Character of the Week: Tom and Jerry

Tom and Jerry

“Tom and Jerry” is one of the most famous duos of all time.  Since 1940, Tom the cat and Jerry the mouse have been making people laugh at the funny scenarios they get themselves into.

Tom and Jerry started out as a series of theatrical short cartoon films that were played in movie theaters before the featured film.  From 1940 to 1957, one hundred and fourteen short films were created by William Hanna and Joseph Barbera for Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer.  The series was so well received that it received the Academy Award for Best Short Subject (Cartoons) seven times!

Not to mess with a good thing, the plot of the Tom and Jerry cartoons remained the same, however, the appearance of the characters changed over time.  Tom went from a cat with overly detailed facial features and shaggy hair that walked on all fours to a sleeker looking cat with heavy eyebrows that walked upright.  Jerry stayed pretty much the same over the years with his cute little face and batting eyelashes.

Although the original “Tom and Jerry” cartoons were award winning, they were criticized in later years for having too much violence.  It is true that Tom and Jerry routinely try to hurt each other, and very often succeed, but being cartoons allows them to bounce right back as if nothing happened.  The series was also labeled as being racially insensitive for having characters that were stereotypes of black people, such as the maid, Mammie Two Shoes.

In 1958, the “Tom and Jerry” shorts stopped production due to MGM closing its animation studio, and Hanna and Barbera leaving to open their own studio.  No more cartoons were made until 1960, when MGM hired a Czechoslovakian animation studio, Rembrandt Films, to produce new “Tom and Jerry” shorts.  These new cartoons lost some of the intensity and humor that the old shorts had.  There was less violence, more character development, and more guest appearances from other cartoon characters.  Also, the animation techniques were different.  There was motion blur in the characters’ gestures, so the animation looked choppy.  The music chosen was also different, replaced in part by dialogue and sound effects.  To avoid being called politically incorrect, Mammie Two Shoes’ character was deleted, and replaced by a thin white woman.

In 1962, the production for the “Tom and Jerry” shorts moved to the animation studio Sib Tower 12 Productions.  More changes took place in the characters’ appearances.  Tom’s fur changed from a blue-grey color to plain grey.  Jerry received a sweeter expression and larger eyes and ears.

In 1965, “Tom and Jerry” could be seen on television as part of CBS’s Saturday morning cartoon lineup.  Although the shows were edited to delete some of the violence, the series was still a favorite among viewers.  In 1975, Hanna and Barbera acquired the rights to “Tom and Jerry.”  They went to work creating 48 new shorts that would go straight to television, and were to run on ABC’s Saturday morning cartoon lineup.  There were rules as to what could be shown to children, so the new cartoons were more toned down and actually showed Tom and Jerry as friends in some episodes.  Tom still looked the same, but a red bow tie was added to Jerry’s appearance.  This incarnation of the series lasted on weekly television until 1977.

In 1980, Filmation Studios, in association with MGM Televsision, produced a new “Tom and Jerry” television series called “The Tom and Jerry Comedy Show,” which was first broadcast in 1980.  The series was a throwback to the original cartoon shorts, where the main plot is the cat chasing the mouse with funny slapstick humor moments.  This series ran on CBS Saturday Morning until 1982.

In 1986 Ted Turner purchased MGM and acquired the rights to all of the “Tom and Jerry” films and cartoons.  This library is still owned by Turner Entertainment today, and reruns of “Tom and Jerry” cartoons can be seen on the Turner channels such as Cartoon Network.

Throughout the 80s and 90s, “Tom and Jerry” was released as modified versions of the originals.  When the trend pointed towards animated baby characters, “Tom and Jerry” followed suit.  Then when the trend swayed back towards more violent animation, “Tom and Jerry” did the same.  Most recently, a series called “Tom and Jerry Tales” was produced, which was more like the original format.  Thirteen episodes were created and the show ran on the CW channel until March of 2008.

Tom and Jerry have been entertaining Americans and people in other countries for almost 70 years.  Generations have grown up laughing at the silly situations in their cartoons.  Tom and Jerry merchandise has been available for years, and today many products are treated as collector’s items.  Check out our website for Tom and Jerry posters and bobble head figures, and create your own adventures with America’s most famous cat and mouse!