One of the best of Van Beuren's "Tom & Jerry" series in which they pull out a pencil and proceed to draw figures in the air which join the action: an early prefigurement, if you like, of Chuck Jones' classic DUCK AMUCK.
Van Beuren was one of the cartoon factories that flourished from about 1925-1936. It released through RKO and went under shortly after RKO dropped its contract in favor of one with Disney. Although never the best of studios, its staff worked hard. Probably its best black and white series was "Tom & Jerry" a Mutt and Jeff combo that, like Fleischer's Betty Boop, started as cartoon dogs and evolved into a music-backed series. Disguised in rerelease from Official Films as 'Dick and Larry' to avoid confusion with MGM's cat-and-mouse duo, a lot of their shorts have survived. A lot of their jokes are out of favor, but some are very amusing and if you wish to give them a try, this and PIANO TOONERS are good places to start.
Van Beuren was one of the cartoon factories that flourished from about 1925-1936. It released through RKO and went under shortly after RKO dropped its contract in favor of one with Disney. Although never the best of studios, its staff worked hard. Probably its best black and white series was "Tom & Jerry" a Mutt and Jeff combo that, like Fleischer's Betty Boop, started as cartoon dogs and evolved into a music-backed series. Disguised in rerelease from Official Films as 'Dick and Larry' to avoid confusion with MGM's cat-and-mouse duo, a lot of their shorts have survived. A lot of their jokes are out of favor, but some are very amusing and if you wish to give them a try, this and PIANO TOONERS are good places to start.