Thomas "Tom" Cat is a fictional character and the main protagonist in Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer's series of Tom and Jerry theatrical cartoon short films. Created by William Hanna and Joseph Barbera, Tom is a blue/grey anthropomorphic cat who first appeared in the 1940 animated short Puss Gets the Boot.^[2] Tom was originally known as "Jasper" during his debut in that short,^[3] however, beginning from his next appearance in The Midnight Snack and onwards, he is known as "Tom" or "Thomas".^[4]

Tom Cat's Next Appearance Will Be In The Sam Register Revival Of The Tom And Jerry Show, Hinted To Premire In 2013.

History[link]

Tom and Jerry cartoons[link]

His full name "Tom Cat" is based on "tomcat", a phrase which refers to male cats. He is very rarely heard speaking with the exception of a few cartoons (such as Tom & Jerry Tales' League of Cats) and "Tom and Jerry: The Movie". His only notable vocal sounds outside of this are his various screams whenever he is subject to pain or panic. He is continuously after Jerry Mouse, for whom he sets traps, many of which backfire and cause damage to him rather than Jerry. Tom rarely sets out to eat Jerry, only to hurt or compete with him, going to great lengths in order to torment Jerry. However, Tom is shown to get along with Jerry at times.

Tom has changed remarkably over the years, especially after the first episodes. For example, in his debut, he was quadrupedal and had normal cat intelligence. However, over the years (since the episode Dog Trouble), he has become almost completely bipedal and has human intelligence. As a slapstick cartoon character, Tom has a superhuman level of elasticity. When acting as Jerry's antagonist, Tom is usually defeated in the end, although there are some stories where he outwits and defeats Jerry.

Anchors Aweigh & Dangerous When Wet[link]

Tom and Jerry appeared together in the 1945 Technicolor Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer musical Anchors Aweigh where Tom briefly appears as a butler for Jerry, the latter who has a dance sequence with Gene Kelly, and also in another musical with the same studio Dangerous When Wet (1953),where, in a dream sequence, main character Katie Higgins (Esther Williams) does an underwater ballet with Tom and Jerry, as well as animated depictions of the different people in her life.^[5]

Voice actors[link]

• Red Coffee: Vocal Effects in The Hanna-Barbera era (1940–1941)
• William Hanna: Vocal Effects in The Hanna-Barbera era (1942–1958) shorts, The Lonesome Mouse, The Million Dollar Cat
• Billy Bletcher: 1944 Shorts: The Bodyguard, Zoot Cat, Quiet Please!
• Daws Butler: 1956 Short: Mucho Mouse (and a few others as well)
• Allen Swift: Vocal Effects in the Gene Deitch era (1961–1962) shorts
• Mel Blanc: Vocal Effects in the Chuck Jones era (1963–1967) Shorts, Is There a Doctor in the Mouse?
• Terence Monck: 1964 Short: The Cat Above and the Mouse Below
• Frank Welker: Tom & Jerry Kids, The Tom and Jerry Show, The Tom and Jerry Comedy Show
• Richard Kind: Tom and Jerry: The Movie (speaking voice only)
• Bill Kopp: Tom and Jerry: Blast Off to Mars, Tom and Jerry: The Fast and the Furry, Tom and Jerry: Shiver Me Whiskers
• Jeff Bennett: Tom and Jerry: The Magic Ring
• Don Brown: 2005 Short: The Karate Guard, Tom and Jerry Tales
• Billy West: Tom and Jerry: A Nutcracker Tale, Tom and Jerry Meet Sherlock Holmes, Tom and Jerry and the Wizard of Oz
• Stepin Fetchit: 1948 short: Mouse Cleaning

Love interests[link]

Apart from chasing Jerry, Tom has multiple love interests with female cats. Their names start with "T", Except in Tom and Jerry Kids. They are :

• Toots, a fluffy beige cat who appears in Puss n' Toots and The Mouse Comes to Dinner, atter being her only speaking role. This version of Toots also appeared in some 1940s Tom and Jerry comics.
• Toots, a different cat by the same name who appears in The Zoot Cat. (She has occasionally, erroneously been referred to as "Sheikie," but this is actually Tom's nickname, as seen on a gift card in the cartoon.)
• An unnamed, non-speaking cat who appears very briefly in The Bodyguard. She was made as a mere object of slap-stick humor, as when Tom gave her a wolf-whistle he ironically gave himself away to Spike, who was supposed to protect Jerry every time he whistles.
• Tara, a non-speaking cat who appears in Texas Tom.
• Toodles Galore, a non-speaking recurring cat who sometimes adores Tom—and sometimes treats him badly (particularly in Love Me, Love My Mouse). She appears in multiple shorts.
• An unnamed white cat appearing in Blue Cat Blues. Similar to the cat seen in Muscle Beach Tom, except with a personality like Toodles.
• Sugar-Belle, a Beige Kitten in the Pre-Civil War Era who once was enticed to Little Tom, but went to Beauregard, a Fat Dark-Brown Kitten.
• Cindy-Lou, a Light-Brown Kitten around Little Tom's Age who wanted a Mouse as a Pet for a Birthday Gift, Namely Jerry. but went to a Fat, Orange, Beatnik-Based Kitten.
• Lieutenant Lucy, a Toupe Kitten in a Military Outfit, as a Lieutenant in a U.S. Army Training Base, Who did not turn a BLind eye to Little Tom pestering Jerry.
• White Tabby, A Bipedal White Kitten (a bit of a Homage to Toodles.) wanted a Mouse to Cuddle. After Little Tom gave Her Jerry, She took the Mouse to Her Boyfriend's Limo.

See also[link]

• Tom and Jerry
• List of Hanna-Barbera characters
• Metro–Goldwyn–Mayer cartoon studio

References[link]