Old Rockin' Chair Tom (1948)

Directors:

Joseph Barbera
William Hanna

Writers:

Release Date:

18 September 1948 (USA)

Genre:

Family | Animation | Short | Comedy

Plot:

Jerry is once again successfully menacing Mammy, as Tom chases him ineffectually. As Mammy and Tom crash to the bottom of the stairs...

Plot Keywords:

Ironing Board | Scream | Maid | Frame Up | Iron

Cast

(in alphabetical order)

Lillian Randolph

...

Mammy Two-Shoes (uncredited)

Runtime:

8 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Sound System)

Certification:

USA:Passed (National Board of Review) | USA:Approved (PCA #12602) | USA:TV-G (TV rating)

Company:

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM)

Movie Connections:

Followed by Cannery Rodent (1967)

Soundtrack:

Spreadin' Rhythm Around

Unexceptional antics from the cat and mouse duo.

When Tom is unable to stop Jerry from pestering a frightened Mammy Two Shoes, a new, faster, more efficient mouser is brought into the house: Lightning, a red-furred devil of a cat, so quick that he actually looks like a bolt of lightning!

Although, on the surface, Lightning appears to be the perfect cat, he is actually as untrustworthy and mischievous as Thomas, helping himself to the contents of the fridge as soon as Mammy's back is turned. However, being a rather smart cat, he frames poor old Tom, who is booted out of the house (closely followed by Jerry).

Miffed at being bested by the new arrival, Tom and Jerry team up to get revenge and earn their places back in the house.

A rather derivative adventure (and one that suffers from some awful re-dubbing by the PC police on my copy), Old Rockin' Chair Tom is full of the usual gratuitous violence one expects from the guys, but really doesn't offer anything particularly new to fans. There are a couple of reasonably funny gags involving the use of a magnet, but don't expect this one to stick in the memory for long.