His Mouse Friday
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| His Mouse Friday
Tom and Jerry series |
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 The title card of His Mouse Friday |
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| Directed by | William Hanna Joseph Barbera |
| Produced by | Fred Quimby |
| Story by | William Hanna Joseph Barbera |
| Music by | Scott Bradley |
| Animation by | Kenneth Muse Irven Spence Ray Patterson Ed Barge |
| Distributed by | Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer |
| Release date(s) | July 7, 1951 |
| Color process | Technicolor |
| Running time | 7 min 11 secs |
| Preceded by | Sleepy-Time Tom |
| Followed by | Slicked-up Pup |
| IMDb profile | |
His Mouse Friday is a 1951 Tom and Jerry cartoon directed by William Hanna and Joseph Barbera and produced by Fred Quimby for Metro Goldwyn Mayer. It was animated by Kenneth Muse, Irven Spence, Ray Patterson and Ed Barge and released in theatres on July 7, 1951. However, it has rarely been seen on television due to racial sensitivities. The title is a pun combining references to the film His Girl Friday and the character of Friday from the novel Robinson Crusoe.
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[edit] Plot
The cartoon begins with Tom stranded at sea, floating on a wooden raft after presumably being shipwrecked, a la Robinson Crusoe. The poor cat has nothing to eat but shoes and shoelaces.[1] When he spots an island, the waves catapult him there. Tom attempts to feast on the coconuts but they prove to be difficult to break open. Moments later, Tom breaks his teeth after trying to sink them into a turtle. However, Tom does see a creature that is undeniably more edible - Jerry. Tom chases after the rodent and the pair end up in an uninhabited village. Jerry spots a large drum and beats a tune on it, frightening Tom. Jerry also finds a large black cauldron and rubs the soot onto his face and body, making himself black. When Tom emerges from his hiding place, Jerry jumps out at him, hollering in a thick dialect. He orders Tom to "hop in pot"; to cook himself with carrots, potatoes and radishes; but to "hold the onion." Tom starts to feel the heat, and resigned to his death, he looks out of the cauldron and sees Jerry performing his "native" dance, but the movement of the dance causes Jerry's makeshift skirt to fall down, revealing his brown mouse fur. Tom notices this and makes sure that Jerry is aware of it. Tom tries to catch Jerry but stumbles upon some genuine black natives. One licks his lips and declares "Mmmm... barbecued cat!" They chase after Tom. Meanwhile, Jerry, overlooking the whole fracas is attacked by a younger (and thicker-lipped) black native who also licks his lips in delight, saying "Mmmm... barbecued mouse!" The native boy chases after Jerry.
[edit] Censorship
- Some versions of this cartoon have Jerry's and the black characters' dialogue dubbed out.
- Other versions retain the original voices, but edit out the (relatively) more offensive visual design of the young boy character by zooming in so that his thick-lipped expression is not seen. Afterwards the boy's face is seen during the end chase sequence.
[edit] References
[edit] Footnotes
- ^ This scene is reminiscent of Charlie Chaplin's classic The Gold Rush.
