Tom & Jerry Kids

Tom & Jerry Kids Show (also known as simply Tom & Jerry Kids) is an American animated comedy television series co-produced by Hanna-Barbera and Turner Entertainment Co., and starring the cat-and-mouse duo Tom and Jerry as toddlers (kitten and mouse).[1] It began airing as the first program of the Fox children's block, Fox Kids, on September 8, 1990,[2] and was the second Tom and Jerry TV series to be produced by Hanna-Barbera following The Tom and Jerry Show in 1975.

Tom & Jerry Kids Show
Also known asTom & Jerry Kids
GenreSlapstick comedy
Absurd humor
Based on
Directed byDon Lusk
Paul Sommer
Carl Urbano
Oscar Dufau (Season 1)
Robert Alvarez (Season 1 & 3–4)
Jay Sarbry (Season 3–4)
Ray Patterson (supervising director)
Voices ofFrank Welker
William Callaway
Teresa Ganzel
Dick Gautier
Phil Hartman
Don Messick
Charlie Adler
Patric Zimmerman
Theme music composerTom Worrall
ComposersTom Worrall
Gary Lionelli (Season 2–4)
Country of originUnited States
Original languageEnglish
No. of seasons4
No. of episodes65 (195 segments) (list of episodes)
Production
Executive producersWilliam Hanna
Joseph Barbera
Paul Sabella (Season 1 only)
Jack Petrik (co-executive producer)
ProducersDon Jurwich
Joseph Barbera (Season 2–4)
Kay Wright (co-producer, Season 3–4)
EditorsGil Iverson
Tim Iverson
Pat Foley (Season 1)
Tom Gleason (Season 3–4)
Running time21 minutes (7 mins per short)
Production companiesH-B Production Co.
Turner Entertainment
DistributorTurner Entertainment
Release
Original networkFox (Fox Kids)
Audio formatDolby Surround
Original releaseSeptember 8, 1990 (1990-09-08) –
December 4, 1993 (1993-12-04)
Chronology
Preceded byThe Tom and Jerry Comedy Show
Followed byTom and Jerry Tales

The series is somewhat similar to the "older" version of the original theatricals, partly akin to being produced by creators William Hanna and Joseph Barbera, founders of H-B.[3]

Segments

Tom and Jerry Kids

The Tom and Jerry Kids cartoons are based on the classic shorts, Tom and Jerry, but it stars the kitten and mouseling instead. They remain silent like their adult selves and both of them are attempting to outwit each other, exactly like in the original shorts. Some of the plots and gags are recycled from old Tom and Jerry cartoons, but the violence is toned down for younger viewers.

Spike and Tyke

The Spike and Tyke segments are based on the characters, Spike and Tyke from the original Tom and Jerry series. Strangely, Spike is still an adult and Tyke is slightly older in this series. Spike still loves his son, Tyke, more than anything and enjoys spending time with him. Additionally, Tyke now has the ability to talk, which mean that he has grown smarter and more intelligent. Spike's toughness is only used on occasions, as these segments mostly revolve around his love for his son and on teaching family values.

Droopy and Dripple

The Droopy and Dripple segments feature characters from the classic Tex Avery shorts starring Droopy. Droopy has a different job every episode and his son Dripple (a tinier, identical version of him) always follows him as his assistant. The two will usually end up clashing with McWolf, the before-unnamed villainous wolf from Avery shorts that, envious of their success, will use any dirty trick against them to win, but inevitably fails. The beautiful Miss Vavoom (Red in Avery shorts) is another possible source of conflict between the two, as both of them have a crush on her and she, or a kiss from her, is often the prize of some sort of competition. Their "detective" segments were later spun-off into Droopy, Master Detective.

Blast-Off Buzzard

Season 4 features a new adaption of the Blast-Off Buzzard segment from the CB Bears where the characters actually talk. In these segments, Blast-Off Buzzard leads his gang of Buzzards as they try to catch Crazylegs. Only two episodes were made.

Episodes
Main article: List of Tom & Jerry Kids episodes
SeasonSegmentsEpisodesOriginally aired
First airedLast aired
13913September 8, 1990 (1990-09-08)December 1, 1990 (1990-12-01)
23913September 14, 1991 (1991-09-14)December 7, 1991 (1991-12-07)
37826September 12, 1992 (1992-09-12)December 13, 1992 (1992-12-13)
43913September 11, 1993 (1993-09-11)December 4, 1993 (1993-12-04)

Voice cast
  • Charlie Adler – Dripple, Lightning Bolt the Super Squirrel, Crazylegs, Rap Rat (in "Rap Rat is Where It's At"), Urfo's Mother (in "Urfo Returns")
  • William Callaway – Slowpoke Antonio
  • Patrick Fraley – Kyle the Cat, Yolker (in "Super Droop and Dripple Boy Meet the Yolker"), Zebra (in "Love Me, Love My Zebra"), Tyrone the Tiny (in "Barbecue Bust-Up")
  • Teresa Ganzel – Miss Vavoom, Lt. Lucy (in "Mess Hall Mouser"), White Tabby (in "Tom Thumped")
  • Dick Gautier – Spike
  • Phil Hartman – Calaboose Cal, Hot Dog Vendor (in "Pound Hound") Inspector De Paws (in "Pound Hound")
  • Don Messick – Droopy, Bat Mouse (in "Bat Mouse"), Narrator (in "Scourge of the Sky")
  • Frank Welker – Tom, Jerry, McWolf, Wild Mouse, Urfo, Moncy, Bat Cat (in "Bat Mouse"), Ants (in "This is No Picnic"), Caveman (in "Prehistoric Pals"), Chino the Kitten (in "Who Are You Kitten"), Commander (in "Scourge of the Sky"), Jester (in "When Knights Were Cold"), Male Mouse Students (in "Chase School"), Martian Mouse (in "Martian Mouse"), Museum Manager (in "The Watchcat"), Narrator (in "Wild Mouse II"), Salesmouse (in "S.O.S. Ninja"), Stinky Jr. (in "Fallen Archers," "Order in the Volley Ball Court"), Urfo Catcher (in "Urfo Returns"), Zap Men (in "Maze Monster Zap Men")
  • Patric Zimmerman – Tyke

Additional Voices

Production and broadcast

The series was a co-production between Hanna-Barbera and Turner Entertainment Co. (which had bought the Tom and Jerry franchise from Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer in 1986), serving as the former's second Tom and Jerry series after The Tom and Jerry Show in 1975. Parent company Turner Broadcasting System would buy the Hanna-Barbera studios in late 1991 starting with the third season. Perhaps the most notable differences from the classic shorts are the pair's appearances (and ages). Tom & Jerry Kids was one of the last Saturday-morning cartoons from Hanna-Barbera before shifting focus toward producing shows specifically for Cartoon Network.

In 1994, FOX canceled the series, but it soon began airing in reruns on Cartoon Network (which Turner launched to showcase its large animation library, including the original Tom and Jerry) in 1995, and ended in 2007 when the show was removed from the Cartoon Network schedule and instead moved over to its sibling network Boomerang. Spacetoon aired this show from 13 July 2000 to 11 December 2011.

Home media

In 1991, 12 episodes were put on two VHS cassettes in the United States, although only a few million copies were made. Eleven VHS cassettes were released in the United Kingdom. The series was released on DVD in Germany by Kinowelt Home Entertainment on 11 July 2008, as the first official DVD release.[4] In 2010, the episode Flippin' Fido was included in the Deluxe Anniversary Collection DVD set.

On 30 April 2013, Warner Home Video released the first season of the show on DVD for the first time. In the United Kingdom, Season One was released as 2 separate DVDs on 12 August 2013, under the titles Baby Tom and Jerry, as part of WB's Big Faces range. Like the US release of Season One, Baby Tom[5] includes the first seven half-hour episodes, while Baby Jerry[6] includes the remaining 6 episodes.

DVD Name Ep # Release Date
The Complete Season 1 13 30 April 2013

Awards

This show was given a Daytime Emmy nomination in 1992 for Outstanding Music Direction and Composition.

Comic book

In Mexico, Editorial Vid made a comic book based on Tom & Jerry Kids in 1990. It is worth noting that Tom and Jerry (the original adult versions) have their own comic book here, and the Tom & Jerry Kids comic book is followed by Tom and Jerry.

See also

References
  1. Perlmutter, David (2018). The Encyclopedia of American Animated Television Shows. Rowman & Littlefield. pp. 648–651. ISBN 978-1538103739.
  2. "Google Groups". groups.google.com. Retrieved 26 February 2020.
  3. Erickson, Hal (2005). Television Cartoon Shows: An Illustrated Encyclopedia, 1949 Through 2003 (2nd ed.). McFarland & Co. pp. 858–862. ISBN 978-1476665993.
  4. "Tom und Jerry – Kids Show [4 DVDs]: Amazon.de: Don Lusk, Paul Sommer, Carl Urbano: DVD & Blu-ray". amazon.de. Retrieved 12 November 2016.
  5. "Baby Tom and Friends [DVD] [2013]: Amazon.co.uk: Don Messick, Charles Adler, Frank Welker, Dick Gautier, Patric Zimmerman, William Hanna, Don Jurwich, Joseph Barbera, Kay Wright: DVD & Blu-ray". amazon.co.uk. Retrieved 12 November 2016.
  6. "Baby Tom and Jerry [DVD] [2013]: Amazon.co.uk: Don Messick, Charles Adler, Frank Welker, Dick Gautier, Patric Zimmerman, William Hanna, Don Jurwich, Joseph Barbera, Kay Wright: DVD & Blu-ray". amazon.co.uk. Retrieved 12 November 2016.
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