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William Denby Hanna (July 14, 1910 – March 22, 2001) was an American animator and cartoonist who was the creator of ''
Tom and Jerry ''Tom and Jerry'' is an American animated media franchise and series of comedy short films created in 1940 by William Hanna and Joseph Barbera. Best known for its 161 theatrical short films by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, the series centers on the ...
'' as well as the voice actor for the two title characters. Alongside
Joseph Barbera Joseph Roland Barbera ( ; ; March 24, 1911 – December 18, 2006) was an American animator, director, producer, storyboard artist, and cartoon artist who co-founded the animation studio and production company Hanna-Barbera. Born to Italian ...
, he also founded the animation studio and production company
Hanna-Barbera Hanna-Barbera Cartoons, Inc. ( ) was an American animation studio and production company which was active from 1957 to 2001. It was founded on July 7, 1957, by William Hanna and Joseph Barbera following the decision of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer to c ...
. Hanna joined the Harman and Ising
animation Animation is a method by which still figures are manipulated to appear as moving images. In traditional animation, images are drawn or painted by hand on transparent celluloid sheets to be photographed and exhibited on film. Today, most ani ...
studio in 1930 and steadily gained skill and prominence while working on cartoons such as '' Captain and the Kids''. In 1937, while working at
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc., also known as Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures and abbreviated as MGM, is an American film, television production, distribution and media company owned by amazon (company), Amazon through MGM Holdings, founded o ...
(MGM), Hanna met
Joseph Barbera Joseph Roland Barbera ( ; ; March 24, 1911 – December 18, 2006) was an American animator, director, producer, storyboard artist, and cartoon artist who co-founded the animation studio and production company Hanna-Barbera. Born to Italian ...
. In 1957, they co-founded
Hanna-Barbera Hanna-Barbera Cartoons, Inc. ( ) was an American animation studio and production company which was active from 1957 to 2001. It was founded on July 7, 1957, by William Hanna and Joseph Barbera following the decision of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer to c ...
, which became the most successful television animation studio in the business, creating or producing programs such as '' The Flintstones'', '' The Huckleberry Hound Show'', '' The Jetsons'', '' Scooby-Doo'', ''
The Smurfs ''The Smurfs'' (french: Les Schtroumpfs; nl, De Smurfen) is a Belgian comic franchise centered on a fictional colony of small, blue, humanoid creatures who live in mushroom-shaped houses in the forest. ''The Smurfs'' was first created and in ...
'', and '' Yogi Bear''. In 1967, Hanna-Barbera was sold to
Taft Broadcasting The Taft Broadcasting Company (also known as Taft Television and Radio Company, Incorporated) was an American media conglomerate based in Cincinnati, Ohio. The company was rooted in the family of William Howard Taft, the 27th President of the Un ...
for $12 million, but Hanna and Barbera remained heads of the company until 1991. At that time, the studio was sold to Turner Broadcasting System, which in turn was merged with
Time Warner Warner Media, LLC ( traded as WarnerMedia) was an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate. It was headquartered at the 30 Hudson Yards complex in New York City, United States. It was originally established in 1972 by ...
in 1996; Hanna and Barbera stayed on as advisors. ''
Tom and Jerry ''Tom and Jerry'' is an American animated media franchise and series of comedy short films created in 1940 by William Hanna and Joseph Barbera. Best known for its 161 theatrical short films by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, the series centers on the ...
'' won seven Academy Awards, while Hanna and Barbera were nominated for two others and won eight Emmy Awards. Their cartoons have become cultural icons, and their cartoon characters have appeared in other media such as films, books, and toys. Hanna-Barbera's shows had a worldwide audience of over 300 million people in their 1960s heyday, and have been translated into more than 28 languages.


Early and personal life

William Hanna was born to William John (1873–1949) and Avice Joyce (Denby) Hanna (1882–1956) on July 14, 1910, in
Melrose Melrose may refer to: Places United Kingdom * Melrose, Scottish Borders, a town in the Scottish Borders, Scotland ** Melrose Abbey, ruined monastery ** Melrose RFC, rugby club Australia * Melrose, Queensland, a locality in the South Burnett R ...
, New Mexico Territory. He was the third of seven children. Hanna described his family as "a red-blooded, Irish-American family". His father was a construction superintendent for railroads as well as water and sewer systems throughout the western regions of America, requiring the family to move frequently. When Hanna was three years old, the family moved to
Baker City, Oregon Baker City is a city in and the county seat of Baker County, Oregon, United States. It was named after Edward D. Baker, the only U.S. Senator ever killed in military combat. The population was 10,099 at the time of the 2020 census. History P ...
, where his father worked on the Balm Creek Dam. It was there that Hanna would develop his love of the outdoors. The family moved to
Logan, Utah Logan is a city in Cache County, Utah, United States. The 2020 census recorded the population was 52,778. Logan is the county seat of Cache County and the principal city of the Logan metropolitan area, which includes Cache County and Franklin ...
, before moving to
San Pedro, California San Pedro ( ; Spanish: "St. Peter") is a neighborhood within the City of Los Angeles, California. Formerly a separate city, it consolidated with Los Angeles in 1909. The Port of Los Angeles, a major international seaport, is partially located wi ...
, in 1917. During the next two years they moved several times before eventually settling in Watts, California, in 1919. In 1922, while living in Watts, he joined the Boy Scouts. He attended
Compton High School Compton High School is a high school in Compton, California, United States, part of the Compton Unified School District. History The school opened in 1896 as Compton Union High School and was later re-established as Compton Senior High School in ...
from 1925 through 1928, where he played the saxophone in a dance band. His passion for music carried over into his career; he helped write songs for his cartoons, including the theme for ''The Flintstones''. There are also reports that Hanna attended
UCLA The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California. UCLA's academic roots were established in 1881 as a teachers college then known as the southern branch of the California ...
but this is unconfirmed.
Hanna became an Eagle Scout as a youth and remained active in Scouting throughout his life. As an adult, he served as a Scoutmaster and was recognized by the
Boy Scouts of America The Boy Scouts of America (BSA, colloquially the Boy Scouts) is one of the largest scouting organizations and one of the largest youth organizations in the United States, with about 1.2 million youth participants. The BSA was founded in ...
with their Distinguished Eagle Scout Award in 1985. Despite his numerous career-related awards, Hanna was most proud of this Distinguished Eagle Scout Award. His interests also included
sailing Sailing employs the wind—acting on sails, wingsails or kites—to propel a craft on the surface of the ''water'' (sailing ship, sailboat, raft, windsurfer, or kitesurfer), on ''ice'' (iceboat) or on ''land'' ( land yacht) over a chose ...
and singing in a
barbershop quartet A barbershop quartet is a group of four singers who sing music in the barbershop style, characterized by four-part harmony without instrumental accompaniment, or a cappella. The four voices are: the lead, the vocal part which typically carries t ...
. Hanna studied both journalism and structural engineering at Compton City College, but had to drop out of college with the onset of the
Great Depression The Great Depression (19291939) was an economic shock that impacted most countries across the world. It was a period of economic depression that became evident after a major fall in stock prices in the United States. The economic contagio ...
. On August 7, 1936, Hanna married Violet Blanch Wogatzke (July 23, 1913 – July 10, 2014), and they had a marriage lasting over 64 years, until his death. The marriage produced two children, David William and Bonnie Jean, and seven grandchildren. In 1996, Hanna, with assistance from Los Angeles writer Tom Ito, published his autobiography—Joe Barbera had published his own two years earlier.


Early career

After dropping out of college, Hanna worked briefly as a construction engineer and helped build the Pantages Theatre in Hollywood. He lost that job during the Great Depression and found another at a car wash. His sister's boyfriend encouraged him to apply for a job at
Pacific Title and Art Pacific Title Archives is an American company founded in 1935 by Pacific Title & Art Studio as a film storage and archiving company. Pacific Title & Art was sold in 2007 for US$23 million, after which it "ran into hard times." The 90-year-old co ...
, which produced title cards for motion pictures. While working there, Hanna's talent for drawing became evident, and in 1930 he joined the Harman and Ising animation studio, which had created the ''
Looney Tunes ''Looney Tunes'' is an American animated comedy short film series produced by Warner Bros. starting from 1930 to 1969, concurrently with its partner series '' Merrie Melodies'', during the golden age of American animation. ...
'' and '' Merrie Melodies'' series. Despite a lack of formal training, Hanna soon became head of their ink and paint department. Besides inking and painting, Hanna also wrote songs and lyrics. For the first several years of Hanna's employment, the studio partnered with Pacific Title and Art's Leon Schlesinger, who released the Harman-Ising output through Warner Bros. When Hugh Harman and Rudolph Ising chose to break with Schlesinger and begin producing cartoons independently for Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) in 1933, Hanna was one of the employees who followed them. Hanna was given the opportunity to direct his first cartoon in 1936; the result was ''To Spring'', part of the Harman-Ising ''Happy Harmonies'' series. The following year, MGM decided to terminate their partnership with Harman-Ising and bring production in-house. Hanna was among the first people MGM hired away from Harman-Ising to their new cartoon studio. During 1938–1939, he served as a senior director on MGM's ''Captain and the Kids'' series, based upon the comic strip of the same name (an alternate version of the '' Katzenjammer Kids'' that had resulted from a 1914 lawsuit). The series did not do well; consequently, Hanna was demoted to a story man and the series was canceled. Hanna's desk at MGM was opposite that of Joseph Barbera, who had previously worked at Terrytoons. The two quickly realized they would make a good team. By 1939 they had solidified a partnership that would last over 60 years. Hanna and Barbera worked alongside animation director
Tex Avery Frederick Bean "Tex" Avery (February 26, 1908 – August 26, 1980) was an American animator, cartoonist, director, and voice actor. He was known for directing and producing animated cartoons during the golden age of American animation. His mo ...
, who had created Daffy Duck and
Bugs Bunny Bugs Bunny is an animated cartoon character created in the late 1930s by Leon Schlesinger Productions (later Warner Bros. Cartoons) and voiced originally by Mel Blanc. Bugs is best known for his starring roles in the ''Looney Tunes'' and ''Merr ...
for Warner Bros. and directed '' Droopy'' cartoons at MGM.


Tom and Jerry

In 1940, Hanna and Barbera jointly directed ''
Puss Gets the Boot ''Puss Gets the Boot'' is a 1940 American animated short film and is the first short in what would become the ''Tom and Jerry'' cartoon series, though neither were yet referred to by these names. It was directed by William Hanna, Joseph Barbera, ...
'', which was nominated for an Academy Award for Best (Cartoon) Short Subject. The studio wanted a diversified cartoon portfolio, so despite the success of ''Puss Gets the Boot'', Hanna and Barbera's supervisor, Fred Quimby, did not want to produce more cat and mouse cartoons. Surprised by the success of ''Puss Gets the Boot'', Hanna and Barbera ignored Quimby's resistance and continued developing the cat-and-mouse theme. By this time, however, Hanna wanted to return to working for Ising, to whom he felt very loyal. Hanna and Barbera met with Quimby, who discovered that although Ising had taken sole credit for producing ''Puss Gets the Boot'', he never actually worked on it. Quimby, who had wanted to start a new animation unit independent of Ising, then gave Hanna and Barbera permission to pursue their cat-and-mouse idea. The result was their most famous creation, ''
Tom and Jerry ''Tom and Jerry'' is an American animated media franchise and series of comedy short films created in 1940 by William Hanna and Joseph Barbera. Best known for its 161 theatrical short films by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, the series centers on the ...
''. Modeled after the ''Puss Gets the Boot'' characters with slight differences, the series followed Jerry, the rodent who continually outwitted his feline foe, Tom. Hanna said they settled on the cat and mouse theme for this cartoon because: "We knew we needed two characters. We thought we needed conflict, and chase and action. And a cat after a mouse seemed like a good, basic thought." The revamped characters first appeared in 1941's ''
The Midnight Snack ''The Midnight Snack'' is a ''Tom and Jerry'' cartoon released on July 19, 1941. It is the second of the ''Tom and Jerry'' films, returning to the basic premise of the previous film, ''Puss Gets the Boot'', following that cartoon's Academy Awards ...
''. Over the next 17 years Hanna and Barbera worked almost exclusively on ''Tom and Jerry'', directing more than 114 highly popular cartoon shorts. During World War II they also made animated training films. ''Tom and Jerry'' relied mostly on motion instead of dialog. Despite its popularity, ''Tom and Jerry'' has often been criticized as excessively violent. Nonetheless, the series won its first Academy Award for the 11th short, ''
The Yankee Doodle Mouse ''The Yankee Doodle Mouse'' is a 1943 American one-reel animated cartoon in Technicolor. It is the eleventh ''Tom and Jerry'' short produced by Fred Quimby, and directed by William Hanna and Joseph Barbera, with musical supervision by Scott B ...
'' (1943)—a war-time adventure. ''Tom and Jerry'' was ultimately nominated for 14 Academy Awards, winning 7. No other character-based theatrical animated series has won more awards, nor has any other series featuring the same characters. Tom and Jerry also made guest appearances in several of MGM's live-action films, including '' Anchors Aweigh'' (1945) and '' Invitation to the Dance'' (1956) with Gene Kelly, and '' Dangerous When Wet'' (1953) with Esther Williams. Quimby accepted each Academy Award for ''Tom and Jerry'' without inviting Hanna and Barbera onstage. The cartoons were also released with Quimby listed as the sole producer, following the same practice for which he had condemned Ising. When Quimby retired in late 1955, Hanna and Barbera were placed in charge of MGM's animation division. As the studio began to lose more revenue due to television, MGM soon realized that re-releasing old cartoons was far more profitable than producing new ones. In 1957, MGM ordered Hanna and Barbera's business manager to close the cartoon division and lay off everyone by a phone call. Hanna and Barbera found the no-notice closure puzzling because ''Tom and Jerry'' had been so successful.


Television

During his last year at MGM, Hanna branched out into television, forming the short-lived company Shield Productions with fellow animator Jay Ward, who had created the series '' Crusader Rabbit''. Their partnership soon ended, and in 1957 Hanna reteamed with Joseph Barbera to produce cartoons for television and theatrical release. The two brought different skills to the company; Barbera was a skilled gag writer and sketch artist, while Hanna had a gift for timing, story construction, and recruiting top artists. Major business decisions would be made together, though each year the title of president alternated between them. A coin toss determined that Hanna would have precedence in the naming of the new company, first called H-B Enterprises but soon changed to Hanna-Barbera Productions. Barbera and Hanna's MGM colleague George Sidney, the director of ''Anchors Aweigh'', became the third partner and business manager in the company, and arranged a deal for distribution and working capital with Screen Gems, the television division of
Columbia Pictures Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc. is an American film production studio that is a member of the Sony Pictures Motion Picture Group, a division of Sony Pictures Entertainment, which is one of the Big Five studios and a subsidiary of the mu ...
, who took part ownership of the new studio. The first offering from the new company was '' The Ruff & Reddy Show'', a series which detailed the friendship between a dog and cat. Despite a lukewarm response for their first theatrical venture, '' Loopy De Loop'', Hanna-Barbera soon established themselves with two successful television series: ''The Huckleberry Hound Show'' and ''The Yogi Bear Show''. A 1960 survey showed that half of the viewers of ''Huckleberry Hound'' were adults. This prompted the company to create a new animated series, '' The Flintstones''. A parody of ''
The Honeymooners ''The Honeymooners'' is an American television sitcom which originally aired from 1955 to 1956, created by and starring Jackie Gleason, and based on a recurring comedy sketch of the same name that had been part of Gleason's variety show. It fo ...
'', the new show followed a typical
Stone Age The Stone Age was a broad prehistoric period during which stone was widely used to make tools with an edge, a point, or a percussion surface. The period lasted for roughly 3.4 million years, and ended between 4,000 BC and 2,000 BC, with ...
family with home appliances, talking animals, and celebrity guests. With an audience of both children and adults, ''The Flintstones'' became the first animated prime-time show to be a hit. Fred Flintstone's signature exclamation ''"yabba dabba doo"'' soon entered everyday usage, and the show boosted the studio to the top of the TV cartoon field. The company later produced a space-age version of ''The Flintstones'', known as ''The Jetsons''. Although both shows reappeared in the 1970s and 1980s, ''The Flintstones'' was far more popular. By the late 1960s, Hanna-Barbera Productions was the most successful television animation studio in the business. The Hanna-Barbera studio produced over 3,000 animated half-hour television shows. Among the more than 100 cartoon series and specials they produced were: '' Atom Ant'', '' Augie Doggie and Doggie Daddy'' (an imitation of the earlier '' Spike and Tyke'' MGM cartoons), '' Jonny Quest'', '' Josie and the Pussycats'', ''
Magilla Gorilla Magilla Gorilla is a fictional gorilla and the star of '' The Magilla Gorilla Show'' by Hanna-Barbera that aired from 1963 to 1965. Character description Magilla Gorilla (voiced by Allan Melvin) is a fun-loving yet trouble-prone anthropomorphic g ...
'', '' Pixie and Dixie and Mr. Jinks'', '' Quick Draw McGraw'', and '' Top Cat''. ''Top Cat'' was based on Phil Silvers's character
Sgt. Bilko ''Sgt. Bilko'' is a 1996 American military comedy film directed by Jonathan Lynn and written by Andy Breckman. It is an adaptation of the 1950s television series ''The Phil Silvers Show'', often informally called ''Sgt. Bilko'', or simply ''Bilk ...
, though it has been erroneously reported that Sgt. Bilko was the basis for Yogi Bear. The Hanna-Barbera studio also produced '' Scooby-Doo'' (1969–91) and ''
The Smurfs ''The Smurfs'' (french: Les Schtroumpfs; nl, De Smurfen) is a Belgian comic franchise centered on a fictional colony of small, blue, humanoid creatures who live in mushroom-shaped houses in the forest. ''The Smurfs'' was first created and in ...
'' (1981–89). The company also produced animated specials based on Alice in Wonderland, Jack and the Beanstalk, Cyrano de Bergerac, as well as the feature-length film '' Charlotte's Web'' (1973). As popular as their cartoons were with 1960s audiences, they were disliked by artists. Television programs had lower budgets than theatrical animation, and this economic reality caused many animation studios to go out of business in the 1950s and 1960s, putting many people in the industry out of work. Hanna-Barbera was key in the development of limited animation, which allowed television animation to be more cost-effective, but also reduced quality. Hanna and Barbera had first experimented with these techniques in the early days of ''Tom and Jerry''. To reduce the cost of each episode, shows often focused more on character dialogue than detailed animation. The number of drawings for a seven-minute cartoon decreased from 14,000 to nearly 2,000, and the company implemented innovative techniques such as rapid background changes to improve viewing. Reviewers criticized the change from vivid, detailed animation to repetitive movements by two-dimensional characters. Barbera once said that their choice was to adapt to the television budgets or change careers. The new style did not limit the success of their animated shows, enabling Hanna–Barbera to stay in business, providing employment to many who would otherwise have been out of work. Limited animation became the standard for television animation, and continues to be used today in television programs such as ''
The Simpsons ''The Simpsons'' is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series is a satirical depiction of American life, epitomized by the Simpson family, which consists of Homer, Marge, Bart, ...
'' and '' South Park''. In 1966, Hanna-Barbera Productions was sold to Taft Broadcasting (renamed Great American Communications in 1987) for $12 million. Hanna and Barbera remained at the head of the company until 1991. At that point, the company was sold to the Turner Broadcasting System for an estimated , which itself merged with
Time Warner Warner Media, LLC ( traded as WarnerMedia) was an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate. It was headquartered at the 30 Hudson Yards complex in New York City, United States. It was originally established in 1972 by ...
, owners of Warner Bros., in 1996. This began a close association with the
Cartoon Network Cartoon Network (often abbreviated as CN) is an American cable television channel owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. It is a part of The Cartoon Network, Inc., a division that also has the broadcasting and production activities of Boomerang, ...
. Hanna and Barbera continued to advise their former company and periodically worked on new Hanna-Barbera shows, including ''
The Cartoon Cartoon Show ''What a Cartoon!'' (later known as ''The What a Cartoon! Show'' and ''The Cartoon Cartoon Show'') is an American animated anthology series created by Fred Seibert for Cartoon Network. The shorts were produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions; by the ...
'' series and hit silver screen versions of '' The Flintstones'' (1994) and '' Scooby-Doo'' (2002).


Death

Hanna died of esophageal cancer at his home in North Hollywood,
Los Angeles, California Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, largest city in the U.S. state, state of California and the List of United States cities by population, sec ...
on March 22, 2001, at the age of 90. After his death,
Cartoon Network Cartoon Network (often abbreviated as CN) is an American cable television channel owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. It is a part of The Cartoon Network, Inc., a division that also has the broadcasting and production activities of Boomerang, ...
aired a 20-second segment with black dots tracing Hanna's
portrait A portrait is a painting, photograph, sculpture, or other artistic representation of a person, in which the face and its expressions are predominant. The intent is to display the likeness, personality, and even the mood of the person. For this ...
with the words "We'll miss you – Cartoon Network" fading in on the right-hand side. This same type of tribute happened for
Chuck Jones Charles Martin Jones (September 21, 1912 – February 22, 2002) was an American animator, director, and painter, best known for his work with Warner Bros. Cartoons on the '' Looney Tunes'' and '' Merrie Melodies'' series of shorts. He wrote, pro ...
in 2002 and Hanna's partner,
Joseph Barbera Joseph Roland Barbera ( ; ; March 24, 1911 – December 18, 2006) was an American animator, director, producer, storyboard artist, and cartoon artist who co-founded the animation studio and production company Hanna-Barbera. Born to Italian ...
in 2006, when each of them died. However, Barbera, unlike the other two, had an audio clip of his voice playing in his Cartoon Network promotional tribute. Hanna is buried at Ascension Cemetery in Lake Forest, California.


Legacy

Most of the cartoons Hanna and Barbera created revolved around close friendship or partnership; this theme is evident with Yogi Bear and Boo Boo, Fred Flintstone and
Barney Rubble Barney Rubble is a fictional character who appears in the television animated series ''The Flintstones''. He is the diminutive, blond-haired caveman husband of Betty Rubble and adoptive father of Bamm-Bamm Rubble. His best friend is his next ...
, Ruff and Reddy, ''The Jetsons'' family, and the friends in ''Scooby-Doo''. These may have been a reflection of the close business friendship and partnership that Hanna and Barbera shared for almost 60 years. Professionally, they balanced each other's strengths and weaknesses very well, but Hanna and Barbera traveled in completely different social circles. Hanna's personal friends primarily included other animators; Barbera tended to socialize with Hollywood celebrities. Their division of work roles complemented each other but they rarely talked outside of work since Hanna was interested in the outdoors and Barbera liked beaches, good food and drink. Nevertheless, in their long partnership, in which they worked with over 2,000 animated characters, Hanna and Barbera rarely exchanged a cross word. Barbera said: "We understood each other perfectly, and each of us had deep respect for the other's work." Hanna is considered one of the all-time great animators and on a par with
Tex Avery Frederick Bean "Tex" Avery (February 26, 1908 – August 26, 1980) was an American animator, cartoonist, director, and voice actor. He was known for directing and producing animated cartoons during the golden age of American animation. His mo ...
. Hanna and Barbera were among the most successful animators on the cinema screen and successfully adapted to the change television brought to the industry. Leonard Maltin says the Hanna–Barbera team " ayhold a record for producing consistently superior cartoons using the same characters year after year—without a break or change in routine. Their characters are not only animated superstars, but also a very beloved part of American pop culture". They are often considered as
Walt Disney Walter Elias Disney (; December 5, 1901December 15, 1966) was an American animator, film producer and entrepreneur. A pioneer of the American animation industry, he introduced several developments in the production of cartoons. As a film p ...
's only rivals as cartoonists. Hanna and Barbera had a lasting impact on television animation. Cartoons they created often make ''greatest'' lists. Many of their characters have appeared in film, books, toys, and other media. During the 1960s their TV shows had a worldwide audience of over 300 million people and have since been translated into more than 20 languages. The works of Hanna and Barbera also have been recognized for their music, such as ''
The Cat Concerto ''The Cat Concerto'' is a 1947 American one-reel animated cartoon and is the 29th ''Tom and Jerry'' short, released to theatres on April 26, 1947. It was produced by Fred Quimby and directed by William Hanna and Joseph Barbera, with musical supe ...
'' (1946) and ''
Johann Mouse ''Johann Mouse'' is a 1953 American one-reel animated cartoon and the 75th ''Tom and Jerry'' cartoon, released in theaters on March 21, 1953 by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. The short is directed by William Hanna and Joseph Barbera, composed by Scott Brad ...
'' (1952), called "masterpieces of animation" in part due to their use of classical music. In all, the Hanna–Barbera team won seven Academy Awards and eight
Emmy Award The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the calendar year, each with the ...
s, including the 1960 award for ''The Huckleberry Hound Show'', which was the first Emmy awarded to an animated series. They also won these awards: Golden Globe for Television Achievement (1960), Golden IKE Award—Pacific Pioneers in Broadcasting (1983), Pioneer Award— Broadcast Music Incorporated (1987), Iris Award—NATPE Men of the Year (1988), Licensing Industry Merchandisers' Association Award for Lifetime Achievement (1988), Governors Award of the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences (1988), Jackie Coogan Award for Outstanding Contribution to Youth through Entertainment Youth in Film (1988), Frederic W. Ziv Award for Outstanding Achievement in Telecommunications—Broadcasting Division College—Conservatory of Music
University of Cincinnati The University of Cincinnati (UC or Cincinnati) is a public research university in Cincinnati, Ohio. Founded in 1819 as Cincinnati College, it is the oldest institution of higher education in Cincinnati and has an annual enrollment of over 44,0 ...
(1989), stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame (1976), several
Annie Award The Annie Awards are accolades which the Los Angeles branch of the International Animated Film Association, ASIFA-Hollywood, has presented each year since 1972 to recognize excellence in animation shown in cinema and television. Originally de ...
s, several environmental awards, and were recipients of numerous other accolades prior to their induction into the
Television Hall of Fame The Television Academy Hall of Fame honors individuals who have made extraordinary contributions to U.S. television. The hall of fame was founded by former Academy of Television Arts & Sciences (ATAS) president John H. Mitchell (1921–1988). ...
in 1994. In March 2005 the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences and Warner Bros. Animation dedicated a wall sculpture at the Television Academy's Hall of Fame Plaza in North Hollywood to Hanna and Barbera. Hanna's audio of Tom Cat's screams and various vocal effects he provided for the cat and mouse from the original ''Tom and Jerry'' cartoons over at MGM back in the 1940s and 1950s were reused in the 2006 direct-to-video film, '' Tom and Jerry: Shiver Me Whiskers'', '' Tom and Jerry Tales'' (2006-2008 TV series, several season 1 episodes), '' The Tom and Jerry Show (2014 TV series)'', '' Tom & Jerry (2021 film)'', ''
Tom and Jerry Special Shorts ''Tom and Jerry Special Shorts'' is a short-lived American animated television series based on ''Tom and Jerry'' that premiered and ended on HBO Max on February 20, 2021, making it the shortest lived of any ''Tom and Jerry'' related shows. The ...
(2021 series)'', '' Tom and Jerry in New York (2021 series)'', the upcoming educational TV series, ''Tom and Jerry Time (previously known as Tom and Jerry Junior) (2022 series)'', the recent direct-to-video film, '' Tom and Jerry: Cowboy Up! (2022 film)'', the upcoming Holiday direct-to-video film, '' Tom and Jerry: Snowman's Land'' (2022 film) and the upcoming video game, '' MultiVersus'' (2022 video game). Outside of Tom and Jerry, his screams were modified for the Critters in Critters 2 and Critters 3, it also was used in the James Bond film For Your Eyes Only and for the caveman in the game ''Prehistorik Man''.


See also

*
Golden age of American animation The golden age of American animation was a period in the history of U.S. animation that began with the popularization of sound cartoons in 1928 and gradually ended in the late 1960s, where theatrical animated shorts began losing popularity to the ...
*
Tom and Jerry filmography This is a complete list of the 164 shorts in the ''Tom and Jerry'' series produced and released between 1940 and 2014. Of these, 162 are theatrical shorts, one is a made-for-TV short, and one is a 2-minute sketch shown as part of a telethon. ...
* List of works produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions * '' Peace on Earth'' (remade by Hanna and Barbera as ''Good Will to Men'') * ''Tom and Jerry'' awards and nominations * '' Tom and Jerry: The Movie''


References


Further reading

* * * * * *


External links

*
Warner Brothers official Hanna–Barbera website
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Hanna, William 1910 births 2001 deaths People from Curry County, New Mexico American people of Irish descent American people of Lebanese descent Animators from New Mexico Animal impersonators American animated film directors American animated film producers Animation screenwriters Film directors from New Mexico Hanna-Barbera people Compton High School alumni El Camino College Compton Center alumni Emmy Award winners Television producers from California American film producers American male voice actors American voice directors Deaths from esophageal cancer Deaths from cancer in California Directors of Best Animated Short Academy Award winners Film directors from Los Angeles Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer cartoon studio people 20th-century screenwriters