Monk (2002–2009) logo and opening titles

Contributed by Daniel Swan on Oct 2nd, 2021. Artwork published in

circa 2002

Gill Kayo is the logo typeface of Monk. The credits in the opening titles are set in Gill Sans, with first names in all lowercase and surnames in all uppercase letters. The letters first appear jumbled and then fall into place to form the words. From Wikipedia:

Monk is an American comedy-drama detective mystery television series created by Andy Breckman and starring Tony Shalhoub as the title character, Adrian Monk. It originally ran from 2002 to 2009 and is primarily a police procedural series, but also exhibits comic and dramatic tones in its exploration of the main characters’ personal lives. The series was produced by Mandeville Films and ABC Studios in association with Universal Network Television.

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2 Comments on “Monk (2002–2009) logo and opening titles”

Gert Gurke says:
Feb 19th, 2022 6:19 am

The fussy Mr. Monk wouldn’t be amused: Gill Kayo and Gill Sans Ultra Bold aren’t the same!
Florian Hardwig says:
Feb 19th, 2022 7:44 am

Hi Gert, did you see the typeface bio? Gill Kayo is the original name of the design that later was also known as Gill Sans Ultra Bold (Monotype Series 442).

Digital versions of this design include Gill Sans UltraBold and Gill Sans Nova Ultra Bold (Monotype), Humanist Sans 521 Ultra Bold (Bitstream), and Klassik Sans No. 2 Ultra Bold (URW). These interpretations aren’t 100% identical in all details, but we group them under one typeface entry for the sake of simplicity. I, for one, couldn’t say which specific version is used for “MONK”.

The only digital release to have “Kayo” in its name is indeed different: it’s a condensed variant that was added in 1980 by Letraset. Nowadays ITC sells it under the name Gill Kayo Condensed.