Jerry's Cousin (1951)

 

This short film introduced one of the most popular supporting characters in the Tom and Jerry franchise. This is Jerry's cousin, Muscles Mouse. Though this is his only theatrical short, the character has gone on to become a fan favorite. He would later appear in multiple episodes of TV's The Tom and Jerry Show (the one from the 2010's, not the one from the 1970's) as well as the Tom and Jerry in New York episode, Stunt Double Trouble (2021). A mouse named Freddie appeared in the direct to video movie, Tom and Jerry: The Magic Ring (2002). This mouse had the exact same design as Muscles. However, there is no mention of this character being Jerry's cousin and in fact he doesn't get along with Jerry. This has led to a debate as to whether or not this is the same character. That feature film would get a video game adaption (for the Game Boy Advance) in which Freddie would be a boss. 

In this short film Jerry is once again having trouble with Tom. Jerry sends a letter to Muscles asking him to help with Tom. When Muscles comes over, he soon makes short work of Tom. 

This is a delightful cartoon. The main reason this film works is that Muscles is a wonderful character. The idea of Tom meeting an incredible strong mouse is a perfect story idea that really helps this film stand out. The mixture of his pure tough guy "don't mess with me" attitude and his protectiveness of Jerry helps make Muscles a character who is immediately appealing. While there may be funnier Tom and Jerry cartoons, the gags here all work very well. Once again, these gags are typical cartoon gags that work especially well because of great character animation and William Hanna's perfect timing. One of the best examples of this is the most famous gag in the cartoon. This is when Tom calls a group of hit men (or hit cats) to take out Muscles (this scene would later go on to internet fame as a meme). The gag on its own would only be amusing. However, the animation of Tom looking shady as he calls them, and the silly George Raft inspired walk of the cats make it truly hilarious. This film also has a near perfect ending. 

William Hanna and Joseph Barbera made have had this film on their mind when they made the Pixie and Dixie TV cartoon Cousin Tex (1958). The cartoon (which aired as part of The Huckleberry Hound Show) had meeces Pixie and Dixie being visited by their cousin Tex, who makes short work of the cat Mr. Jinks in a similar way to how Muscles does to Tom. 

This cartoon was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film. This year it was the only film from a different studio than UPA to be nominated. Its competition was only two cartoons. The other two films were Gerald McBoing Boing (1950) and the Mr. Magoo cartoon Trouble Indemnity (1950). The winner that year would be Gerald McBoing Boing, which is truly a wonderful cartoon. You can watch both of these UPA film below. 

This film was released to theaters on April 7th, 1951. It would be reissued to theaters on My 24, 1958. The credited animators on this cartoon are Ray Patterson, Ed Barge, Kenneth Muse and Irven Spence. It would also be included in the feature length compilation, Tom and Jerry Festival of Fun (1962). Though this movie featured no new animation, Jerry's Diary (1949) was used as a framing device to make it feel like a feature length movie instead of simply a selection of cartoons. The cartoons included in this movie were Old Rocking Chair Tom (1948), The Little Orphan (1949), Jerry’s Cousin (1951), Professor Tom (1948), Mouse Cleaning (1948), Yankee Doodle Mouse (1943), Mouse Trouble (1944), Nit-Witty Kitty (1951), Push-Button Kitty (1952) and Saturday Evening Puss (1950).

Here is your typical ugly movie poster for this cartoon. 

Motion Picture Daily, 1951

Resources Used

Of Mice and Magic: A History of American Animated Cartoons by Lenoard Maltin. 

https://tomandjerry.fandom.com/wiki/Jerry%27s_Cousin 

https://cartoonresearch.com/index.php/tom-and-jerry-festival-of-fun-1962/

https://lantern.mediahist.org/