Tom and Jerry: The Mansion Cat

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Tom and Jerry: The Mansion Cat
File:The Mansion Cat Title.JPG
Written by Karl Toerge
Directed by Karl Toerge
Voices of Joseph Barbera
Composer(s) J. Eric Schmidt
Country of origin United States
Original language(s) English
Production
Producer(s) Diana Richey
Running time 7 minutes
Production company(s) Hanna-Barbera Productions
Turner Entertainment
Distributor Warner Bros. Television Distribution
Release
Original network Boomerang
Original release April 8, 2001 (2001-04-08)[1]
External links
[{{#property:P856}} Website]

Tom and Jerry: The Mansion Cat is an animated seven-minute television short produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions in association with Turner Entertainment and first aired on April 8, 2001 (2001-04-08) [1] on Boomerang starring Academy Award-winners, Tom and Jerry. William Hanna, long time partner with Joseph Barbera in animation for 60 years, died on March 22, 2001 after the Hanna-Barbera studios shut down on March 12, 2001, just before the cartoon's debut that year. It is notable for being the first and only Tom and Jerry short made especially for Boomerang.[1]

Even though it does attempt to recapture the format of the theatrical shorts (1940-1958), fans have criticized this outing for dumbing down the series to simply robotic violence and fighting, whereas the more famous classic shorts always had a story as a trigger for the duo's rivalry, and generally characterized them in a much more nuanced way. Barbera provided the voice of Tom's owner for this production. The buckle on his shoes are a clue to his being there because they are his initials. This was also one of the last cartoons produced by Hanna-Barbera before its absorption into Warner Bros. Animation later in 2001.

Thirteen months after it premiered on Boomerang, the seven-minute short re-premiered on Kids' WB! on May 25, 2002 (2002-05-25) [1] at 9:30 a.m. followed by the premiere of The Powerpuff Girls. The character designs for the cat and mouse in this short are based on their designs of the 1975 Tom and Jerry series, although their late-1940s and early-1950s designs are more commonly used. The short has not yet been released on any home media.

Plot

The episode begins with a circle showing Jerry running, but as the circle grows, it is shown that Jerry is going nowhere, Tom has captured his tail. However, when the owner calls his name, he lets Jerry's tail go, freeing him back into his cage. The owner (voiced by Joseph Barbera) of Tom and a large house tells Tom he is going away for a while, the house is in perfect shape, and that he does not want Tom blaming "the mouse" (actually Jerry) for any destruction this time. Of course, this means Tom will spend most of the picture chasing Jerry around the house, causing extensive damage.

First, Tom throws the habit-rail out of the mansion, sits on the sofa, eats lots of food stolen from the refrigerator, while watching television (Note: Muscle Beach Tom was shown on there). Then, traditional chase and damage happen. Among the sequences: Jerry shoves Tom into a VCR, by Spin Master and Steven Spielberg, then shelves the resulting cassette-sized cat, Tom traps Jerry in a coffeemaker, Jerry traps Tom in a refrigerator and he comes out again in ice cubes, by Spin Master and Steven Spielberg again; Jerry sucks Tom and half the living room into a vacuum cleaner, Tom chases Jerry through the yard and into the house on a riding lawn mower. At the end, he crashes the mower into his owner's returning car, who tells Tom he "make[s] a better hood ornament than a house cat".

Cultural references

  • The mansion features photos of duo's creators, William Hanna and Joe Barbera.
  • During the short, Tom can be seen watching a VHS cassette of Muscle Beach Tom, a clip from the classic 1950's Tom and Jerry short.
  • When Jerry sucks the curtain in the living room into a vacuum cleaner, Spike makes a cameo appearance.

See also

References

  1. 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found. Episode Profile

External links