- The original NBC peacock logo
made its debut back in 1956,
three years after the network
first began broadcasting in color.
We've had many different logos before and since,
but this fall we're getting our most dramatic makeover ever.
NBC recently rounded up seven of the biggest names
in animation and design in this country
and gave each of them the assignment
of reinterpreting the NBC peacock.
(lively music)
- [Announcer] The following program is brought to you
in living color on NBC.
- [Katie] That was then.
(energetic music)
This is now.
(energetic music continues)
- Everything I put my hands on I made feathers out of.
Everything except real peacock feathers,
although I was thinking about it.
- [Katie] Before he did techno peacock,
David Daniels made music videos.
♪ Big time ♪
- [Katie] And some very memorable commercials.
- So take out your calculator and break it into little bits.
Sure, a scooter is practical, but so is polyester.
Classic no, fun yes!
And if you can't figure it out, look, we know.
(laughs) Sorry about that.
- [Katie] Daniels did two new peacocks,
one with a technique that he invented
called Clay Strata-Cut. (dramatic music)
- Psychedelic meatloaf in motion.
I think that's a pretty good phrase actually.
I have no problem with that.
- It's 10 seconds long, but we actually wrote a feature.
We had 90 minutes of it and we had it, and what was left
after the censors got through with it,
all the network people, there's 10 seconds
and that's what you get.
- [Katie] As the reigning bad boy genius of animation,
John Kricfalusi has long enjoyed challenging
the censors, who balked
at his most controversial series, "Ren & Stimpy."
(jazzy music) - No! You mustn't!
He is our master
- [Katie] Like Kricfalusi himself,
this peacock does as he pleases.
(tail boinging) (upbeat music)
(peacock gasping)
(feathers popping)
(logo popping)
- I don't know what hip is, you know.
I just do what I believe in
and I believe in colorful things coming out of your butt.
- My intent was just to make something
that would be beautiful to watch.
We've written a lot of our own software to be able
to make imagery which is just what we want it to be
and not what anybody would think of
as being computer-generated imagery.
- [Katie] Mark Malmberg used his software expertise
to visualize the music of the Grateful Dead
(eerie music)
as well as his version of the NBC peacock.
(triumphant music)
- I'm not too familiar with animation.
I mean, I'm familiar with line
and I stuck to what I know how to do
and translated into a peacock, but that's about it.
(blues music)
- [Katie] The source of Al Hirschfeld's fame
is his elegant character drawings.
Now, after more than 70 years of pen and ink,
the peacock will bring him his TV debut.
- You sit before a blank piece of paper
and you create a problem and you solve it
to your own satisfaction and how this is done
I don't have a clue, but that's the way it works, I think.
(bright music)
- They'd said, "We got this logo, see?
And we wanna do something with it, see?
And so show us some ideas."
- Hey, Beavis, (chuckles) I got an idea. (chuckles)
- Yeah, (chuckles) me too.
Let's go over to Stewart's house
and burn something. (chuckles)
- [Katie] For MTV, Sedelmaier animated
"Beavis and Butt-Head," two of the most infamous
and antisocial cartoon characters on television.
♪ Duh, duh, duh, duh, duh, dun ♪
- [Katie] His work for NBC was more socially acceptable.
(gentle music)
- Complete free rein. That was so beautiful.
It says, "Peter, we'd love for you to do the NBC peacock."
I go, "Really? That's great, can I do what I want?"
They said, "Yes."
- [Katie] A Pop Art success story in the '60s,
Peter Max is back in the '90s.
In his second career, Max is alive and well
and working in digital computer graphics.
(dramatic music)
The new peacocks will be coming
to a television near you in a few days.
But where should the peacock go from here?
- I would integrate the peacock into the airing schedule.
I would have that peacock walk on right
in the middle of the "Seinfeld" show in an animated form
on the screen and have Seinfeld respond to it.
- If I was going to be asked to do 20 peacocks,
I would just have such a ball.
I would create one every couple of weeks
and just make him do all kinds of things.
- Well, he could mate, I guess,
and bring you many more peacocks.
- Thanks, John, but don't call us.
We'll call you right after this station identification.
(electronic tones chiming)
Now, this was just a sneak preview.
Officially, the new peacocks won't start airing
until next Monday, but now that you've seen them
we'd like to know which one you liked best.
So grab a pencil, because this morning
we have a special toll-free number for you to call
to vote for your favorite new peacock.
First, we're gonna show you the choices again.
You need to note the number of the bird
you like best in order to vote.
All right, here we go. This one is number one.
It's the David Daniels techno bird.
Number two, the David Daniels clay meatloaf peacock.
Number three is John Kricsfalusi's Looney Toon peacock.
That's the one where the feathers came
out of the peacock's rear end.
This is Mark Malmberg's little particles peacock,
Al Hirschfeld's black and white,
J.J. Sedelmaier's microphone peacock,
it eventually turns into one.
Peter Max's kaleidoscope peacock.
And finally, at the end of our segment,
Joan Gratz's Impressionist peacock.
The number to call to cast your vote
is 1-800-NBC-POLL
or 1-800-622-7655.
Remember, you must vote now
and you must have a touch-tone phone.
You also, of course, need to know the number
of your favorite peacock in order to vote.
We'll give the results
of our "Today Show" Peacock Poll next Monday.
And we're back in a moment with more
on "Today," right after this.
(dramatic upbeat music)
(wind howling)