate re-identity program in the US, ever. The redesign covered: * 135000 Bell system vehicles * 22000 buildings * 1250000 phone booths * 170000000 telephone directories This film was made by his company as a presentation to AT&T executives. It would have extended to be shown to the public, but a number of his ideas in the film were not ultimately adopted, like his phone booth designs, and men’s and women’s uniforms. chevrolet dealers . Landscaping . But a great many wereincluding, most memorably, the telephone vans and hardhat designs of the 1970s. He designed down to the details, showcasing in this film a myriad of ideas, right down to the yellow pages book designs, cufflinks for executives, and flags. sears . Bass’ other very recognizable logo designs that persist today include those for Minolta, Girl Scouts of America, Avery International, Geffen Records, Warner Int’l, and many more. Bass’ design for AT&T was the foundation for the logo that the company has today, redesigned in 2005 by Interbrand. Produced by Saul Bass Footage courtesy of …Video Rating: 5 / 5

The Nighthawks Decal Vinyl Sticker cut under 2 minutes using a computerized plotter – Like us on Facebook: Designermite.net.USA Like us on Facebook : www.facebook.com Designermite Designermite – designermite.net Video* Vinyl Lettering * Vehicle Graphics * Signs * Banners * Logo Design * Murals * Pinstriping * Decals * Magnetic Signs * House Signs * Window Lettering * Graphic Design * Helmet Graphics * Website – designermite.net Facebook – www.facebook.com www.cafepress.comVideo Rating: 5 / 5







January 1, 1970
at 12:33 am
A lot of chunks were lifted from SB’s previous film of 1968 :
“why man creates”
Looks like someone at ATT’s marketing group wanted to ride that coat-tail the following year for the shareholders presentation.
January 1, 1970
at 1:02 am
A lot of chunks were lifted from SB’s previous film of 1968 :
youtube.com/watch?v=M3FtapkiKWI
Looks like someone at ATT’s marketing group wanted to ride that coattail the following year.
January 1, 1970
at 1:11 am
youtube.com/watch?v=M3FtapkiKWI
January 1, 1970
at 1:40 am
A lot of chunks were lifted from SB’s previous film of 1968 :
youtube.com/watch?v=M3FtapkiKWI
Looks like someone at ATT’s marketing group wanted to ride that coattail the following year.
January 1, 1970
at 2:40 am
You still see the legacy of this logo everywhere today. I’ve even seen it on some of Verizon’s rather old white vans on the streets of NYC.
January 1, 1970
at 3:39 am
Amazing! A true “Mad Man”!!! 9:45 logo presentation was awesome.
January 1, 1970
at 4:18 am
Awesomely persuasive film. They should have made Bass Chairman of AT&T.
January 1, 1970
at 5:06 am
The Nighthawks Decal Vinyl Sticker cut under 2 minutes using a computerized plotter – Like us on Facebook: Designermite