Los Angeles Times Logo PNG
One of America’s most famous newspapers, the Los Angeles Times, from 1917 to 2004, the Los Angeles Times won 37 Pulitzer Prizes. However, even such mastodons have hard times. So, 2018 was a turning point in the history of the LA Times.
Meaning and history
The Los Angeles Times was founded in 1881 and published by Harrison Gray Otis until 1917, passing into the hands of his son-in-law Harry Chandler in 1917. And the so-called “Chandler era” at the Los Angeles Times lasted until the mid-1990s.
After Otis Chandler stepped down as chairman of the board in 1991, the paper underwent a series of changes that led to a difficult economic situation. In 2000, the paper was acquired by the Tribune Company of Chicago, followed by several Pulitzer Prizes, but the financial difficulties persisted.
In 2018, The Los Angeles Times changed its Editor-in-Chief three times in just six months. In addition, the same, for the first time in the newspaper’s 136-year history, journalists decided to unionize, leading to the resignation of the publication’s Editor-in-Chief, John Carroll, under whose leadership the paper won 13 Pulitzer Prizes.
And in the same year 2018, it was reported that American billionaire Patrick Soon-Shiong bought The Los Angeles Times and The San Diego Union-Tribune for $500 million. Soon-Shiong is one of the major shareholders of Tronc, Inc., Chicago, one of the richest men in Los Angeles, and one of the wealthiest doctors in the United States, whose fortune Forbes estimated at $7.8 billion.
What is the Los Angeles Times?
Los Angeles Times is the name of a newspaper that ranks among the leading and most reputable periodicals in the United States. Today, the publication, founded in 1881, ranks fourth in terms of circulation in the country (more than 600 thousand copies).
In terms of visual identity, the Los Angeles Times is classy and stable. There were several alternations of the newspaper’s name throughout the years, but the style of the lettering didn’t change much from the beginning of the 20th century.
1881 – 1906
The famous periodical was established in 1881 under the name “Los Angeles Daily Times”. So the first logo of the newspaper was based solely on the inscription with its name, written in the uppercase of an elegant serif typeface, with the first characters of each word enlarged. This version of the logo was in use for fifteen years.
1896 – 1906
In 1896 the “Daily” part was removed from the newspaper’s name and its logo accordingly. The new concept was based on the bold gothic inscription and a detailed old-style drawing in the center, with the small uppercase “Los Angeles” written under the image.
1906 – 1910
The redesign of 1906 has modified the graphical part of the Los Angeles Times logo, enlarging the main symbols of the city, and redrawing them with more details. As for the lettering part, the gothic font remained the same, while the contoured “Los Angeles” got larger and more distinctive.
191o – 1916
The Los Angeles Times logo from 1910 had a different image in the center, however the main symbols remained untouched. The new drawing became lighter with thinner strokes and more distinctive shapes of the elements.
1916 – 1935
The “Los Angeles” wordmark was emboldened and extended with the redesign of 1916. The graphical part was also changed, and now the white lettering is set on an ornate background.
1935 – 1962
In 1935 the graphical part of the Los Angeles Times logo was minimized, and placed in the center of the composition, behind the bold gothic-style lettering, written in one style and size.
1962 – 2008
In 1962 the concept we all know today was first introduced. The new logo of the newspaper is based solely on the lettering, written in bold black characters of a classy gothic typeface against a transparent background with no graphical additions.
2008 – Today
The redesign of 2008 has refined the contours of the wordmark’s characters, adding a light gray shadow to them. This small movement has made the “Los Angeles Times” inscription look voluminous and sophisticated.
Font and color
The bold and elegant lettering from the primary logo of the Los Angeles Times is set in a classy traditional typeface, which looks pretty similar to such commercial fonts as Bayone, Helmswald Post, or Monotype Old Englishtrade Text, but with some visible modifications.
As for the color palette of the Los Angeles Times visual identity, it is based on the laconic combination of black and white, which is an absolutely usual thing for any newspaper.
