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in: Company, THX, Lucasfilm Ltd.

THX

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THX Ltd. is an American company headquartered in San Francisco, California, and founded in 1983 by George Lucas. It develops the "THX" high fidelity audio/visual reproduction standards for movie theaters, screening rooms, home theaters, computer speakers, gaming consoles, car audio systems, and video games.

The current THX was created in 2002 when it spun off from Lucasfilm Ltd. THX was developed by Tomlinson Holman at George Lucas's company, Lucasfilm, in 1983 to ensure that the soundtrack for the third Star Wars film, Return of the Jedi, would be accurately reproduced in the best venues. THX was named after Holman, with the "X" standing for "crossover" or possibly "experiment" as well as in homage to Lucas's first film, THX 1138. The distinctive glissando up from a rumbling low pitch used in the THX trailers, created by Holman's coworker James A. Moorer, is known as the "Deep Note".

The THX system is not a recording technology and it does not specify a sound recording format: all sound formats, whether digital (Dolby Digital, DTS, SDDS) or analog (Dolby Stereo, Ultra Stereo), can be "shown in THX". THX is mainly a quality assurance system. THX-certified theaters provide a high-quality, predictable playback environment to ensure that any film soundtrack mixed in THX will sound as near as possible to the intentions of the mixing engineer. THX also provides certified theaters with a special crossover circuit whose use is part of the standard. Certification of an auditorium entails specific acoustic and other technical requirements; architectural requirements include a floating floor, baffled and acoustically treated walls, non-parallel walls (to reduce standing waves), a perforated screen (to allow center channel continuity), and NC30 rating for background noise ("ensures noise from air conditioning units and projection equipment does not mask the subtle effects in a movie's soundtrack.").

Paramount films digitally mastered by THX[]

  • White Fang (1955) Broadway (1998 DVD release)
  • World of Wonderland (1970) Broadway (2002 VHS & DVD release)
  • The Godfather (1972) Broadway (1997 VHS & LaserDisc releases)
  • Little Helpers (1972) Broadway (2001 DVD release)
  • Charlotte's Web (1973) Broadway (2001 VHS & DVD release)
  • The Godfather Part II (1974) Broadway (1997 VHS & LaserDisc releases)
  • TBD (1976) Broadway (2001 VHS & DVD release)
  • Grease (1978) Broadway (1998 20th Anniversary VHS & LaserDisc releases/2002 DVD release)
  • Apocalypse Now (1979) Cimarron (1997 LaserDisc release)
  • Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981)
    • Broadway (1999 VHS release/2012 Blu-ray release)
    • Broadway 2000 (2003 DVD release)
    • Amazing Life (2008 DVD release)
  • Broadway (2003 VHS & DVD release)
  • The Prince and the Pauper (1982) Broadway (2003 VHS & DVD release)
  • 48 Hours (1982) Broadway (1994 LaserDisc release)
  • Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984)
    • Broadway (1999 VHS release/2012 Blu-ray release)
    • Broadway 2000 (2003 DVD release)
    • Amazing Life (2008 DVD release)
  • Beverly Hills Cop (1984) Broadway (1994 LaserDisc release)
  • Top Gun (1986)
    • Broadway (1996 LaserDisc release)
    • Tex 2: Moo Can (2004 DVD release)
  • Ferris Bueller's Day Off (1986)
    • Tex (1999 DVD release)
    • Cavalcade (2006 DVD release)
  • Beverly Hills Cop II (1987) Broadway (1994 LaserDisc release)
  • Tucker: The Man and His Dream (1988) Broadway (2000 DVD release)
  • Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989)
    • Broadway (1999 VHS release/2012 Blu-ray release)
    • Broadway 2000 (2003 DVD release)
    • Amazing Life (2008 DVD release)
  • East of the Sun and West of the Moon (1989) Broadway (2003 VHS & DVD release)
  • The Hunt for Red October (1990) Broadway (1997 LaserDisc release)
  • Little Helpers To the Rescue (1989) Broadway (2004 VHS & DVD release)
  • The Godfather Part III (1990) Broadway (1997 VHS & LaserDisc releases)
  • Naturia (1991) Broadway (2001 VHS & DVD release)
  • Patriot Games (1992)
    • Cimarron (1997 LaserDisc release)
    • Grand (2003 DVD release)
  • The World of Fairy Tales (1992) Broadway (2002 VHS & DVD release)
  • Meredith's Journey (1994) Broadway (1994 LaserDisc release/1998 DVD release/2004 VHS & DVD releases)
  • Beverly Hills Cop III (1994) Broadway (1994 LaserDisc release)
  • Forrest Gump (1994) Broadway (1995 LaserDisc release/2001 DVD release)
  • Clear and Present Danger (1994)
    • Broadway (1995 LaserDisc release)
    • Grand (2003 DVD release)
  • Star Trek: Generations (1994) Broadway (1995 LaserDisc release)
  • Drop Zone (1994) Broadway (1995 LaserDisc release)
  • Congo (1995) Broadway (1995 LaserDisc release)
  • Braveheart (1995) Broadway (1996 LaserDisc release)
  • The Sunshine (1995) Broadway (1996 LaserDisc release/2004 VHS & DVD releases)
  • Mission: Impossible (1996) Broadway (1996 LaserDisc release)
  • The Phantom (1996) Broadway (1996 LaserDisc release)
  • Escape from L.A. (1996) Cimarron (1997 LaserDisc release)
  • The Ghost and the Darkness (1996) Cimarron (1997 LaserDisc release)
  • Natalia's Story (1996) Broadway (1996 LaserDisc release/2000 DVD release/2003 VHS & DVD releases)
  • Star Trek: First Contact (1996) Cimarron (1997 LaserDisc release)
  • The Betty Boop Movie (1996) (1997 LaserDisc release)
  • Face/Off (1997) Broadway (1997 LaserDisc release)
  • The Adventures in Medieval: The Beginning (1997) Broadway (1997 LaserDisc release)
  • Good Burger (1997) Broadway (1998 LaserDisc release/2003 DVD release)
  • Mistress Masham's Repose (1997) Broadway (1998 LaserDisc release/2003 VHS & DVD releases)
  • Titanic (1997)
    • Broadway (1998 VHS & DVD releases/2012 Blu-ray release)
    • Cimarron (1998 LaserDisc release)
    • The Science of Sensation (2005 Special Collector's Edition DVD release)
  • Deep Impact (1998) Cimarron (1998 LaserDisc release)
  • Future Princess (1998) Broadway (1999 VHS & DVD releases)
  • The Rugrats Movie (1998) Broadway (1999 VHS & DVD releases)
  • The Next Stars (1999) Broadway (1999 VHS & DVD releases)
  • South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut (1999) Broadway (1999 VHS & DVD releases)
  • Snow Day (2000) Broadway (2000 VHS & DVD releases)
  • Rugrats in Paris: The Movie (2000) Broadway (2001 VHS & DVD releases)
  • Blazing Dragons: The Movie (2000) Broadway (2001 VHS & DVD releases/2002 Special Edition VHS & DVD releases)
  • The Big Knights: The Movie (2000) Broadway (2001 VHS & DVD releases/2002 Special Edition VHS & DVD releases)
  • Lavender Castle: The Movie (2000)
    • Broadway (2001 VHS release/2002 Special Edition VHS release)
    • Tex (2001 DVD release/2002 Special Edition DVD release)
  • The Viking Warrior (2001) Broadway (2001 VHS & DVD releases)
  • Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius (2001)
    • Broadway (2002 VHS release)
    • Tex (2002 DVD release)
  • The Wizards (2002)
    • Broadway (2002 VHS release)
    • Tex 2: Moo Can (2002 DVD release)
  • Clockstoppers (2002) Broadway (2002 VHS & DVD releases)
  • Hey Arnold!: The Movie (2002)
    • Broadway (2002 VHS release)
    • Tex (2002 DVD release)
  • Musical Stories 90th (2002)
    • Broadway (2003 VHS release)
    • Cavalcade (2003 DVD release)
  • The Wild Thornberrys Movie (2002) Broadway (2003 VHS & DVD releases)
  • Game Zone (2003)
    • Broadway (2003 VHS release)
    • Tex (2003 DVD release)
  • Rugrats Go Wild (2003)
    • Broadway (2003 VHS release)
    • Tex 2: Moo Can (2003 DVD release)
  • Magina (2003)
    • Broadway (2004 VHS release)
    • Cavalcade (2004 DVD release)
  • Danny Phantom: The Movie (2004) Broadway (2005 VHS & DVD releases)
  • Twin, Duo, & Two (2004)
    • Tex 2: Moo Can (2004 VHS & DVD releases)
    • Tex (2006 DVD release)
  • Unfabulous: The Movie (2004) Broadway (2005 VHS & DVD releases)
  • The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie (2004)
    • Broadway (2005 VHS release)
    • Cavalcade (2005 DVD release)
  • Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events (2004) Broadway (2005 DVD releases)
  • Animal Frenzy: The Movie (2005) Tex (2005 DVD release)
  • Mad Hot Ballroom (2005) Broadway (2005 DVD release)
  • HighLoose (2005) Tex (2005 DVD release)
  • Life at Camp (2005) Tex (2006 DVD release)
  • Yours, Mine & Ours (2005) Broadway (2006 DVD release)
  • Circus Bears (2006) Tex (2006 DVD release)
  • Over the Hedge (2006) Cavalcade (2006 DVD release)
  • Nacho Libre (2006) Broadway (2006 DVD release)
  • Barnyard (2006) Tex (2006 DVD release)
  • Mistaken Identity (2006) Tex 3 (2007 DVD release)
  • Flushed Away (2006) Tex 3 (2007 DVD release)
  • Shrek the Third (2007) Shrek (2007 DVD release)
  • Twin, Duo, & Double (2007) Tex 3 (2007 DVD release)
  • OtherWorld (2007) Amazing Life (2008 DVD release)
  • Bee Movie (2007) Amazing Life (2008 DVD release)
  • Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (2008)
    • Amazing Life (2008 DVD & Blu-ray releases)
    • Broadway (2012 Blu-ray re-release)

Trivia[]

  • The logo has been known to frighten younger viewers mainly with its audio trademark, the Deep Note.
  • THX's mascot is Tex, a robot character animated and voiced by John Lasseter of Pixar.
  • The THX Shrek logo was originally intended to show before the original 2001 theatrical release of Shrek but was delayed until 2003 due to the ongoing rivalry between DreamWorks and Disney at the time (the debut date given reflects the scuttlebug that it was supposed to premiere before Pixar's Monsters, Inc. before Disney threatened to blacklist THX over the trailer).
  • The THX logo along with its Deep Note briefly appears in DreamWorks Animation's 2006 film Over the Hedge.
  • The THX logo was parodied in The Simpsons episode "Burn Heir".
    • On a similar note it was also parodied in the Tiny Toons Adventures TV movie "How I Spent My Vacation".
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