Feedin' the Kiddie (1957)

 

This short film is the third Tom and Jerry CinemaScope remake. These films were shot for shot remakes of past Tom and Jerry shorts, now formatted for CinemaScope. Previous CinemaScope remakes were The Egg and Jerry (1956) (a remake of Hatch Up Your Troubles (1949)) and Tops with Pops (1957) (a remake of Love that Pup (1949)).  MGM would release three other CinemaScope remakes at this time. Millionaire Droopy (1956, remake of the Droopy cartoon, Wags to Riches (1949)), Good Will to Men (1955; remake of the Hugh Harmon short, Peace on Earth (1939)) and Cat's Meow (1957; remake of the Tex Avery short Ventriloquist Cat (1950)). All these remakes would be produced by William Hanna and Joseph Barbera, who would receive directing credit Good Will to Men as well as the Tom and Jerry shorts. Cat's Meow would be the last MGM directorial credit for Tex Avery. 

In this remake of The Little Orphan (1949), Jerry volunteers to take care of little Tuffy over the Thanksgiving holiday. The only problem is that Nibbles is always hungry. When Tom's owner lays out a wonderful spread for Thanksgiving dinner on the table, little Nibbles can't help himself and treats himself to all of the great food. Tom spots Nibbles and Jerry on the Thanksgiving table and a massive slapstick fight takes place. 

Like the other CinemaScope remakes a film like this can seem pointless today, when Tom and Jerry are on TV every day and every cartoon is available on home video. However, one must remember that these shorts were originally made for movie theaters to play along with the feature film. Because of this most of the movie going audience had either never seen the cartoon this is a remake of or had not seen it in years. Because of this, the cartoon felt new and fresh to them in a way it doesn't to us today. As for the film, itself I share the same thoughts I had about The Little Orphan. The gags are still wonderful, the timing is perfect, and the simple story is very charming. Once again, this cartoon has more abstract backgrounds than The Little Orphan. However, in this film, the characters seem to fit in well with these abstract backgrounds. 

Unlike the other CinemaScope remakes, there are a couple more differences here besides the more abstract backgrounds and being adapted for CinemaScope. One is that Tom's owner (who has often been accused of being a black stereotype) is nowhere to be seen, probably due to changing sensibilities. The other is that the words on the letter Jerry receives along with the little gray mouse are different. The letter in this cartoon refers to the little gray mouse as Tuffy, while the letter in the previous cartoon referred to him as Nibbles. The letter in this remake is also written by Cousin George. Tom had a Cousin George in Timid Tabby (1957), the cartoon right before this one. So both Jerry and Tom have cousins named George. 

The credited animators are Irven Spence, Kenneth Muse, Ed Barge and Ray Patterson. Once again, these were the same animators who were credit for the cartoon this is a remake of. The cartoon is available on the DVD sets Tom and Jerry: Classic Collection Volume 5, Tom and Jerry Spotlight Collection, Vol. 3 and Tom and Jerry: Merry Mice as well as the Laser Disc set, The Art of Tom & Jerry: Volume II and the recent Blu-ray set, Tom and Jerry: The Complete CinemaScope Collection. This marks the 107th Tom and Jerry short.