Tom and Jerry the Granddaddy of Kids Cartoon Movies

Everyone has their own favorite animated cartoon movie or television show; in fact cartoons are now a big part of a child’s early years and not to mention entertaining to adults as well. If you were young in the 60’s, 70’s or 80’s then you’ll have been lucky enough to have enjoyed the original hand drawn animated classics, like the Flintstones, The Jetsons or one of the most popular and longest running, Tom and Jerry.

The Tom and Jerry show started out as a TV series and then went on to become several feature films; it has been running since the 40’s and has since won 7 separate Oscar awards for best animated short. Back then you had to wait for the show to come on at a certain time, though today were lucky enough to be able to buy a Tom and Jerry DVD set anytime we like and relive the magic in our own homes.

The characters are simple Tom a mischievous house cat with a taste for mice and Jerry a shy mouse with a kind heart; the two are friends at heart, but always end up trying to win one over on each other usually with Jerry winning the day. The simple and hilarious slapstick comedy of this crazy duo is what’s made it so popular in countries all over the world; you’ll find the popular movies playing in just about any hotel room on all continents.

So where did it all begin? Most people don’t realize that Tom and Jerry has had more than one creator in over 50 years of air time; the original two were the talented William Hanna and Joseph Barbara. They came to the MGM studios in the 40’s with their idea and Tom and Jerry became a reality in people’s homes. After a short time the show was cut and the team split up until the 1960’s when MGM decided to restart the project, they hired Gene Deitch for 2 years, but his eccentric creativity didn’t mix well with the show. In 1963 the studios hired a new director Chuck Jones who became the next creator of the movies.

An example of a particularly good film is the magic ring which came out in 2002, it was written and directed by both of the original creators and also collaborated on by Chuck Jones. If you’re an enthusiast of the lovable cat and mouse duo then you’ll love this film, it would also be a great introduction to the characters for your own kids.

The magic ring takes a mixture of the best scenes from the 40’s and 50’s episodes and combines them to make an amazing kids cartoon movie that will have your children and you bursting with laughter. The story starts with Tom as a wizards apprentice, he is left to guard a magic ring, unfortunately it gets stuck on Jerry’s head and the power of the ring begins to have a life of its own; The cat and mouse scramble desperately for a way to remove the ring before the wizard returns.