Today Google is celebrating the birthday of late graphic designer and film artist Saul Bass (he would have been 93). The search engine has created an 81-second "Google Doodle" embedded on the site's homepage that shows appreciation for his timeless aesthetic that has been used by major Hollywood movies in opening credits, posters, and even corporate logos.
The artist, who passed away in 1996, is responsible for the motion-picture title sequences of "The Man With the Golden Arm," "North by Northwest," "West Side Story" and even "Psycho." Yup his name is associated with all the big names, from Hitchcock to Kubrick. His iconic style was minimalist, yet impactful. It has been ripped off by other graphic designers many times, but Bass is the guy who started it.
“I had felt for some time that the audience involvement with the film should really begin with the very first frame ... ,” Bass once said. “There seemed to be a real opportunity to use titles in a new way — to actually crreate a climate for the story that was about to unfold.”
Below is the animation Matt Cruickshank and the rest of Google's design team created. It starts with uneven text bars with letters that spell out ‘Google’. It pays homage to his work for the film "Psycho." As the video plays out you can see some of his greatest hits, noting his iconic title sequences.
[via WashingtonPost / USNews]
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