Spike (MGM)

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Spike and Tyke, in the 1951 Tom and Jerry cartoon Slicked-Up Pup.
Spike and Tyke, in the 1951 Tom and Jerry cartoon Slicked-Up Pup.

Spike is a fictional character from the Tom and Jerry series, created by William Hanna and Joseph Barbera. In some cartoons, he was known as "Butch" or as "Killer". He is a stern bulldog who is particularly disapproving of cats, but a softie when it comes to mice. Spike has a few weaknesses that Tom tries to capitalize upon: his possessiveness about his bone and his ticklishness. He made his first appearance in the 1942 Tom and Jerry cartoon Dog Trouble, and his first speaking role was in 1944's The Bodyguard, where he was voiced by Billy Bletcher up until 1949, from which point he was voiced by Daws Butler and at the same time began to talk somewhat like comedian Jimmy Durante.

In 1949's Love That Pup, Spike was given a puppy son, Tyke, who became another popular supporting character in the Tom and Jerry cartoons. A short-lived Spike and Tyke cartoon series was produced by MGM in 1957; only two entries were completed. Within a year, the MGM cartoon studio had shut down, and Hanna and Barbera took Spike and Tyke and retooled them to create one the first television successes for Hanna-Barbera Productions, Augie Doggie and Doggie Daddy. Spike and Tyke would not appear in new Tom and Jerry cartoons, until 1980s The Tom and Jerry Comedy Show, and 1990s Tom and Jerry Kids (In which Tom and Jerry themselves were made younger, but Spike and Tyke remained the same age, and appeared both with Tom and Jerry, and in new episodes of their own). He had also made a cameo in the 1967 MGM Animation/Visual Arts production Matinee Mouse, which reused footage from Love that Pup and The Truce Hurts, and added some new animation in the final punchline. Spike would continue to appear in Tom and Jerry full length features released in the early 2000s and finally, Tom and Jerry Tales.

Spike also appeared (sans Tyke) in the Filmation Tom and Jerry shorts.

This Spike is not to be confused with another character of the same name who appeared in Tex Avery and Michael Lah's Droopy cartoons, and four solo shorts, for MGM. However, the two characters were essentially combined into one in the Tom and Jerry Comedy Show, where the Tom & Jerry version of Spike would also appear in the new Droopy cartoons, filling the role of the other Spike as an antagonist of Droopy. They were not separated as distinct characters again, until the feature Tom and Jerry: The Magic Ring.

Contents

[edit] Featured Cartoons

[edit] Tom and Jerry

[edit] Spike and Tyke

  • Give and Tyke
  • Scat Cats

[edit] The Tom and Jerry Comedy Show

[edit] Tom and Jerry Tales

[edit] Direct-to-video and TV Special

[edit] Trivia

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The article could be improved by integrating relevant items and removing inappropriate ones.
  • Spike has had three renames so far (In order): Killer, Butch, and Spike. Coincidentally, Butch (Cat) is the name of another character in Tom and Jerry.