112 thoughts on “The Story Behind… The Columbia Pictures Logo”

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  4. I’m w/ Scott, LOVE this series, brilliant! This is one of my favorite movie logos, it’s classy looking. Looking forward to which logo you’ll feature next 🙂

    Reply

    • Thanks Matt! There are so many cinema history related questions one could ask and I enjoy finding the answers, so this feature will probably keep going for a while 🙂

      Reply

  8. Hey! That’s the post I was wating for 😀 The history of the logo is so interesting, especially the story of the name Columbia. The version used nowadays is so elegant and beautiful. I think it’s one of my favourite logos!

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  11. Great series, but whatever happened to 1944-1960, years which include Columbia’s two greatest successes at the Oscar: From Here to Eternity and On the Waterfront?

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  12. Hey, thanx so much for creating such a good post, i’m doing a college assignment atm on company logos and film title sequences, and i found so much usful information on these logo posts of yours 😀 thankyou for the help! and not to worry, i have referenced all the quotes i borrowed, so my tutors no it written my me haha 😛

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  17. For what it’s worth: when I was growing up, a neighbor named Mort Gelbard swore his aunt had posed for the 1936-1976 version of the logo. He was an extremely upstanding guy and I have no reason to doubt him.

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    • Oddly enough, I do know who the model is for the ’36 version of the logo. It is Evelyn Venable, who starred most famously in Death Takes a Holiday in the early 30’s, and later as the voice of the Blue Fairy in Pinnochio. She was my great grand mother in law and wife of Hal Mohr, who was an acclaimed cinematographer. They were good friends with Will Rogers who introduced them to each other onset, and though the details in history get lost through the years, one only has to do deeper research to corroborate this fact. She played the ingenue for Paramount Pictures for a time, and retired from the screen to become a valedictorian at UCLA and was subsequently asked to teach there before graduating. Her reason for leaving the screen was, and I quote, “There’s only room enough for one star in this family” referring to her husband who’s credits include two Oscars and the first well known talkie, The Jazz Singer. Imdb lists further details on both of them.

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      • I knew Ms. Veneble was the model, but not her family history. As it happens she was my teacher of ancient Greek for 4 quarters at UCLA in the late 60s. She was an elegant presence and a generous teacher. I remember discussing Fellini’s Satyricon with her, a film she was not much pleased with.

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      • I read an interview with the actress who’d posed for the 1936 version of the logo about its creation, and she said that for the first day of modeling she had to hold the torch up all day with no assistance. They did realize that was unreasonable, and the next day they strung up the torch so that she could hold the base but not have to support its weight.

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  21. You’ve only told part of the story. WHY did Cohn-Brandt-Cohn need to change its name? Why did it choose Columbia?
    if you look deeper i think you will find competing strains of anti-semitism and (jewish) immigrant patriotism involved.
    The design arises from centuries old tradition of allegorical art, and seems to be directly inspired by st. gaudens design for the $20 gold piece as well as the statue of liberty. st gaudens was inspired by ancient coinage.
    the statue of Freedom atop the US capital dome is also called “Columbia.”

    if you dig deeper, you will find there is much more to the story. a story that is as much about the film industry as a whole as this one studio.

    Reply

      • 1) it is well known that most of the movie moguls were Jewish. people who were jealous of their success and influence used age-old antisemitic tactics to belittle and denigrate them. This is all well documented in biographies of the men (Sam Goldwyn, Louis Mayer, Harry Cohn, Jack Warner, Adolph Zukor, David Selznick etc.) and histories of the studios. For a single book on the topic you should get AN EMPIRE OF THEIR OWN by Neil Gabler. http://amzn.com/0385265573 There is also a documentary of the same title from A&E http://amzn.com/B0009HMTEO

        2) i work in branding. i have named companies and developed logos, so i know all about the meanings of corporate symbols and the projection of brand values.

        3) i’ve read a lot of books and i’ve seen a lot of movies. i have a good memory for both as well as an academic turn of mind that lets me see connections between things. What i said about the Columbia and WB logos are educated guesses based on the stuff i do know.

        4) my dad is a coin dealer.

        5) i was a Congressional page

        i encourage you to revisit your “Story behind” posts and delve into the meaning of the studio names and their symbols. it’s a rich and rewarding topic.
        to get you started, here’s a bit about MGM. G, as you know is for Goldwyn. Samuel Goldwyn was Shmuel Gelbfisz from Poland. He translated his name into english and called himself Sam Goldfish. When he partnered with the Selwyn brothers they put their names together to call the company Goldwyn Pictures. Then he had his name legally changed to Goldwyn.

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        • Interesting stuff, I would really like to revisit these posts (and also create a couple of new ones for logos I’ve not done yet), but a busy family life prevents me from doing it unfortunately.

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        • My wifes great grandmother and the torch lady were sister, the torch lady was a make up artist. They worked for David Selznick producer. my wifes grandfather was executive producer. So the torch lady was a Moore (surname).

          Reply

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  25. I collect old life magazines as they are like a 20th century time capsule of america. The cover of their January 1945 issue features a beautiful lady wearing chrocet togs ( head dress ). Her name is Evelyn Venable See http://www.originallifemagazines.com/LIFE-Magazine-January-8-1945-P1430.aspx

    She was a model and actress and she claims to be the model for the columnia logo prior to Jenny Joesph. See http://www.lucywho.com/p13662/evelyn-venable/

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  27. Hello, what a great article. I have the Columbia logo as my wallpaper on my screen.
    I absolutely love all the different eras of the logo and the Art Deco them through them. Where did you get that penciled image? I am looking for a high resolution version of the logo to enlarge and put on the wall in my theatre. Can you help?
    Thank
    you

    Reply

  28. This is in accurate! It was Jane Chester Bartholomew No offense to the other woman but just because it was re-painted with her image does not mean anything. Was she invited out to eat at a dinner with the editors and executives? I don’t know, but probably not, My name is Erika Jacques and this article particularly offends me because that is my Nana, my great grandmother. Who I knew until her recent death and this is blasphemy and it deeply offends me that she did not get any credit for her works. If my Nana was alive today she would be highly offended
    (<3 rest her soul <3).

    Reply

  29. Why do I seem to remember that Audrey Meadows was one of the early Columbia models? Hmmm. Not sure how that got in my brain but would like to know if anyone else has heard that?

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  31. Columbia Pictures’s Statue Model Gem of the Openings Was Jane Chester:
    With the money she earned washing dishes and scrubbing floors, Jane Chester, a 16-year-old brunette beauty, bought a one-way ticket from Washington, Pa. to Hollywood in 1936. For more than a year she lived in a rooming house near the Columbia Pictures studio and made the rounds, trying to break into the movies.

    Discouraged, Jane was about to leave Hollywood when she, along with other girls, was asked to pose as the Statue of Liberty for what was to be Columbia’s screen “trademark.” “No one really knew if the picture would be used. We weren’t paid, but we hoped it could lead to something,” says Jane. When it didn’t, Jane moved to Chicago and later married. Two years later she was in a movie theater and suddenly her picture flashed on the screen.

    Over the years, only her family knew she was Columbia’s “proud lady.” To satisfy her grandsons, who did not believe Jane had been in the movies, her oldest daughter asked the Chicago Daily News to check it out. Photographs taken at the time convinced the paper that 56-year-old Mrs. Jane Bartholomew, now a nursing inspector for the Illinois Department of Public Health, was indeed the lady with the torch. So far her shapely form has appeared in more than 1,700 films.

    In an interview of Jane Chester:
    Jane Chester Bartholomew poses for a photograph March 23, 2001 in her Crestwood, IL. nursing home near photos of her family and images of the Columbia Pictures” famous Miss Liberty logo. Jane, 81, says she was the model for the Columbia Pictures” famous Miss Liberty logo in the 1940s. She remembers being one of several extras ordered by Columbia Pictures” boss, at the time, Harry Cohn in 1941 to pose as Miss Liberty for which she was paid $25. Although other women have been named as the final model, Bartholomew is certain the icon was based on her likeness. Originally from Washington/Burgettstown, PA., at the age of 16 she boarded a bus in Washington, PA. enroute to Hollywood, CA. Today, three Columbia icon photos sent to her by the studio in 1975 adorn a wall in the room of the nursing home where she lives. A stroke has robbed her of the ability to speak. (Photo by Tim Boyle/Newsmakers).

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  32. The illo of the Roman lady warrior holding a shield is almost identical to the lady “Liberty” on the Standing Liberty quarter (minted 1916-1932, before the Washington quarter ). There was a scandal at the time because Miss Liberty was TOPLESS.

    http://www.rivercitycoins.com/silverrounds/coinrelated/1916qtercopy.jpg

    The next year, she was covered up.

    Regarding the evolution of Columbia’s lady with the lamp, I’m wondering why the American flag draped across her originally was changed to some non-descript garment. A sad evolution of the logo.

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  35. Just finished watching the 1953 Dr. Seuss “The 5,000 Fingers of Dr. T.”.
    When the Columbia touch lady ran at the end I was blow away as it was a dead ringer for the lead actress, Mary Healy!

    So, it looks like the 61-76 lady was dubbed back into the 53 movie, which – why would they do that – unless she later modeled the logo!

    Jason

    Reply

      • As I understand the first Columbia Lady was pictured due to a very horrible crime done against ‘Jane Doe’. For years the Columbian Woman was a picture so others who might know her would come forward for the Cold case. Different likeness’ were cast after the original early 1900’s crime faded. This is what I learned in early 1980’s College course.

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  36. Did you know that Jane Chester Bartholomew, originally from Washington, PA; (some articles put her in Burgettstown, PA), is the actual model for the Columbia Pictures Movies Statue. I did some research, and her family descendents: (Anthony Selvaggi) from Washington, PA, actually responded to me with facts and information.
    Here is the articles of proof:
    Columbia’s Gem of the Openings Was Jane Chester
    With the money she earned washing dishes and scrubbing floors, Jane Chester, a 16-year-old brunette beauty, bought a one-way ticket from Washington, Pa. to Hollywood in 1936. For more than a year she lived in a rooming house near the Columbia Pictures studio and made the rounds, trying to break into the movies.

    Discouraged, Jane was about to leave Hollywood when she, along with other girls, was asked to pose as the Statue of Liberty for what was to be Columbia’s screen “trademark.” “No one really knew if the picture would be used. We weren’t paid, but we hoped it could lead to something,” says Jane. When it didn’t, Jane moved to Chicago and later married. Two years later she was in a movie theater and suddenly her picture flashed on the screen.

    Over the years, only her family knew she was Columbia’s “proud lady.” To satisfy her grandsons, who did not believe Jane had been in the movies, her oldest daughter asked the Chicago Daily News to check it out. Photographs taken at the time convinced the paper that 56-year-old Mrs. Jane Bartholomew, now a nursing inspector for the Illinois Department of Public Health, was indeed the lady with the torch. So far her shapely form has appeared in more than 1,700 films.

    Here is a picture of her in 2001, in the retirement home in Chicago, Illinois:

    Jane Chester Bartholomew poses for a photograph March 23, 2001 in her Crestwood, IL. nursing home near photos of her family and images of the Columbia Pictures” famous Miss Liberty logo. Jane, 81, says she was the model for the Columbia Pictures” famous Miss Liberty logo in the 1940s. She remembers being one of several extras ordered by Columbia Pictures” boss, at the time, Harry Cohn in 1941 to pose as Miss Liberty for which she was paid $25. Although other women have been named as the final model, Bartholomew is certain the icon was based on her likeness. Originally from Washington/Burgettstown, PA., at the age of 16 she boarded a bus in Washington, PA. enroute to Hollywood, CA. Today, three Columbia icon photos sent to her by the studio in 1975 adorn a wall in the room of the nursing home where she lives. A stroke has robbed her of the ability to speak. (Photo by Tim Boyle/Newsmakers)

    Reply

    • Thank you for your accuracy. My names Erika Jacques and this woman Jane Chester was my great grandmother on my fathers side. (Rest Her Soul) I remember when she used to write me the story on paper I was only 7 or 8 at the time. Thank you gor telling her story.

      Reply

      • Hi Erika Jacques,
        You are welcome. I see that so many are trying to say that other women were the actual model with the torch, with absolutely no proof. It was published in many books along with pictures that Jane Chester Bartholomew was the actual model.

        Reply

    • Loved the series. Still liked the original 1936 – 1976 version best.
      The 1961 – 1976 version is great. Used the same Torch Lady.
      I am currently 86 (born in 1931). I grew up watching Jane Bartholomew.
      She was certainly beautiful. The 1998 version had a very attractive model
      but her picture was altered and does not even resemble her. Do not like the 1998 version. I am so sorry Jane had a stroke. If the photos were sent in 1975 she must have had a stroke around the age of 55 and I feel sad that she had or has to live so long with a stroke. I had a mild one when I was 71 and was able to overcome most of it. I just have to slow down my speech a bit and be very careful to pronounce my consonants.

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  37. Nathan Cohn who was my grandfather was the youngest brother of Harry Cohn, and worked for Columbia in New York. My mother, Frances Cohn told me the model for the “Lady with the Torch” was Harry’s wife, Joan Perry. She had been told thIs at a young age, obviously by someone in the family, (I’m assuming her father)
    It truly is a beautiful logo and I’ve enjoyed the many transformations.
    Laurie Rubenfeld (granddaughter of Nathan Cohn)

    Reply

    • from Priscilla Allard taken from Enfield Forum when i put up the torch lady i got this response from this person: Sheila Custer if you want to write her that is her name and where she is from: she said this so you two might know each otther, here is what she wrote :

      Sheila Custer I met Mrs Joan Perry Cohn Harvey out walking my dog in Montecito in 1986, she was tending to her homegrown ginger plants in front of the Cohn estate. Joan was the wife of Columbia Pictures mogul Harry Cohn. I became friends with their son John (RIP). Interesting neighborhood. Joan was an artist and rescued Greyhounds. I could see her smacking thugs that way, she wasn’t one to put up with any nonsense.
      Hide or report this
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      her or have some stories to tell each other since you know the same people .

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  38. Thank you for your comment. As you can see in the comments there are a lot of people who are sure it was a specific person who stood model for the original image. I guess it is hard to prove who it was unless a picture is found showing the painting process.

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  39. Still does not tell me who Lady of Columbia picture is, person or ancient Goddess. Columbia picture’s lawyer, who protects the film company’s intelegical property said ” the lady ,icon for Columbia picture pictures was a composite . ” It is not based on any person.

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  42. I just saw the movie Aloha and it looks like the 1967 – 1976 logo was used. Beautiful lady. I never cared for the digitized 1992 – 1998 Version. The same
    lady was used in the 1936 version. The images of that lady are absolutely
    beautiful.

    Reply

  45. My wife was talking to her mother, who was from England, she says her mother Lena moores sister was the lady holding the torch.She worked for David Selznick as a make up artist.I will try to find out more later.

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  46. I liked the 1992-1998 Logo with the exception that she should have the American flag draped around her as the original name “Columbia” stood for America.

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  47. The woman obviously represents Mithras, Mithraism, also known as the Mithraic mysteries, was a mystery religion centred around the god Mithras that was practised in the Roman Empire from about the 1st to the 4th century CE. The religion was inspired by Persian worship of the god Mithra (proto-Indo-Iranian Mitra), though the Greek Mithras was linked to a new and distinctive imagery, and the level of continuity between Persian and Greco-Roman practice is debated. The mysteries were popular in the Roman military. If you go on Wikipedia you can see the resemblance with older pictures of the logo.

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  49. I love this logo. The woman in this logo is HOT! I even like some of the tv shows that she (Columbia Pictures) has funded for & some of them were ”Sanford & Son”, ”Good Times”, ”The Jeffersons” ”All In The Family”, ”Maude”, ”Hangin’ In”, ”227”, ”Diff’rent Strokes”, ”What’s Happening!!”, ”What’s Happening Now!!”, ”Thea”, ”That’s My Mama”, ”704 Hauser” & etc.

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  51. I have always thought Columbia’s Lady Liberty looked most like Beverly Garland. It’s good to know who the actual model was.

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    • I absolutely agree with you. Columbia’s Lady Liberty of 2000 resembles Beverly Garland more than anyone else.

      Reply

  52. In the late 70s I got to know a very respectable lady, as a customer basis, who lived in a wonderful converted barn at Leith Hill in Surrey.
    She showed me private photographs of her posing for this film logo and also being presented with one of the first ever Mini cars. I guess at that time she was aged around late 50s.
    I know her late husband travelled all over the world and this was shown by all the artifacts around the barn, both inside and outside. She died in the mid to late 80s. I knew her as Mrs Dumas.

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  54. I seem to remember at some point the lady with the lamp walked up from behind the camera to the pedestal?

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