''Jerry the Tyke'' also known as ''Jerry the Troublesome Tyke'' is a

cartoon A cartoon is a type of visual art that is typically drawn, frequently animated, in an unrealistic or semi-realistic style. The specific meaning has evolved over time, but the modern usage usually refers to either: an image or series of images ...

dog created during the

silent film A silent film is a film with no synchronized recorded sound (or more generally, no audible dialogue). Though silent films convey narrative and emotion visually, various plot elements (such as a setting or era) or key lines of dialogue may, when ...

era. Created by

Cardiff Cardiff (; cy, Caerdydd ) is the capital and largest city of Wales. It forms a principal area, officially known as the City and County of Cardiff ( cy, Dinas a Sir Caerdydd, links=no), and the city is the eleventh-largest in the United Kingd ...

-based animator Sid Griffiths, and shown throughout British cinemas as part of Pathé Pictorial's screen news-magazines, ''Jerry the Tyke'' was the first animated series to be made in

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...

History

''Jerry the Troublesome Tyke'' was first produced in 1925 by animator Sid Griffiths and photographer Bert Bilby who both worked as projectionists at Cardiff's Capitol Cinema. They were later joined by London-based co-animator Brian White. Inspired by the American animation ''

Felix the Cat Felix the Cat is a cartoon character created in 1919 by Pat Sullivan and Otto Messmer during the silent film era. An anthropomorphic black cat with white eyes, a black body, and a giant grin, he was one of the most recognized cartoon charac ...

'', ''Jerry the Tyke'' was a mixture of live-action sequences and animation, similar in style to

Max Fleischer Max Fleischer (born Majer Fleischer ; July 19, 1883 – September 25, 1972) was an American animator, inventor, film director and producer, and studio founder and owner. Born in Kraków, Fleischer immigrated to the United States where he became ...

's ''

Out of the Inkwell ''Out of the Inkwell'' is an American major animated series of the silent era produced by Max Fleischer from 1918 to 1929. History The series was the result of three short experimental films that Max Fleischer independently produced from 191 ...

'' series. 40 animations were created between 1925 and 1927, and were shown throughout the World as part of ''Pathé Pictorial'', a fortnightly cinema news-magazine. Each silent short lasted for about four minutes and often featured Griffiths interacting with Jerry, though Jerry always remained on the drawn page. In 2002, Welsh actor

Rhys Ifans Rhys Ifans (; born Rhys Owain Evans; 22 July 1967) is a Welsh actor and musician. He was the frontman of Welsh rock music bands the Peth and Super Furry Animals. As an actor, he is best known for his roles in ''Notting Hill'' (1999), ''Kevin & ...

worked with

BBC Wales BBC Cymru Wales is a division of the BBC and the main public broadcaster in Wales. It is one of the four BBC national regions, alongside the BBC English Regions, BBC Northern Ireland and BBC Scotland. Established in 1964, BBC Cymru Wales is ...

to provide narration to several of the original ''Jerry the Tyke'' episodes, with music provided by the

BBC National Orchestra of Wales The BBC National Orchestra of Wales (BBC NOW) ( cy, Cerddorfa Genedlaethol Gymreig y BBC) is a Welsh symphony orchestra and one of the BBC's five professional radio orchestras. The BBC NOW is the only professional symphony orchestra organisatio ...

. The 'lost' episodes were discovered by the Welsh Animation Group in the vaults of British Pathé at Pinewood, and have been described as "...the most comprehensive surviving material of a British screen cartoon creature" The rediscovery of the films has resulted in ''Jerry the Tyke'' being reintroduced to modern audiences, being shown on channel

BBC 2W BBC 2W was a digital television channel run by the BBC in Wales until January 2009. It replaced the standard BBC Two broadcast on digital services in Wales — running on weekdays from 8.30pm to 10pm. Launched on 5 November 2001, it had an in ...

in the United Kingdom since 2002 and featuring at the

Pordenone Silent Film Festival Le Giornate del cinema muto (referred to in English as Pordenone Silent Film Festival) is an annual festival of silent film held in October in Pordenone, northern Italy. It is the first, largest and most important international festival dedicated ...

in 2005 and the British Silent Film Festival in 2010. Today the films form part of the collection of the

National Screen and Sound Archive of Wales The National Screen and Sound Archive of Wales was established in 2001 in order to preserve and promote the audio visual heritage of Wales. The archive is funded by the National Library of Wales and the Welsh Government and located at the National ...

. Most recently ''Jerry the Tyke'' has been brought back to life by musician and composer Simon Lovatt.

and Arad Goch teamed up to provide young audiences a taste of ''Jerry the Tyke''. Performed for the first time at the 2012 "Opening Doors" Performing Arts Festival for Young Audiences at the "Drum" in the National Library of Wales. The show was toured in 2013.

Filmography

* ''Jerry the Troublesome Tyke'' (1925) * ''Honesty Is the Best Policy'' (1925) * ''Jerry's Treasure Island Travel'' (1925) * ''Jerry Tracks The Treasure'' (1925) * ''There's Many a Slip'' (1925) * ''Jerry's Test Trial'' (1925) * ''A Very Jerry Expedition'' (1925) * ''The Joy Provider'' (1925) * ''Never Say Die'' (1925) * ''A Bird in the Hand'' (1925) * ''In and Out of Wembley'' (1925) * ''Jerry's Done it Again'' (1925) * ''Curing a Cold'' (1925) * ''The Deputy'' (1926) * ''"Weather" or Not'' (1926) * ''Ten Little Nigger Boys'' (1926), now referred to as ''Ten Little Jerry Boys'' * ''All Cod!'' (1926) * ''One Exciting Nightmare'' (1926) * ''Both Biters Bit'' (1926) * ''When Jerry Papered the Parlour'' (1926) * ''A Wireless Whirl'' (1926) * ''We Nearly Lose Him'' (1926) * ''He Breaks Out'' (1926) * ''A Splash and a Dash'' (1926) * ''A Flash Affair'' (1926) * ''Football'' (1926) * ''Going West'' (1926) * ''A Sticky Business'' (1926) * ''All Up a Tree'' (1926) * ''Golf'' (1926) * ''He Gets "Fired"'' (1926) * ''Jerry is Too Canny for the Cannibals'' (1926) * ''Jerry Sacks a Saxophone'' (1926) * ''Shown Up!'' (1926) * ''Spoofing a Spook'' (1926) * ''Treasure Hunting'' (1926) * ''Weight and see'' (1926) * ''C.O.D.'' (1926) * ''His Birthday'' (1927) * ''Great Expectations'' (1927)

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Jerry the Tyke Film characters introduced in 1925 Film series introduced in 1925 Animated characters Animated film series Anthropomorphic dogs Animated characters introduced in 1925