The Cat Concerto (1947)

Directors:

Joseph Barbera
William Hanna

Release Date:

26 April 1947 (USA)

Genre:

Animation | Short | Comedy | Family | Music

Plot:

Jerry is determined to disrupt Tom's concert while Tom fights him with the piano without missing a single note.

Plot Keywords:

Piano | White Tie And Tails | Applause | Cat | Concert

Awards:

Won Oscar. Another 1 nomination

Also Known As:

The Cat's Concerto (USA) (working title)

Runtime:

8 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Sound System)

Certification:

UK:U | USA:Passed (National Board of Review) | USA:TV-G (TV rating) | South Korea:All | USA:Approved (PCA #11976)

Company:

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM)

Trivia:

Was the focus of a short and bitter flurry of allegations between Warner Brothers and MGM of plagiarism over similarities between this film and WB's Rhapsody Rabbit (1946). The controversy began when raw film from "Rhapsody Rabbit" was sent to be processed at a central film lab which serviced both Warners and MGM. By accident, the finished negatives were sent to MGM, who eventually returned them, but Friz Freleng (the director on "Rhapsody Rabbit") suspected that Hanna and Barbera or others at MGM may have viewed the film before sending it on to Warner Bros. Hanna and Barbera counter-charged that Freleng had somehow overheard their ideas for "The Cat Concerto" and acted on it.

Movie Connections:

Followed by Mouse for Sale (1955)

Soundtrack:

On the Atchison, Topeka and the Santa Fe

Brilliant Combination Of Music And Animation

Oscar-winning 'Tom and Jerry' 8-minute short is an excellent way to introduce kids to classical music. Tom is a pianist who engages in a battle of wits with Jerry the Mouse during a concert. Tom tries his very best to finish the concert but ornery Jerry has other plans for the poor cat. I've always identified with Tom not Jerry, so I really felt bad for the kitty. You get to listen to some great music while enjoying the little fights between the iconic toons. I'm assuming it was not easy to synchronize the well-known classical composition ('Hungarian Rhapsody # 2') with the toon mayhem. It all seems so effortless, though. Story-wise, it's very simple but I loved the clever way in which music is used to create the slapstick. It deserved the Oscar.