Yesterday was 70th birthday of lovable Tom and Jerry.
When William Hanna and Joseph Barbera created animated characters of Tom and Jerry for Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer they never thought that their creations are going to be liked universally by people of all ages. They have turned 70 but is showing no signs of ageing. The short films were centered on a never-ending rivalry between Tom, the housecat and a Jerry, the mouse. Hanna and Barbera ultimately wrote and directed one hundred and fourteen Tom and Jerry cartoons between 1940 and 1959. The original series won the Academy Awards for Best Short Subject (Cartoons) seven times, tying it with Walt Disney's Silly Symphonies as the theatrical animated series with the most Oscars. In 2000, TIME rated the series one of the greatest television shows of all time. No doubt, ‘Tom and Jerry’ is a piece of art. Even after 70 years, it is growing more popular than ever.
Production of Tom and Jerry shorts returned to Hollywood under Chuck Jones’s Sib-Tower 12 Productions in 1963 and lasted until 1967, making it a total of 161 shorts. The cat and mouse stars later resurfaced in television cartoons produced by Hanna-Barbera and Filmation Studios. The first made-for TV short was ‘Tom and Jerry: The Mansion Cat’ for Cartoon Network.
Tom is a blue-grey British longhair cat. He lives a pampered life. Jerry is a small brown house mouse and always lives in close proximity to Tom. Tom was originally called ‘Jasper’ in the very first short, Puss Gets the Boot, while Jerry’s original name was ‘Jinx’. Tom is very quick-tempered and thin-skinned, while Jerry is adorable, independent and opportunistic. Despite the typical cat eats mouse, it is actually quite rare for Tom to actually try and consume Jerry. Tom finds hard to match Jerry’s brains and wits. Jerry usually emerges triumphant. Other results may be reached, but rarely. Sometimes, both end up being friends (only for something to happen so that Tom will chase Jerry again). Both characters display sadistic tendencies. They are equally likely to take pleasure in tormenting each other. Another funny thing is that Tom and Jerry rarely speaks with each-other.
Despite five shorts ending with a depiction of Tom’s apparent death, his demise is never permanent; he even reads about his own death in a flashback in Jerry’s Diary.
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