So it seems there was another cartoon duo by the name Tom & Jerry.

[Antiyonder]

Only these two are humans (I think) and do go around chasing each other. Only reason I know about it is because episodes of this particular Tom and Jerry cartoon are on the DVD "200 Classic Cartoons".

Anyone else ever see this cartoon?

[Hey Steve]

They are the original cartoon duo of Tom & Jerry, produced by the Van Buren studio. I have only seen a handful of these cartoons. Like most of Van Buren's output, these cartoons don't hold up very well today. I, for one, and not a very big fan of anything Van Buren made.

[Antiyonder]

They are the original cartoon duo of Tom & Jerry, produced by the Van Buren studio. I have only seen a handful of these cartoons. Like most of Van Buren's output, these cartoons don't hold up very well today. I, for one, and not a very big fan of anything Van Buren made.

Ok, even though they don't hold up well, I find it surprising that they could get around with naming the cat and mouse Tom & Jerry without some kind of legal battle.

[88fingers]

Actually, "Tom and Jerry" go way back -- to the 1820s. That's when a journalist in London wrote stories about two urban characters named Corinthian Tom and Jerry Hawthorn, and they became popular characters in the U.S. as well, appearing in stage play called "Tom and Jerry, or Life in London". The names Tom and Jerry became shorthand for any two male troublemakers (you would have said, for example, "those two guys are a real Tom and Jerry pair"). That's where both cartoons' titles came from.

Here's an image (http://www.bris.ac.uk/centenary/look/cabinet/life-in-london.html)for example, from an illustration showing the original Tom and Jerry crashing a dance party in London.

[Jayd]

I'm sure that this Tom and Jerry was the inspiration for the original stage names for Simon and Garfunkle back in the 50s when they were teens. :)

[Dr. Dave]

Well, the van Beuren studio closed in 1936, some years before MGM started making their cat & mouse cartoons.

Most of van Beuren's production was unremarkable, even for its time. However, they did make some good cartoons.

Wot a Nite (1931) is probably the best of the van Beuren Tom and Jerry films. The series ran from 1931 - 1933.

[powergate92]

Here's the Wikipedia article if would like to know more info about Van Beuren's Tom and Jerry:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tom_and_Jerry_%28Van_Beuren%29