Original tom and jerry episodes
This set was released in Europe, using the same contents as the Region 1 version. Not yet named in their debut theatrical short, Puss Gets the Boot (1940), Tom (the scheming cat) and Jerry (the spunky mouse) nonetheless were a hit with audiences.
#Original tom and jerry episodes series
Chuck Jones: Memories of Childhood, by Peggy Stern and John Canemakerĭespite not including racial stereotyping on this set, The Chuck Jones Collection was given a description as it states "suitable for the adult collectors" possibly due to the high speed flashing effects that occurred in short The Mouse from H.U.N.G.E.R., which had since been rarely seen in reruns. Tom and Jerry, American animated cartoon series about a hapless cat’s never-ending pursuit of a clever mouse.The series followed a trend of the time to “babyfy” classic cartoons and draw the characters in a more youthful manner. Hanna and Barbera produced their third Tom and Jerry production from 1990- Tom & Jerry Kids. In 1980, Filmation Studios (part of MGM) produced The Tom and Jerry Comedy Show, which included new characters and more of a slapstick approach to the scenes, which wasn’t very well received. In 1975, Hanna and Barbera returned to produce 48 television shorts of The Tom and Jerry Show for ABC.
34 shorts were made, with the animation style taking on a slightly psychedelic tone. In the later ‘60s, Chuck Jones and Les Goldman took over production of Tom and Jerry, as part of the company Sib Tower 12 Productions (later becoming a division of MGM). In order to avoid the show being linked to communism, the credits did not state where it was produced, and the crew’s names were transliterated from Czech. The series was produced in Prague, which at the time, was behind the Iron Curtain. The classic duo was quickly revived in the early ‘60s, by Gene Deitch and William L. The animation duo went on to make other popular cartoons such as The Flintstones, Yogi Bear, The Jetsons, and Scooby-Doo. The final Tom and Jerry short produced by Hanna and Barbera in this run was Tot Watchers. The rise of television in the ‘50s and decline of theatrical revenues eventually caused this run of Tom and Jerry to cease in 1957. In fact, to this day, Tom and Jerry have won more Oscars than any other animated series.Įach production took around six weeks to make and had a typical budget of $50,000 (over $500,000 today). Hanna and Barbera made a total of 114 cartoons for MGM in this production, which were hugely well-received. Initially, Tom would walk on four legs, but began walking on two legs after a few years, becoming almost exclusively bipedal. Over the years, Jerry slimmed down and Tom gained a smoother appearance to his fur, as well as bigger eyebrows, and a white and gray face with a white mouth. The pair made small adjustments to the appearance of Tom and Jerry so they would “ age gracefully” and the changes wouldn’t alienate the audience. MGM held an internal contest to name the characters, and animator Jack Carr coined Tom the cat and Jerry the mouse, winning $50 (about $900 today) in the process.īarbera and Hanna continued making Tom and Jerry shorts for the next 15 years. Knowing there was demand for the cartoon, MGM agreed to allow Barbera and Hanna to produce a sequel to Puss Gets the Boot. However, Texas businesswoman Bessa Short sent a letter to the studio, inquiring if more of the cat and mouse shorts were going to be made. Barbera and Hanna were expecting the short to be the last they made of its type. It was released in theatres on February 10, 1940. Puss Gets the Boot was made, featuring Jasper the cat and Jinx the mouse, although Jinx was only named in the pre-production.