Tom and Jerry return to DVD with TOM AND JERRY SPOTLIGHT COLLECTION VOL. 3 (Warner Home Video, $26.99) on Sept. 11. The highly anticipated third and final two-disc volume of the Spotlight Collection from the Hanna-Barbera era contains a total of 35 classic cartoons, 15 of which have been re-mastered in their original CinemaScope widescreen format.
Shorts include "Love That Pup," where Jerry is protected from Tom by menacing bulldog Butch. "Neapolitan Mouse," where the duo travel all the way to Italy and meet Topo, an Italian mouse who gives the two a tour of Naples. "Robin Hoodwinked," where Jerry and Tuffy head to Sherwood Forest to help Robin Hood escape from the Sheriff's jail. "Little Runaway," where Jerry discovers a baby seal who's run away from the circus. While all sorts of bad things happen to Tom in "Tennis Chumps," where his racket catches fire, he's tangled in the net and swallows a bunch of tennis balls before he looses the match to Jerry, who wins a trophy. "That's My Mommy" has Tom end up as a surrogate mom to a baby duck but not before attempting to eat the duckling several times. Missing, however, are "Mouse Cleaning" and "Casanova Cat," due to "the offensiveness of certain scenes containing inappropriate racial stereotypes."
"Tom and Jerry, is one of the most ingenious cartoon series ever created because of the unique way music and sound are used to convey communication between the two characters, both of whom never speak," said Dorinda Marticorena, WHV VP of Family, Animation & Sports Marketing. This characteristic enabled the cartoon to gain popularity across the globe with generations of audiences who love the series to this day. We are certain that both fans of great television as well as seasoned animation aficionados will embrace this delightful title as part of their DVD libraries."
Bonus features include:
* Cat and Mouse: The Tale of Tom and Jerry - The history of one of animation's greatest teams - from early days to censorship controversies to award-winning glory.
* The Karate Guard - The theatrical short released in 2005 that marked Joe Barbera's first return as a writer, director and storyboard artist on the series since his and Hanna's original cartoon shorts. This also was the last Tom and Jerry short Barbera worked on.
Warner Bros. Animation has been producing award-winning original animation since 1930, when it released its first cartoon, "Sinkin' in the Bathtub." Since then, Warner Bros. Animation's characters have set the standard for innovative, quality animation. Producing for network and cable television, online, home entertainment and feature films both domestically and internationally, Warner Bros. Animation also oversees the creative use of, and production of animated programming based on classic animated characters from the Hanna-Barbera and DC Comics libraries. Warner Bros. Animation is one of the most honored animation studios in history, garnering a grand total of six Academy Awards, 35 Emmy Awards, the George Foster Peabody Award, an Environmental Media Award, a Parents' Choice Award, a Humanitas Award, two Prism Awards and 20 Annie Awards (honoring excellence in animation).
With operations in 90 international territories Warner Home Video, a Warner Bros. Ent. Co., commands the largest distribution infrastructure in the global video marketplace. Warner Home Video's film library is the largest of any studio, offering top quality new and vintage titles from the repertoires of Warner Bros. Pictures, Turner Ent., Castle Rock Ent., HBO Video and New Line Home Ent.
Rick DeMott
Animation World Network
Creator of Rick's Flicks Picks
