Blue Cat Blues | Tom And Jerry Wiki - Fandom

Overview

Transcript

Gallery

Not to be confused with Kitty Cat Blues.

Blue Cat Blues

Directed by

William HannaJoseph Barbera

Produced by

William HannaJoseph Barbera

Story by

William HannaJoseph Barbera

Music by

Scott Bradley

Animation by

Ed BargeIrvin SpenceLewis MarshallKenneth Muse

Backgrounds by

Robert "Bob" Gentle

Layouts by

Richard "Dick" Bickenbach

Release date

November 17, 1956

Color process

Technicolor/CinemaScope

Preceded by

Down Beat Bear

Followed by

Barbecue Brawl

Blue Cat Blues is the 103rd one-reel animated Tom and Jerry short.

Contents

• 1 Characters
• 2 Plot
• 3 Notes
• 4 Availability
  • 4.1 Streaming
• 5 Censorship and Bans
• 6 References

Characters[]

• Tom Cat
• Jerry Mouse
• Butch Cat
• Gal Cat
• Toots
• Unknown Male Mouse

Plot[]

A depressed Tom sits on the railroad tracks, apparently bent on suicide-by-train. Watching from a bridge crossing the tracks overhead, Jerry laments his old friend's current state. Jerry knows that, when he gets home, his other friends will ask him why he didn't even try to stop Tom. Jerry believes that "it's better this way", saying that "and for the first time since he met her, he will be happy". Jerry recalls the events leading up to Tom's current state:

Tom and Jerry were once near-inseparable best friends, but then one day, Tom fell head-over-heels in love with a beautiful white female cat named Gal, who, in the beginning at least, seemed to reciprocate Tom's feelings for her. However, the white cat ultimately proved herself to be nothing more than some opportunistic gold-digger, as she wound up leaving Tom for her next-door neighbor: a super-rich black tomcat named Butch. Having seen the white cat for what she was and how she'd made a fool of his best friend, Jerry vainly urged Tom to give up and let her and Butch have each other. Ignoring Jerry's warnings, Tom pushed himself and his finances to the limit and beyond, in futile attempts at winning back the white cat's affections—however, because of his vast wealth, Butch was able to get the white cat much larger and more extravagant versions of the gifts that Tom would get for her.

1. The first gift Tom presented to the white cat was a single purple flower—but after arriving at her house, Tom discovered that Butch had already given her a large (as in "as big as her") pink-and-red floral wreath with "Love From Butch" written on it in yellow.
2. After the flowers, Tom's next gift to the white cat was a single (and small) bottle of perfume, but then an enormous tanker truck full of perfume (spelled "Parfum") drives up to her house (with a "Love From Butch" note attached to it).
3. Tom's third gift to the white cat (after squandering his savings) was a diamond ring from a jeweler. However, the diamond on Tom's ring was so small that the white cat had to use a magnifying glass just to get a good look at it that the white cat considered it to be way too small for her own liking. Plus, after presenting the ring, the white cat revealed to Tom that Butch had already given her a diamond ring of his own—however, a far better one that the diamond on Butch's ring was so big and shiny that nobody could even look at it without eye protection (Tom and the white cat had to wear welding masks just to look at her ring).
4. Tom's final gift for her was a car—one that he literally sold himself slavery for (twenty years of it to be precise), just so that he could cover 312-month (or 26-year) worth of payments at an annual interest rate of 112% (and he literally sells an arm and a leg for it). However, Tom's car was an outdated jalopy that got completely flattened by Butch's much longer, more luxurious coupe when he drives up the white cat's house to pick her up.

Ultimately, the white cat chose Butch over Tom, once again proving herself to truly be nothing more than an opportunistic gold-digger; this caused the desperate, broken-hearted, and hopelessly in-debt Tom to go downhill fast and start drowning his sorrows in milk/alcohol (despite Jerry's pleas for him to stop). Tom almost let himself go down the gutter (literally), but Jerry managed to rescue him. While resuscitating Tom, the duo saw Butch and the white cat driving by, but now Butch's car was laden with luggage and had a "Just Married" sign hanging off the back of it.

The plot goes back to where the short originally started: Jerry, though still sad for Tom, expresses happiness about how his own girlfriend is a female white mouse named Toots, has remained faithful to him. However, Jerry's idyllic world is suddenly shattered when he sees the white mouse driving by with a male grey mouse with a "Just Married" sign hanging off the car, proving herself to be no better than the white cat.

Now, just as dejected as Tom, a heartbroken Jerry (thought by some as bearing the consequences of his antics in the past), comes to Tom on the railroad tracks. Tom scoots over and Jerry sits next to him. The duo waits for the oncoming train, which draws nearer and nearer. The train's whistle sounds louder as the cartoon fades out, leaving their fates uncertain.

Notes[]

• This is the only short that is a tragic drama, rather than a comedy, due to its dark and depressing tone.
• Jerry's narration throughout the cartoon is loosely inspired by The Lonesome Mouse, where Jerry's "inner voice" speaks with him to describe the mouse's unbearable loneliness after seeing Tom kicked out, and ending with Jerry briefly chastising the cat for betraying him.
• This was the last MGM cartoon to have its recording credited to Western Electric Sound System before its rebranding as the Westrex Recording System.
• Because of the dark nature of the short and the depressing ending, many fans and journalists online mistakenly believe that this is the final Tom and Jerry short, which is not true as Tot Watchers was the last one prior to the Gene Deitch era of Tom and Jerry.
• Jerry previously resuscitated Tom in The Cat and the Mermouse.

Availability[]

Tom and Jerry: Festival of Fun (VHS)Tom and Jerry: Blue Cat Blues (VHS)The Art of Tom & Jerry: Volume II (LaserDisc)Tom and Jerry: Classic Collection Volume 4 (DVD)Tom and Jerry Spotlight Collection, Vol. 1 (DVD)Tom & Jerry's Greatest Chases Vol. 3 (DVD)Tom and Jerry: No Mice Allowed! (DVD)Tom and Jerry: Hearts & Whiskers (DVD)The Fastest Gun Alive (Blu-ray)[1]Tom and Jerry: The Complete CinemaScope Collection (Blu-ray)Tom and Jerry: The Golden Era Anthology (Blu-ray & DVD)

Streaming[]

Tom and Jerry, Vol. 1 (iTunes) (4:3 pan-scan format)

Censorship and Bans[]

• This short rarely, if ever, airs on American television (specifically Cartoon Network and Boomerang) because of references to alcoholism, depression, and the ending implying that both Tom and Jerry were going to kill themselves by sitting on active train tracks. Despite this, "Blue Cat Blues" has aired on TBS and TNT in the 1990s, and on MeTV/MeTV Toons in recent years, as well as on some local TV stations that had classic cartoon compilations as part of their weekday afternoon programming. The short is also currently available on DVD and for digital download on iTunes.

References[]

1. ↑ https://www.blu-ray.com/movies/The-Fastest-Gun-Alive-Blu-ray/339560/#Review

Tom and Jerry Cartoons
1940	Puss Gets the Boot
1941	The Midnight Snack • The Night Before Christmas
1942	Fraidy Cat • Dog Trouble • Puss n' Toots • The Bowling Alley-Cat • Fine Feathered Friend
1943	Sufferin' Cats! • The Lonesome Mouse • The Yankee Doodle Mouse • Baby Puss
1944	The Zoot Cat • The Million Dollar Cat • The Bodyguard • Puttin' on the Dog • Mouse Trouble
1945	The Mouse Comes to Dinner • Mouse in Manhattan • Tee for Two • Flirty Birdy • Quiet Please!
1946	Springtime for Thomas • The Milky Waif • Trap Happy • Solid Serenade
1947	Cat Fishin' • Part Time Pal • The Cat Concerto • Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Mouse • Salt Water Tabby • A Mouse in the House • The Invisible Mouse
1948	Kitty Foiled • The Truce Hurts • Old Rockin' Chair Tom • Professor Tom • Mouse Cleaning
1949	Polka-Dot Puss • The Little Orphan • Hatch Up Your Troubles • Heavenly Puss • The Cat and the Mermouse • Love That Pup • Jerry's Diary • Tennis Chumps
1950	Little Quacker • Saturday Evening Puss • Texas Tom • Jerry and the Lion • Safety Second • The Hollywood Bowl • The Framed Cat • Cue Ball Cat
1951	Casanova Cat • Jerry and the Goldfish • Jerry's Cousin • Sleepy-Time Tom • His Mouse Friday • Slicked-up Pup • Nit-Witty Kitty • Cat Napping
1952	The Flying Cat • The Duck Doctor • The Two Mouseketeers • Smitten Kitten • Triplet Trouble • Little Runaway • Fit to Be Tied • Push-Button Kitty • Cruise Cat • The Dog House
1953	The Missing Mouse • Jerry and Jumbo • Johann Mouse • That's My Pup! • Just Ducky • Two Little Indians • Life with Tom
1954	Puppy Tale • Posse Cat • Hic-cup Pup • Little School Mouse • Baby Butch • Mice Follies • Neapolitan Mouse • Downhearted Duckling • Pet Peeve • Touché, Pussy Cat!
1955	Southbound Duckling • Pup on a Picnic • Mouse for Sale • Designs on Jerry • Tom and Chérie • Smarty Cat • Pecos Pest • That's My Mommy
1956	The Flying Sorceress • The Egg and Jerry • Busy Buddies • Muscle Beach Tom • Down Beat Bear • Blue Cat Blues • Barbecue Brawl
1957	Tops with Pops • Timid Tabby • Feedin' the Kiddie • Mucho Mouse • Tom's Photo Finish
1958	Happy Go Ducky • Royal Cat Nap • The Vanishing Duck • Robin Hoodwinked • Tot Watchers
1961	Switchin' Kitten • Down and Outing • It's Greek to Me-ow!
1962	High Steaks • Mouse into Space • Landing Stripling • Calypso Cat • Dicky Moe • The Tom and Jerry Cartoon Kit • Tall in the Trap • Sorry Safari • Buddies Thicker Than Water • Carmen Get It!
1963	Pent-House Mouse
1964	The Cat Above and the Mouse Below • Is There a Doctor in the Mouse? • Much Ado About Mousing • Snowbody Loves Me • The Unshrinkable Jerry Mouse
1965	Ah, Sweet Mouse-Story of Life • Tom-ic Energy • Bad Day at Cat Rock • The Brothers Carry-Mouse-Off • Haunted Mouse • I'm Just Wild About Jerry • Of Feline Bondage • The Year of the Mouse • The Cat's Me-Ouch
1966	Duel Personality • Jerry, Jerry, Quite Contrary • Jerry-Go-Round • Love Me, Love My Mouse • Puss 'n' Boats • Filet Meow • Matinee Mouse • The A-Tom-Inable Snowman • Catty-Cornered
1967	Cat and Dupli-cat • O-Solar-Meow • Guided Mouse-ille • Rock 'n' Rodent • Cannery Rodent • The Mouse from H.U.N.G.E.R. • Surf-Bored Cat • Shutter Bugged Cat • Advance and Be Mechanized • Purr-Chance to Dream