DarthGonzo
11-24-2001, 05:09 PM
Mouse Cleaning
released December 11, 1948
directed by William Hanna and Joseph Barbera
animated by Kenneth Muse, Ed Barge, Ray Patterson and Irven Spence
musical direction by Scott Bradley
Summary
"The whole house is clean. And brother, it better stay that way", says Mammy-Two Shoes. Just as she finishes mopping the kitchen, Tom barrels in after Jerry, tracking mud everywhere. "Just look at my nice clean floor!", Mammy shouts, handing the mop to Tom and demanding he clean the mess he's just made. Just as he finishes up, Mammy gets ready to leave the house, letting him know that he'll be goin' out if the house is dirty when she gets back. Tom is so concerned with keeping that house clean that he mops up a bead of his own sweat and then polishes a speck on the window that a fly leaves behind. Jerry siezes the moment to empty the contents of an ashtray all over the floor. Tom tosses a tomato at Jerry, misses, and hits a wall. As Tom tries to clean the ugly red smear off the way, Jerry fills his water bucket with ink. When he sees the results, Tom's jaw drops and his eyes pop out of his head. More ink ends up on the curtains, but Tom is quick to run them though the washing machine. Jerry attempts to juggle a dozen eggs and a pie, then hands the load off to Tom, who drops them when the mouse pulls the rug out from under him. Tom catches the eggs with an egg carton, and the pie with his face. Jerry leads a horse inside, which is quickly tosses out by the tiring cat. As Tom falls asleep, Jerry inks his paws with a stamp pad and gets the cat to chase him around the house. When Tom see the messy blue footprints all over the house, he disposes of Jerry in the basement and goes to work cleaning the house as fast as he can, for Mammy is coming down the street! Meanwhile, Jerry notices a truck about to deliver coal into the basement. He reroutes the coal ramp into the living room and fills the house with coal just as Mammy opens the door. Tom, his face blackened with soot, tries to pretend he's someone else, "No ma'am. I aint seen no cat around here. There aint no cat, no place, no how, no ma'am!" Mammy sees through the desgise and beans Tom on the head with a piece of coal.
Commentary
Mouse Cleaning is another fast paced, entertaining Tom and Jerry cartoon from the late 1940's, a period where almost all of their cartoons were outstanding. The cartoon takes the oldest of Tom and Jerry situations, namely Tom trying to avoid Mammy's wrath, and exaggerates it for all it's worth. We know from the very first frame where this cartoon is going, and the events build in intensity to the point where the audience is on the edge of their seats, wondering exactly how this cartoon is going to end. From start to finish, Mouse Cleaning is just one headache after another for poor Tom, whose reaction shots have never been better. Jerry is at his frustrating best here, and after a while our sympathies tend to lie with the overworked cat. Tom's eye popping scene was used in Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Mouse, as well as The Cat and the Mermouse, but the scene is at it's funniest when used here. It's obvious everyone involved with Mouse Cleaning knew what a terrific cartoon they were working on, and they gave it their all. When Mammy suddenly appears heading down the street as the cartoon nears to a close, our hearts race. We hope Tom is able to finish cleaning the house, but as soon as the coal truck is shown we know his fate is sealed. Although it never made the top fifty, this is the only other Tom and Jerry cartoon aside from Cat Concerto that was ever considered for the list of the 50 greatest cartoons of all time, which is quite an honor. Sadly, the blackface gag, funny as it may be, is responsible for the cartoon having apparently never been shown in Cartoon Network. It's a longish gag, and the ending would be weaker without it. Luckily, the cartoon was made available on the "Tom and Jerry's 50th Birthday Classic III" videotape, as well as the "Art of Tom and Jerry" laserdisc.
All the animators have fun with the sequences they're given. Spence gets the honor of animating the eye-popping scene, which looks better here than in the other two cartoons it appears in. Muse animates a terrific look of doom on Tom's face as he watches Jerry juggle the eggs and Patterson does some great panic poses toward the beginning. Like in Old Rockin' Chair Tom, Barge's animation is still rather roundish, but that's hardly a valid complaint. In all, the animation is just about perfect.
Bradleys score is terrific. He makes constant use of "This is the Way We Mop the Floor" throughout the entire cartoon, and it builds in intensity as the short progesses. By the end, the score is reaching pandemonium levels, and when the cartoon ends, the music makes us feel like we've just watched a Tom and Jerry masterpiece. In truth, we just have.
Mouse Cleaning is no doubt one of the best Tom and Jerry cartoons in the entire series. It may not have won any awards, and it is rather hard to see nowadays, but it's worth tracking down. I can't seem to praise it enough.
released December 11, 1948
directed by William Hanna and Joseph Barbera
animated by Kenneth Muse, Ed Barge, Ray Patterson and Irven Spence
musical direction by Scott Bradley
Summary
"The whole house is clean. And brother, it better stay that way", says Mammy-Two Shoes. Just as she finishes mopping the kitchen, Tom barrels in after Jerry, tracking mud everywhere. "Just look at my nice clean floor!", Mammy shouts, handing the mop to Tom and demanding he clean the mess he's just made. Just as he finishes up, Mammy gets ready to leave the house, letting him know that he'll be goin' out if the house is dirty when she gets back. Tom is so concerned with keeping that house clean that he mops up a bead of his own sweat and then polishes a speck on the window that a fly leaves behind. Jerry siezes the moment to empty the contents of an ashtray all over the floor. Tom tosses a tomato at Jerry, misses, and hits a wall. As Tom tries to clean the ugly red smear off the way, Jerry fills his water bucket with ink. When he sees the results, Tom's jaw drops and his eyes pop out of his head. More ink ends up on the curtains, but Tom is quick to run them though the washing machine. Jerry attempts to juggle a dozen eggs and a pie, then hands the load off to Tom, who drops them when the mouse pulls the rug out from under him. Tom catches the eggs with an egg carton, and the pie with his face. Jerry leads a horse inside, which is quickly tosses out by the tiring cat. As Tom falls asleep, Jerry inks his paws with a stamp pad and gets the cat to chase him around the house. When Tom see the messy blue footprints all over the house, he disposes of Jerry in the basement and goes to work cleaning the house as fast as he can, for Mammy is coming down the street! Meanwhile, Jerry notices a truck about to deliver coal into the basement. He reroutes the coal ramp into the living room and fills the house with coal just as Mammy opens the door. Tom, his face blackened with soot, tries to pretend he's someone else, "No ma'am. I aint seen no cat around here. There aint no cat, no place, no how, no ma'am!" Mammy sees through the desgise and beans Tom on the head with a piece of coal.
Commentary
Mouse Cleaning is another fast paced, entertaining Tom and Jerry cartoon from the late 1940's, a period where almost all of their cartoons were outstanding. The cartoon takes the oldest of Tom and Jerry situations, namely Tom trying to avoid Mammy's wrath, and exaggerates it for all it's worth. We know from the very first frame where this cartoon is going, and the events build in intensity to the point where the audience is on the edge of their seats, wondering exactly how this cartoon is going to end. From start to finish, Mouse Cleaning is just one headache after another for poor Tom, whose reaction shots have never been better. Jerry is at his frustrating best here, and after a while our sympathies tend to lie with the overworked cat. Tom's eye popping scene was used in Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Mouse, as well as The Cat and the Mermouse, but the scene is at it's funniest when used here. It's obvious everyone involved with Mouse Cleaning knew what a terrific cartoon they were working on, and they gave it their all. When Mammy suddenly appears heading down the street as the cartoon nears to a close, our hearts race. We hope Tom is able to finish cleaning the house, but as soon as the coal truck is shown we know his fate is sealed. Although it never made the top fifty, this is the only other Tom and Jerry cartoon aside from Cat Concerto that was ever considered for the list of the 50 greatest cartoons of all time, which is quite an honor. Sadly, the blackface gag, funny as it may be, is responsible for the cartoon having apparently never been shown in Cartoon Network. It's a longish gag, and the ending would be weaker without it. Luckily, the cartoon was made available on the "Tom and Jerry's 50th Birthday Classic III" videotape, as well as the "Art of Tom and Jerry" laserdisc.
All the animators have fun with the sequences they're given. Spence gets the honor of animating the eye-popping scene, which looks better here than in the other two cartoons it appears in. Muse animates a terrific look of doom on Tom's face as he watches Jerry juggle the eggs and Patterson does some great panic poses toward the beginning. Like in Old Rockin' Chair Tom, Barge's animation is still rather roundish, but that's hardly a valid complaint. In all, the animation is just about perfect.
Bradleys score is terrific. He makes constant use of "This is the Way We Mop the Floor" throughout the entire cartoon, and it builds in intensity as the short progesses. By the end, the score is reaching pandemonium levels, and when the cartoon ends, the music makes us feel like we've just watched a Tom and Jerry masterpiece. In truth, we just have.
Mouse Cleaning is no doubt one of the best Tom and Jerry cartoons in the entire series. It may not have won any awards, and it is rather hard to see nowadays, but it's worth tracking down. I can't seem to praise it enough.