# 'CN'......is 60 Years Old!



## NS VIA Fan (Jan 22, 2021)

'CN'.....that iconic logo.....the Noodle is 60 years old and IMHO just as fresh and modern today as it was when introduced in January 1961. And with it was a total revamp of CN's image.






Until the Spring/Summer 1960 Timetable......the old green Maple Leaf image was prevalent. Then the Fall/Winter issue in October 1960 you could see something was happening but CN just wasn't quite ready to reveal it yet.





The Spring Summer issue of April 1961 reveals the new image and going forwards and almost right up until VIA......just about every timetable followed this format with a blue background for Spring/Summer issues and red for the Fall/Winter issues.






On a trip west on the _Canadian_ a couple of years ago and up in the Dome as we met a freight someone remarked "look, a CNN train!"

I don't think so! The logos might be similar but CN has CNN beat by 20 years!










CN logo evolution (Canadian National Rail) | Logo Design Love


Designers often choose Allan Fleming's CN (Canadian National) logo amongst their favourite marks. Lesser known railroad logos preceded it.




www.logodesignlove.com













CNN logo, designed in 48 hours | Logo Design Love


“In the eleventh hour, it occurred to someone that they needed a logo. We had about 24 or 48 hours to turn around and present a design [for CNN].”




www.logodesignlove.com





_"The (CNN) logo was not without its critics. Canadian National Railways believed it closely resembled its logo and raised some concern about the matter. “I didn’t know anything about railroads or the Canadian National Railroad,” Dwyer said. “When I looked at the logos, it wasn’t even close.”_


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## 20th Century Rider (Jan 22, 2021)

NS VIA Fan said:


> 'CN'.....that iconic logo.....the Noodle is 60 years old and IMHO just as fresh and modern today as it was when introduced in January 1961. And with it was a total revamp of CN's image.
> 
> View attachment 20372
> View attachment 20373
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CN Passenger service ... one of those who got away from me... and the dream of having traveled on trains that no longer exist. [Of course now it's VIA for nationalized passenger rail service... but not the same.] I do wish someone would invent a time machine that could go back... so that us dreamers could make memories that never were...


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## NS VIA Fan (Jan 23, 2021)

20th Century Rider said:


> CN Passenger service ... one of those who got away from me... and the dream of having traveled on trains that no longer exist.




Ahhhhhh....the _Super Contenental_ and the exMILW _Sceneramic Dome_!

Here's a couple more shots of the Super from a trip to Vancouver back in '75.


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## jiml (Jan 23, 2021)

Thanks for the trip down memory lane! That '61 timetable reminds me of my first HO train set, featuring the then almost new logo.


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## PaTrainFan (Jan 30, 2021)

Few logos, in this day and age of information-age driven marketing, have survived as long as this one. This could very well be the longest standing logo today. I was also thinking of IBM, but looking it up, it's "only" 48 years old. The CN logo is reminiscent of the NASA "worm" which, introduced in 1975, was recently revived after being on hiatus since 1992. Though only its two middle letters are actually connected.









The Worm is Back!


Created by Richard Danne, the logo was honored in 1984 by President Reagan for its simplistic, yet innovative design.




www.nasa.gov


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## 20th Century Rider (Jan 30, 2021)

Every rail line wore a different logo, different color, and believe it or not, competed for passenger loyalties with those unique and delicious meals in the dining cars. That Amtrak is so standardized as to underscore homogenization and consistency ... as in monotonous and boring. 

Sorry to say it is so hard to look back at how much of a delight rail travel once was... then you board an Amtrak across the country with its plumbing, ventilation, and other breakdown issues, when one wishes the windows would open just a crack... and having to bring one's own food on board.*

*Did you want to say meals were still included? As the un-opening windows and faulty ventilation systems don't work on the Superliners, you still breathe the air and sweat with overheating and say to yourself... "get over it." And with those noxious flex meals... no one is overeating.

How disturbing that when it comes to passenger service, looking back leaves one gasping for a reprieve in service.


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## railiner (Jan 30, 2021)

PaTrainFan said:


> This could very well be the longest standing logo today


A few older ones readily come to mind...









Coca-Cola - Wikipedia







en.wikipedia.org









__





GE Logo and symbol, meaning, history, PNG, brand


GE Logo history is a true reflection of the company’s uniqueness and power. Learn how it looked initially, and how it evolved together with the GE enterprise.




1000logos.net










History of the Union Pacific Logo


Union Pacific's shield is one of the nation's most respected and recognized corporate logos; a symbol of strength reflecting America's heritage. During the company's 150-year history, the shield has mirrored the styles and economic trends that shaped both the railroad and the nation.



www.up.com




.


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## PaTrainFan (Jan 30, 2021)

railiner said:


> A few older ones readily come to mind...
> 
> 
> 
> ...



Oh, yes, all iconic. There are likely a number more. Obviously I didn't put a great deal of thought into it.


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## Qapla (Jan 30, 2021)

Still doesn't diminish a 60 year old logo when so many companies have changes theirs to "keep up"


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## NS VIA Fan (Jan 31, 2021)

Another iconic logo is VIA. It's 45 years old this year when CN rebranded its passenger services as 'VIA CN' in April 1976. A year or so later it was spun off as a separate Crown Corporation: VIA Rail Canada Inc.







Right side up.....up side down ....it still say VIA!







And for Amtrak's 50th......wouldn't I love to see that original logo back (I haven't quite figured out the current one!)


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## jiml (Jan 31, 2021)

NS VIA Fan said:


> Right side up.....up side down ....it still say VIA!
> 
> View attachment 20503
> 
> ...


And in both official languages no less!


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## railiner (Jan 31, 2021)

NS VIA Fan said:


> And for Amtrak's 50th......wouldn't I love to see that original logo back (I haven't quite figured out the current one!)


Same here...it looks almost cartoonish on the conductor's cap...the original cap design is so much classier, IMHO...


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## MARC Rider (Jan 31, 2021)

20th Century Rider said:


> Every rail line wore a different logo, different color, and believe it or not, competed for passenger loyalties with those unique and delicious meals in the dining cars.



I hate to say this, but even back in the golden days of rail, most passengers didn't ride the train for the "delicious meals in the dining cars." They rode the train because it was the most convenient (and sometimes the only) way to get from point A to point B. In fact, most passengers couldn't even afford dining car meals and had to bring their own food aboard. Also, this fancy dining was only found on the crack flagship trains; on the lesser trains, even if food was served, it wasn't always so fancy.

I suspect that in 100 years (if civilization hasn't collapsed) people will post on online forums about how back in the good old days it was so civilized that you could fly across the continent in 6 hours and eat yummy pretzels or you could drive your own car and eat tasty McDonalds whenever you felt like it, unlike in modern times when you were crammed into a windowless hyperloop and endured an hours-long amusement park ride, where the g-forces made it co you didn't even want to think about eating! And maybe Amtrak will still be chugging along attracting a niche clientele with those delicious flex meals.


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## fdaley (Jan 31, 2021)

I'm glad the CN and VIA logos are still with us after so many years. But looking at all those old timetable covers makes me think of how many more places one could go by train in the '70s and even through the '80s. The CN network was just vast, and the system was set up for travelers to make connections all across Canada. Now VIA's system, even pre-Covid, seems even more skeletal than Amtrak's. But the CN and VIA logos have better associations for me than the old Amtrak "pointless arrow."


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## 20th Century Rider (Jan 31, 2021)

Way back in the good old days... when there was passenger rail competition between companies going the same places, competition led to some wonderful amenities for passengers... which they enjoyed. True, when I was growing up, we couldn't afford those fancy $1.35 meals, but every once in a while we would indulge.

Competition brings better services and products for the consumer... that's the American way. It always was, and hopefully always will. I do think that the quality of life in our country will continue to prevail. 

Now for the nationalization of passenger rail... known as Amtrak, competition between railroad passenger companies was eliminated. Eventually service became greatly diminished. It just could be that competition will prevail... even with rail travel... as can be seen in Florida. What the 'paying public' wants... it gets through competition.

And I do think that through congressional representation both funding and qualitative travel will prevail... with passenger rail... because the 'voting public' wants it. 



MARC Rider said:


> I suspect that in 100 years (if civilization hasn't collapsed) people will post on online forums about how back in the good old days it was so civilized that you could fly across the continent in 6 hours and eat yummy pretzels or you could drive your own car and eat tasty McDonalds whenever you felt like it, unlike in modern times when you were crammed into a windowless hyperloop and endured an hours-long amusement park ride, where the g-forces made it co you didn't even want to think about eating! And maybe Amtrak will still be chugging along attracting a niche clientele with those delicious flex meals.



Let's talk about this prediction in 100 years... but more realistically let us live for today because that is what we have. With a whole lot of imagination perhaps there will be windowless hyperloop and hours long amusement park ride but really... they have less of a chance of happening than flex meals have of staying.

I do think roadside restaurants aren't going anywhere... different brands come and go through competition. And if those flex meals are around in 100 years... hmmm... 

er... um... well... hoping they'll be gone in 100 days.


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