Puss Gets the Boot

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Puss Gets the Boot is a 1940 American animated comedy short film directed by William Hanna and Joseph Barbera. It is the first appearances of Tom Cat and Jerry Mouse in what would become the Tom and Jerry cartoon series, though neither are yet referred to by these names. It was Barbera's directorial debut, with Hanna and Barbera directing under producer Rudolf Ising's unit, where they served as storymen; neither were credited as a result. In this short, the cat is named Jasper, and appears to be a scruffy, battle-hardened street cat, more malicious than the character that Tom would develop into over time. The unnamed mouse (referred to as Pee-Wee in an official MGM magazine), is similar to who would become the Jerry character, albeit slightly thinner. The basic premise is one that would become familiar to audiences; in The Art of Hanna-Barbera, Ted Sennett sums it up as "cat stalks and chases mouse in a frenzy of mayhem and slapstick violence". Though the studio executives were unimpressed...

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