In
entertainment
Entertainment is a form of activity that holds the attention and Interest (emotion), interest of an audience or gives pleasure and delight. It can be an idea or a task, but it is more likely to be one of the activities or events that have deve ...
, a tagline (alternatively spelled tag line) is a short text which serves to clarify a thought for, or is designed with a form of,
dramatic effect. Many
tagline slogans are
reiterated phrase
In grammar, a phrasecalled expression in some contextsis a group of words or singular word acting as a grammatical unit. For instance, the English language, English expression "the very happy squirrel" is a noun phrase which contains the adject ...
s
associated with an
individual
An individual is one that exists as a distinct entity. Individuality (or self-hood) is the state or quality of living as an individual; particularly (in the case of humans) as a person unique from other people and possessing one's own needs or g ...
,
social group
In the social sciences, a social group is defined as two or more people who interact with one another, share similar characteristics, and collectively have a sense of unity. Regardless, social groups come in a myriad of sizes and varieties. F ...
, or
product. As a variant of a
branding slogan, taglines can be used in
marketing
Marketing is the act of acquiring, satisfying and retaining customers. It is one of the primary components of Business administration, business management and commerce.
Marketing is usually conducted by the seller, typically a retailer or ma ...
materials and
advertising
Advertising is the practice and techniques employed to bring attention to a Product (business), product or Service (economics), service. Advertising aims to present a product or service in terms of utility, advantages, and qualities of int ...
.
The idea behind the concept is to create a memorable dramatic phrase that will sum up the
tone
Tone may refer to:
Visual arts and color-related
* Tone (color theory), a mix of tint and shade, in painting and color theory
* Tone (color), the lightness or brightness (as well as darkness) of a color
* Toning (coin), color change in coins
* ...
and
premise
A premise or premiss is a proposition—a true or false declarative statement—used in an argument to prove the truth of another proposition called the conclusion. Arguments consist of a set of premises and a conclusion.
An argument is meaningf ...
of an
audio/visual product, or to
reinforce and strengthen the audience's
memory
Memory is the faculty of the mind by which data or information is encoded, stored, and retrieved when needed. It is the retention of information over time for the purpose of influencing future action. If past events could not be remembe ...
of a
literary product. Some taglines are successful enough to warrant inclusion in
popular culture
Popular culture (also called pop culture or mass culture) is generally recognized by members of a society as a set of cultural practice, practices, beliefs, artistic output (also known as popular art f. pop art
F is the sixth letter of the Latin alphabet.
F may also refer to:
Science and technology Mathematics
* F or f, the number 15 (number), 15 in hexadecimal and higher positional systems
* ''p'F'q'', the hypergeometric function
* F-distributi ...
or mass art, sometimes contraste ...
.
Nom
''Tagline'', ''tag line'', and ''tag'' are American terms. In the U.K. they are called ''end lines'', ''endlines'', or ''straplines''. In Belgium they are called ''baselines''. In France they are ''signatures''. In Germany they are ''claims''. In the Netherlands and Italy, they are ''pay offs'' or ''pay-off''.
Organizational usage
may encourage taglines to be used as the conclusion to an introduction by each attendee. The purpose would be to make the introduction and that speaker more memorable in the minds of the other attendees after the meeting is over. Other terms for taglines are "memory hooks" (used by BNI®) and "USP" or "Unique Selling Proposition" which is a more commonly known term.
Difference from headlines
The tagline is sometimes confused with a headline because information is only presented with the one or the other. Essentially the headline is linked to the information; Once the information changes, the headline is abandoned in favor of a new one. The tagline is related to the entertainment piece and can, therefore, appear on all the information of that product or manufacturer. It is linked to the piece and not to the concept of a specific event. If the sentence is presented next to a logo, as an integral part, it is likely to be a tagline.
Function
A tagline is sometimes used as a supplementary expression in promoting a motion picture or television program. It is an explanatory subtitle, in addition to the actual title, on posters or the CD/DVD packaging of videos and music. Taglines can have an enticing effect and are therefore an important aspect in the marketing of films and television programs. Increasingly also found in the advertising world, taglines are a form of advertising slogan. A tagline for the movie series Star Wars, for example:
: ''Tagline'': "A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away..." – ''
Star Wars
''Star Wars'' is an American epic film, epic space opera media franchise created by George Lucas, which began with the Star Wars (film), eponymous 1977 film and Cultural impact of Star Wars, quickly became a worldwide popular culture, pop cu ...
''
: ''Effect'': It was a long time ago in a far, far away galaxy ...
Examples
Film and television
* "You must become Caligari!" () – ''
The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari''
* "
Garbo talks!" – ''
Anna Christie
''Anna Christie'' is a Play (theatre), play in four acts by Eugene O'Neill. It made its Broadway theatre, Broadway debut at the Vanderbilt Theatre on November 2, 1921. O'Neill received the 1922 Pulitzer Prize for Drama for this work. According ...
''
* "Garbo laughs!" – ''
Ninotchka''
* "Be afraid. Be very afraid." – ''
The Fly''
''
* "
In space, no one can hear you scream." – ''
Alien''
* "
Who you gonna call?" – ''
Ghostbusters
''Ghostbusters'' is a 1984 American supernatural comedy film directed by Ivan Reitman and written by Dan Aykroyd and Harold Ramis. It stars Bill Murray, Aykroyd, and Ramis as Peter Venkman, Ray Stantz, and Egon Spengler, three eccentric ...
''
* "
Love means never having to say you're sorry." – ''
Love Story''
* "Every heist has its perfect plan. Until something goes wrong" –
Money Heist
* "The truth is out there." – ''
The X-Files
''The X-Files'' is an American science fiction on television, science fiction drama (film and television), drama television series created by Chris Carter (screenwriter), Chris Carter. The original series aired from September 10, 1993, to Ma ...
''
* "Just when you thought it was safe to go back in the water..." – ''
Jaws 2
''Jaws 2'' is a 1978 American horror thriller film directed by Jeannot Szwarc and co-written by Carl Gottlieb. It is the sequel to Steven Spielberg's '' Jaws'' (1975), and the second installment in the ''Jaws'' franchise. The film stars Roy ...
''
* "Nothing on earth could come between them." – ''
Titanic
RMS ''Titanic'' was a British ocean liner that sank in the early hours of 15 April 1912 as a result of striking an iceberg on her maiden voyage from Southampton, England, to New York City, United States. Of the estimated 2,224 passengers a ...
''
* "Trapped in time. Surrounded by evil. Low on gas." – ''
Army of Darkness
''Army of Darkness'' is a 1992 American dark fantasy comedy film directed, co-written, and co-edited by Sam Raimi. The film is the third installment in the Evil Dead, ''Evil Dead'' film series and the sequel to ''Evil Dead II'' (1987). Starring ...
''
* "Some houses are born bad." – ''
The Haunting''
* "It knows what scares you." – ''
Poltergeist
In German folklore and ghostlore, a poltergeist ( or ; ; or ) is a type of ghost or spirit that is responsible for physical disturbances, such as loud noises and objects being moved or destroyed. Most claims or fictional descriptions of polter ...
''
* "We are not alone." – ''
Close Encounters of the Third Kind
''Close Encounters of the Third Kind'' is a 1977 American science fiction film, science fiction drama film written and directed by Steven Spielberg, starring Richard Dreyfuss, Melinda Dillon, Teri Garr, Bob Balaban, Cary Guffey, and François ...
''
* "The first casualty of war is innocence." – ''
Platoon
A platoon is a Military organization, military unit typically composed of two to four squads, Section (military unit), sections, or patrols. Platoon organization varies depending on the country and the Military branch, branch, but a platoon can ...
''
* "You'll believe a man can fly." – ''
Superman
Superman is a superhero created by writer Jerry Siegel and artist Joe Shuster, which first appeared in the comic book ''Action Comics'' Action Comics 1, #1, published in the United States on April 18, 1938.The copyright date of ''Action Comics ...
''
* "Hell holds no surprises for them..." – ''
The Devils''
* "This time, it's personal." – ''
Jaws: The Revenge''
* "Act like you own the place." – ''
Parasite
Parasitism is a Symbiosis, close relationship between species, where one organism, the parasite, lives (at least some of the time) on or inside another organism, the Host (biology), host, causing it some harm, and is Adaptation, adapted str ...
''
* "Prepare for the ride of your life." - ''
Extraction 2''
* " The most violent men called one man the most violent." - ''
Salaar: Part 1 – Ceasefire''
Video games
* "Finish the Fight." – ''
Halo 3''
* "The gears of war are lubricated by the blood of soldiers" – ''
Gears of War
''Gears of War'' (also referred to as ''Gears'') is a media franchise centered on a series of video games created by Epic Games, developed and managed by The Coalition (company), The Coalition, and owned and published by Xbox Game Studios. The ...
''
* "One giant step on mankind" – ''
Destroy All Humans!''
* "Sinners welcome." – ''
Saints Row
''Saints Row'' is a series of action-adventure video games created by Volition and published by THQ and Deep Silver. The series follows the 3rd Street Saints, a fictional street gang originally operating out of the Saints Row district, hence ...
''
* "It's the Zombie Apocalypse. Bring friends." – ''
Left 4 Dead''
* "Some mountains are scaled. Others are slain." – ''
Shadow of the Colossus''
* "Prepare to die" – ''
Dark Souls
is a dark fantasy action role-playing game series developed by FromSoftware and published by Bandai Namco Entertainment. Created by Hidetaka Miyazaki, the series began with the release of ''Dark Souls (video game), Dark Souls'' (2011) and has ...
''
*"Go beyond death" – ''
Dark Souls II''
*"Only embers remain..." – ''
Dark Souls III''
* "War. War never changes" – ''
Fallout''
* "Go to Hell" – ''
Dante's Inferno
''Inferno'' (; Italian for ' Hell') is the first part of Italian writer Dante Alighieri's 14th-century narrative poem '' The Divine Comedy'', followed by and . The ''Inferno'' describes the journey of a fictionalised version of Dante himsel ...
''
*"Revenge solves everything" – ''
Dishonored''
*"Lose your mind. Eat your crew." – ''
Sunless Sea''
*"This world doesn’t need a hero, it needs a professional." – ''
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt''
*"Good Night. Good Luck." – ''
Dying Light''
*"And so the nightly hunt begins..." – ''
Bloodborne
is a 2015 action role-playing game developed by FromSoftware and published by Sony Computer Entertainment for the PlayStation 4. The game follows a Hunter through the decrepit Gothic, Victorian-era–inspired city of Yharnam, whose inhabita ...
''
*"Our story begins at the end of the world." – ''
Everybody's Gone to the Rapture''
*"Prepare to drop" – ''
Halo 3: ODST''
*"Murder your maker." – ''
Prototype 2''
*"Remember Reach" – ''
Halo: Reach''
*"'Dilemma' doesn't begin to describe it." – ''
Mass Effect
''Mass Effect'' is a military science fiction media franchise created by Casey Hudson. The franchise depicts a distant future where humanity and several alien civilizations have colonized the galaxy using technology left behind by Elder race, a ...
''
*"Run. Think. Shoot. Live." – ''
Half-Life Half-life is a mathematical and scientific description of exponential or gradual decay.
Half-life, half life or halflife may also refer to:
Film
* Half-Life (film), ''Half-Life'' (film), a 2008 independent film by Jennifer Phang
* ''Half Life: ...
''
*"
John Romero
Alfonso John Romero (born October 28, 1967) is an American video game developer. He co-founded id Software and designed their early games, including ''Wolfenstein 3D'' (1992), ''Doom (1993 video game), Doom'' (1993), ''Doom II'' (1994), ''Hexen ...
's about to make you his bitch." – ''
Daikatana''
*"Everybody dies." – ''
DEFCON
The defense readiness condition (DEFCON) is an alert state used by the United States Armed Forces. For security reasons, the U.S. military does not announce a DEFCON level to the public.
The DEFCON system was developed by the Joint Chiefs of Sta ...
''
*"Kill with skill." – ''
Bulletstorm''
*"Bring us the girl, wipe away the debt." – ''
BioShock Infinite''
*"Welcome home." – ''
Fallout 4''
*"Rise up" – ''
Street Fighter V
''Street Fighter V'' is a 2016 fighting game developed by Capcom, Dimps and Taito and published by Capcom for PlayStation 4 and Microsoft Windows, Windows. The major follow-up to ''Street Fighter IV'' (2008) as part of Capcom's ''Street Fighter'' ...
''
*"Brothers to the end." – ''
Gears of War 3''
*"Stand tall, and shake the Heavens!" – ''
Xenogears''
*"Fear the Future" – ''
Metro 2033''
*"Everything is true." – ''
The Secret World''
*"Outlaws to the end." – ''
Red Dead Redemption''
*"Let's challenge you to Play Better" – ''
PUBG''
*"Anton would not be pleased" - ''
Far Cry 6
''Far Cry 6'' is a 2021 first-person shooter game developed by Ubisoft Toronto and published by Ubisoft. It is the sixth main installment in the '' Far Cry'' series and the successor to 2018's '' Far Cry 5''. The game is set on the fictional C ...
''
Novels
* "Power is a dangerous game." – ''
Red Queen'' by
Victoria Aveyard
* "Their dark and troubled loves could flourish only in secret." – ''
Women in the Shadows'' by
Ann Bannon
* "A novel of love—lost and found." – ''Emmy & Oliver'' by
Robin Benway
* "Your next phone call could be your last." – ''Party Line'' by
A. Bates
* "Growing up is tough. Period." – ''
Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret.'' by
Judy Blume
Judith Blume (née Sussman; born February 12, 1938) is an American writer of children's, young adult, and adult fiction. Blume began writing in 1959 and has published more than 26 novels. Among her best-known works are '' Are You There God? It's ...
* "...the temperature at which books burn." – ''
Fahrenheit 451
''Fahrenheit 451'' is a 1953 Dystopian fiction, dystopian novel by American writer Ray Bradbury. It presents a future American society where books have been outlawed and "firemen" Book burning, burn any that are found. The novel follows in the ...
'' by
Ray Bradbury
Ray Douglas Bradbury ( ; August 22, 1920June 5, 2012) was an American author and screenwriter. One of the most celebrated 20th-century American writers, he worked in a variety of genres, including fantasy, science fiction, Horror fiction, horr ...
* "She had six husbands, money—and one lover too many." ''
The Long Goodbye'' by
Raymond Chandler
Raymond Thornton Chandler (July 23, 1888 – March 26, 1959) was an American-British novelist and screenwriter. In 1932, at the age of forty-four, Chandler became a detective fiction writer after losing his job as an oil company executive durin ...
* "Afraid to face life she risked a terrible death." – ''
Destination Unknown'' by
Agatha Christie
Dame Agatha Mary Clarissa Christie, Lady Mallowan, (; 15 September 1890 – 12 January 1976) was an English people, English author known for her 66 detective novels and 14 short story collections, particularly those revolving ...
* "A breath-taking novel about the future evolution of man." – ''
Childhood's End
''Childhood's End'' is a 1953 science fiction novel by the British author Arthur C. Clarke. The story follows the peaceful alien invasion of Earth by the mysterious Overlords, whose arrival begins decades of apparent utopia under indi ...
'' by
Arthur C. Clarke
* "For the dead, war never ends." – ''Gemini Cell'' by
Myke Cole
* "There are two sides to every story." – ''
Gone Girl'' by
Gillian Flynn
Gillian Schieber Flynn (; born February 24, 1971) is an American author, screenwriter, and producer, best known for her Thriller (genre), thriller and Mystery fiction, mystery novels ''Sharp Objects'' (2006), ''Dark Places (Flynn novel), Dark Plac ...
* "A novel of an evil man...and a weak one...and their terrible bargain." – ''
Strangers on a Train'' by
Patricia Highsmith
Patricia Highsmith (born Mary Patricia Plangman; January 19, 1921 – February 4, 1995) was an American novelist and short story writer widely known for her psychological thrillers, including her series of five novels featuring the character T ...
* "A one-way ticket...to terror." – ''The Train'' by
Diane Hoh
* "A hard-boiled mystery story, tougher than a ten-minute egg." – ''The Double Take'' by
Roy Huggins
* "Would she learn the dead man's secret?" – ''
The Colorado Kid
''The Colorado Kid'' is a mystery fiction, mystery Mystery novel, novel by American writer Stephen King, published by the Hard Case Crime imprint in 2005. The book was initially issued in one paperback-only edition by the specialty crime and m ...
'' by
Stephen King
Stephen Edwin King (born September 21, 1947) is an American author. Dubbed the "King of Horror", he is widely known for his horror novels and has also explored other genres, among them Thriller (genre), suspense, crime fiction, crime, scienc ...
* "One day with Bonny Lee was like a three-year lease on a harem." – ''
The Girl, the Gold Watch & Everything'' by
John D. MacDonald
* "One boy helps her remember. The other lets her forget." – ''
The Sky Is Everywhere
''The Sky Is Everywhere'' is a 2010 Young adult literature, young adult novel by Jandy Nelson as her debut novel. It tells the story of an American high school girl, Lennie Walker, struggling to cope with the sudden death of her older sister. L ...
'' by
Jandy Nelson
Jandy Nelson (born November 25, 1965) is an American author. Prior to her career as an author, Nelson worked for 13 years as a literary agent at Manus & Associates Literary Agency. She holds a Bachelor of Arts from Cornell University as well as ...
* "Death came along for the ride." – ''Road to Nowhere'' by
Christopher Pike
* "Half Boy. Half God. All Hero." – ''
Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief'' by
Rick Riordan
Richard Russell Riordan Jr. ( ; born June 5, 1964) is an American author, best known for writing the ''Percy Jackson & the Olympians'' series. Riordan's books have been translated into forty-two languages and sold more than thirty million cop ...
* "One choice can transform you." – ''
Divergent'' by
Veronica Roth
Veronica Anne Roth (born August 19, 1988) is an American novelist and short story writer, known for her bestselling ''Divergent'' trilogy which has sold more than 35 million copies worldwide.
Personal and early life
Veronica Roth was born ...
* "The shocking novel of the fight racket." – ''The Harder They Fall'' by
Budd Schulberg
Budd Schulberg (born Seymour Wilson Schulberg; March 27, 1914 – August 5, 2009) was an American screenwriter, television producer, novelist and sports writer. He was known for his novels '' What Makes Sammy Run?'' (1941) and ''The Harder They ...
* "That's when he always kills them." – ''First Date'' by
R. L. Stine
* "Change begins with a whisper." – ''
The Help
''The Help'' is a historical fiction novel by American author Kathryn Stockett published by Penguin Books in 2009. The story is about African Americans working in white households in Jackson, Mississippi, during the early 1960s. A ''USA Today' ...
'' by
Kathryn Stockett
Kathryn Stockett is an American novelist. She is known for her 2009 debut novel, ''The Help'', which is about African-American maids working in white households in Jackson, Mississippi, during the 1960s.
Career
Stockett worked in magazine publis ...
* "A savage novel of crime and lust in a big city hotel." – ''A Swell-Looking Babe'' by
Jim Thompson
E-texts
Website
A website (also written as a web site) is any web page whose content is identified by a common domain name and is published on at least one web server. Websites are typically dedicated to a particular topic or purpose, such as news, educatio ...
s also often have taglines. The
Usenet
Usenet (), a portmanteau of User's Network, is a worldwide distributed discussion system available on computers. It was developed from the general-purpose UUCP, Unix-to-Unix Copy (UUCP) dial-up network architecture. Tom Truscott and Jim Elli ...
use taglines as short description of a newsgroup. The term is used in computing to represent
aphorisms
An aphorism (from Greek ἀφορισμός: ''aphorismos'', denoting 'delimitation', 'distinction', and 'definition') is a concise, terse, laconic, or memorable expression of a general truth or principle. Aphorisms are often handed down by tra ...
,
maxim
Maxim or Maksim may refer to:
Entertainment
*Maxim (magazine), ''Maxim'' (magazine), an international men's magazine
** Maxim (Australia), ''Maxim'' (Australia), the Australian edition
** Maxim (India), ''Maxim'' (India), the Indian edition
*Maxim ...
s,
graffiti
Graffiti (singular ''graffiti'', or ''graffito'' only in graffiti archeology) is writing or drawings made on a wall or other surface, usually without permission and within public view. Graffiti ranges from simple written "monikers" to elabor ...
or other slogans.
In
electronic texts, a ''tag'' or ''tagline'' is short, concise sentences in a row that are used when sending
e-mail
Electronic mail (usually shortened to email; alternatively hyphenated e-mail) is a method of transmitting and receiving Digital media, digital messages using electronics, electronic devices over a computer network. It was conceived in the ...
instead of an
electronic signature
An electronic signature, or e-signature, is data that is logically associated with other data and which is used by the signatory to sign the associated data. This type of signature has the same legal standing as a handwritten signature as long as ...
. The tagline is used in computing with the meaning of a "signature" to be affixed at the end of each message. In the late eighties and early nineties, when the amateur computer network
FidoNet
__
/ \
/, oo \
(_, /_)
_`@/_ \ _
, , \ \\
, (*) , \ ))
______ , __U__, / \//
/ FI ...
began to flourish, the messages that were exchanged between users often had a tag-line, which was no longer than 79 characters, containing a brief phrase (often
witty or
humor
Humour ( Commonwealth English) or humor (American English) is the tendency of experiences to provoke laughter and provide amusement. The term derives from the humoral medicine of the ancient Greeks, which taught that the balance of fluids i ...
ous).
See also
*
Byline
The byline (or by-line in British English) on a newspaper or magazine article gives the name of the writer of the article. Bylines are commonly placed between the headline and the text of the article, although some magazines (notably '' Reader's ...
*
Catchphrase
A catchphrase (alternatively spelled catch phrase) is a phrase or expression recognized by its repeated utterance. Such phrases often originate in popular culture and in the arts, and typically spread through word of mouth and a variety of mass ...
*
Hook (music)
A hook is a musical idea, often a short riff, passage, or phrase, that is used in popular music to make a song appealing and to "catch the ear of the listener." The term generally applies to popular music, especially rock, R&B, hip hop, dance, ...
*
Jingle
A jingle is a short song or tune used in advertising and for other commercial uses. Jingles are a form of sound branding. A jingle contains one or more hooks and meanings that explicitly promote the product or service being advertised, usually ...
*
Slogan
A slogan is a memorable motto or phrase used in a clan or a political, commercial, religious, or other context as a repetitive expression of an idea or purpose, with the goal of persuading members of the public or a more defined target group ...
*
Subliminal stimuli
Subliminal stimuli (; ' literally "below" or "less than") are any sensory stimulus (physiology), stimuli below an individual's sensory threshold, threshold or limit for conscious perception, in contrast to stimuli (above threshold). Visual stimul ...
*
Subtext
In any communication, in any medium or format, "subtext" is the underlying or implicit meaning that, while not explicitly stated, is understood by an audience.
The Oxford English Dictionary defines it as "an underlying and often distinct theme ...
*
Subtitle
Subtitles are texts representing the contents of the audio in a film, television show, opera or other audiovisual media. Subtitles might provide a transcription or translation of spoken dialogue. Although naming conventions can vary, caption ...
*
Trope
Trope or tropes may refer to:
Arts and entertainment
* Trope (cinema), a cinematic convention for conveying a concept
* Trope (literature), a figure of speech or common literary device
* Trope (music), any of a variety of different things in medi ...
Notes
References
External links
A List of Famous Taglines taglinedb.com{{dead link, date=May 2020
Film advertising material
Advertising slogans
Phrases