History
The cartoon Tom and Jerry got its name from a common saying in 19th century London. The term was used to describe mischievous and rebellious young people. The shows original creators William Hanna and Joesph Barbera were both working at MGM and were paired up to work together at random. MGM was struggling financially and needed an idea fast so Barbera proposed the idea of a cat and mouse chase because it incorporated two main characters and involved a conflict. This simple idea evolved into a weekly cartoon show and even several movies.
When MGM studios topped all cartoon production in 1958 Tom and Jerry and Hanna and Barbera were finished. That is until Bill and Joe began their own private company, Hanna-Barbera. Bill Hanna and Joe Barbera are also the creators of famous cartoons like The Flintstones and Yogi Bear. The two also went on to produce Scooby-Doo and The Smurfs. Tom and Jerry launched their career which resulted in a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, a Golden Globe, and eight Emmy awards.
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Hanna and Barbera continued to make a name for themselves, but new Tom and Jerry episodes were not being produced until 1960 when MGM brought back the beloved cartoon. This time the show was produced by Gene Deitch, a Prague based animator who didn't even like the cartoon. Although he had a general dislike for Tom and Jerry Deitch made the cat and mouse duo an even greater success. His era ended in 1962 when Chuck Jones took over control. Jones who had recently been fired from Warner Brothers studios along with the help of Les Goldman produced 34 more episodes of Tom and Jerry.
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The pictures above show who produced Tom and Jerry through the years. From left to right: Gene Deitch, Chuck Jones, Warner-Brothers Animations.
Tom and Jerry were picked up by the Hanna-Barbera team again in 1975. Before being reunited, Jones and his team removed the racist Mammy Two Shoes from the cartoon. The right to Tom and Jerry were bought by turner entertainment so for a while the cartoon shorts aired only on TBS, Cartoon Network, TNT, and Boomerang. Hanna-Barbera now making shorts for Warner Brothers, followed the Saturday morning cartoon trend by making a babyfication of the cat and mouse, Tom and Jerry Kids. To the right is a clip of this popular adaptation to a well known show.
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Today Tom and Jerry can still be seen on Boomerang and Cartoon Network. The episodes that air are primarily reruns of the classics, but in 2013 Cartoon Network decided to reboot the show and produced several new shorts. Cartoon Network is based