The Cat Concerto
| The Cat Concerto | |
|---|---|
| Tom and Jerry series | |
Poster
|
|
| Directed by |
William Hanna Joseph Barbera |
| Produced by | Fred Quimby |
| Story by | William Hanna (unc.) Joseph Barbera (unc.) |
| Music by |
Scott Bradley Franz Liszt |
| Animation by |
Kenneth Muse Ed Barge Irven Spence Additional animation: Richard Bickenbach (uncredited) |
| Distributed by | Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer |
| Release date(s) | April 26, 1947 |
| Color process | Technicolor |
| Running time | 7:32 |
| Language | English |
| Preceded by | Part Time Pal |
| Followed by | Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Mouse |
The Cat Concerto is a 1947 American one-reel animated cartoon and is the 29th Tom and Jerry short, released to theatres on April 26, 1947. It was produced by Fred Quimby and directed by William Hanna and Joseph Barbera, with musical supervision by Scott Bradley, and animation by Kenneth Muse, Ed Barge and Irven Spence and additional animation by Richard Bickenbach (uncredited).
Following its release, it was met with critical acclaim, and is considered one of the best Tom and Jerry cartoons ever. It won the 1946 Academy Award for Best Short Subject: Cartoons. In 1994 it was voted #42 of the 50 Greatest Cartoons of all time by members of the animation field. The short won the duo their fourth consecutive Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film. The short also appears in Empire Magazine's The 500 Greatest Movies of All Time list as the number 434.
A stage is set in an auditorium. In a formal concert, Tom, a piano virtuoso, is giving a piano recital of "Hungarian Rhapsody No. 2" by Franz Liszt. Jerry, who is sleeping inside the piano, is rudely awakened by the hammers, then sits on top of the piano to mock the cat by "conducting" him. Tom flicks Jerry off the piano. Tom continues playing without any interruptions.
Jerry arises from under one of the keys. Tom plays tremolo on this key, knocking Jerry on the head, and then Jerry runs back and forth underneath. Tom smashes the mouse under the keys, plays the main theme of the rhapsody, and when Tom lifts his two fingers from playing a trill, the piano continues playing. He looks over the edge of the piano and spots Jerry playing the felts from inside. To quiet him, he whacks Jerry with a tuning tool. Jerry slams the piano lid onto Tom's fingers. Tom still plays, and then Jerry pops out on the far right of the piano to attempt to cut Tom's finger with a pair of scissors as he plays a note from the very highest minor third of the piano. After the sixth miss, Jerry pants from this effort, and then substitutes a mousetrap for the white keys just below it. Tom plays the keys on either side for a few seconds but eventually, Tom's finger gets caught in the trap.
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Wikipedia